EngenderHealth
 |
|
| Founded | 1937 |
|---|---|
| Founder | Marian Stephenson Olden |
| Type |
Nonprofit organization IRS exemption status: 501(c)(3) |
| Focus | sexual and reproductive health, family planning, contraception, HIV and AIDS, gender equality. |
| Location |
|
|
Area served
|
United States, Africa, Asia |
|
Key people
|
Pamela W. Barnes, Hugh Moore |
|
Revenue
|
$58,420,745 (FY2012) |
|
Employees
|
500+ |
| Slogan | "for a better life" |
| Website | www |
EngenderHealth is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization based in New York City, active in women's health and sexual and reproductive health (SRH) throughout Africa, Asia, and the Americas. The organization was established in 1943 and provided access to voluntary surgical contraception in the United States during its first 25 years. Today, EngenderHealth works to improve the health and well-being of people in the poorest communities of the world.
In the course of its existence, EngenderHealth has undergone changes in name and mission, reflecting internal debate, shifts in public policy, and changes in public opinion and international awareness. The organisation has been described as a prime example of how the modern US family planning movement was shaped by three overlapping but distinguishable social forces, i.e. the eugenics movement, the movement for (female) reproductive rights and the population control movement (Critchlow, 1995).
The organization was founded in 1937 as the Sterilization League of New Jersey (SLNJ) then renamed to Sterilization League For Human Betterment in 1943. Its name changed again to Birthright, Inc.: an educational nonprofit organization promoting "all reliable and scientific means for improving the biological stock of the human race." In 1950, Birthright was renamed the Human Betterment Association of America (HBAA).
After the Second World War, organizations and persons promoting eugenic sterilization were under pressure to change their advocacy. In the 1950s the organization's mission changed to focus on rights, choice, and voluntary action. It discarded its eugenics rationale and condemned compulsion (legislative or otherwise) for sterilization.
In 1962, the organization's name was changed to the Human Betterment Association for Voluntary Sterilization (HBAVS). Although the organization attracted a number of prominent scientists and activists, its influence soared in 1964 when Hugh Moore, the wealthy inventor of the Dixie Cup and noted supporter of population control, threw his influence and money behind the group. Apart from financial support, Moore served as president from 1964 to 1969. Under his presidency, in 1965, the HBAVS was renamed the Association for Voluntary Sterilization (AVS). In 1969, AVS funded the first vasectomy clinic in the United States.
...
Wikipedia