Halliday Sutherland

"A born writer, especially a born story-teller. Dr. Sutherland, who is distinguished in medicine, is an amateur in the sense that he only writes when he has nothing better to do. But when he does, it could hardly be done better." G.K. Chesterton.

Book: Exterminating Poverty: The true story of the eugenic plan to get rid of the poor and the Scottish doctor who fought against it.

Exterminating Poverty: The true story of the eugenic plan to get rid of the poor, and the Scottish doctor who fought against it is about Dr. Halliday Sutherland’s fight against the settled science of his era, eugenics.

To a contemporary reader, that may not sound terribly challenging. After all, who would be in favour of eugenics? The answer is some of the most eminent persons of his age: John Maynard Keynes, Bertrand Russell, Sir James Barr, Sir William Arbuthnot Lane, G.B. Shaw, H.G. Wells, Karl Pearson (Professor of Eugenics at University College, London), the Rt Hon George Roberts MP, the Lady Constance Lytton and Marie Stopes.

Three elements set the conflict in motion:

  • Tuberculosis (TB) – an infectious disease that killed 70,000 Britons each year, mostly among the poor (50,000 died from Consumption or TB of the lungs);
  • Eugenics – a pseudo-science whose adherents believed that Consumption was caused primarily by the defective heredity of its victims, and
  • The heartless eugenicists who saw TB as beneficial for Britain because it did a rough but effective job of killing the so-called “unfit”.

In 1921 a birth control clinic was opened in a poor part of London as part of a wider eugenic project to get rid of poverty by breeding out the poor. While the founder, Marie Stopes dispensed her “Prorace” (and later “Racial”) brand contraceptives to the poor women who wanted them, she campaigned and lobbied politicians for the compulsory sterilization of the poor women (and men) who did not.

Dr Halliday Sutherland attacked the clinic. He received a writ for libel from its founder, Dr Marie Stopes.

Exterminating Poverty is available for sale on amazon.com, amazon.co.uk and amazon.com.au.

3 comments on “Book: Exterminating Poverty: The true story of the eugenic plan to get rid of the poor and the Scottish doctor who fought against it.

  1. W. Peter Gadsby
    15 October 2020

    Just purchased the e-book on Kindle, and looking forward to reading it.

    • markhsutherland
      15 October 2020

      Thank you. It is gratifying that the story is coming to the attention of a wider audience in time for the centenary of the opening of the Mothers’ Clinic on 17 March 2021 and of the trial on 21 February 2023. I hope you enjoy the book and if you do, please leave a review on Amazon. It really helps other readers to find the book.

  2. Lyndy
    12 January 2022

    It’s still relevant today if you substitute COVID for TB 🙁

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Stopes v Sutherland libel trial 1922-24

Centenary of the Court of Appeal's judgment7 July 2023
28 days to go.

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