The "lethal chamber": further evidence for the euthanasia option

Historical discussions of the euthanasia or "lethal chamber" option in relation to people with mental retardation were presented. Positions were classified into those (a) dismissing the option, (b) presenting ambivalent views, and (c) showing outright support. Tredgold's forthright views in support of euthanasia for "idiots" and "imbeciles" were highlighted. Eugenic beliefs in the primacy of heredity over environment in determining mortality and the positive role of natural selection in race betterment were presented. I proposed that these beliefs were used to condone, if not encourage, the poor conditions characteristic of large, segregated institutions during the early decades of this century and their high rates of mortality from infectious diseases such as tuberculosis. The conclusion was drawn that euthanasia may thus have been implemented, albeit unofficially, in at least some institutions.