Rebecca Skloot, the author of the Henrietta Lacks book, struggled to get anyone in the Lacks family to talk to her. Clearly, they feel as though they have been exploited before she even tries to contact them. What are some examples from the text that indicate they feel annoyed to be contacted? Is Rebecca Skloot guilty of harassing the family and invading their privacy in the same way as the doctors who harvested her cells? Explain your answer?
14 Comments
sierra
4/28/2016 11:35:24 am
I believe that some of the stuff that the family says to her and the way it comes off makes it sound as if they are angry and mad. I don't necessarily believe that she should feel bad about asking them tho because she is bringing it so their mother is noticed with all of the scientifical differences she has made and that she has helped so many different people. I don't think that they should be upset that someone is trying to get their late mother noticed. I understand that their mother's cells were taken from her without permission and that they have been recognized but that is what is trying to happen right now. the author is trying to get the family noticed.
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Loodachris
4/28/2016 11:46:00 am
I agree
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Anteia
4/28/2016 11:39:25 am
In the book it is quite obvious that they are annoyed with people contacting them about the cells before Skloot even contacts them. When Skloot calls Pattillo, he's outright reluctant to give her the phone numbers of the Lacks family. He asked her a good amount of questions to try to figure out whether it would be worth it or not. When Skloot finally gets the numbers, she immediately calls Henrietta Lacks's oldest daughter, Deborah. Deborah answered the phone in a "weary but warm" voice. She acted bored with the conversation right from the very start of it. Deborah's father acted the same way, although it seems like there was a bit more anger mixed in with it. When Skloot called David Lacks, it took a while to get him to talk on the phone. The person talking changed several times before the phone finally made its way to David. From what the several unknown (for the moment) people were saying, it was obvious that they knew it was a white person calling about the HeLa cells. They were all annoyed and fed up with having to deal with HeLa cells and scientists. So, is Skloot guilty of harassing the family and invading their privacy? Yes. Although it might not be for the exact reason that others have called, it still relates to Henrietta Lacks. She is still digging into their personal lives. Is it in the same way that the scientists had stolen the HeLa cells? No. She didn't take a part of Henrietta's actual being and use it to make money without any thought of giving Henrietta or her family a part of the riches.
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jesse
4/28/2016 11:49:40 am
I agree with what you said, because she did invade their live just like the reporters who tried to pry info from the family, but did not take without asking.
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Loodachris
4/28/2016 11:53:05 am
Although the family did not receive any benefits from the cells, and they are annoyed, Skloots, in my mind, did not invade the privacy of the Lacks family. she only took information that was given under free will of the family.
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Mikayla
4/30/2016 01:49:40 pm
I agree with you but it's still rude in a way and I could understand why they were mad.
Bryan
4/29/2016 09:17:33 pm
I completely agree with you
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Brian
5/1/2016 09:36:04 pm
I wouldn't say she harassed them because she was just trying to shed light on the story and tell the world about it and help it never happened again. What she did was probably somewhat rude but at the end of the day people are rude and the Lacks probably needed to grow up a bit and take advantage of being able to get their story out.
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jesse
4/28/2016 11:41:15 am
On page 55 David said, “Well, so let my old lady cells talk to you and leave me alone,I had enough ‘a you people.” Also on page 53 3rd paragraph it says “Again and again,she said,’I can’t take it anymore,’ and,’ Who are we supposed to trust now?’ More than anything she told me she wanted to learn about her mother and what her cells had done for science. She said people had been promising information for decades and never delivering. ‘I’m sick of it,’ she said.” And on the same page 2nd paragraph “‘My nerve broke down,’ she said. ‘I just couldn’t take it. My speech is coming back a little better-I almost had two strokes in two weeks cause of all that stuff with my mother’s cells.’” She is not guilty in the same way the doctors are because she just wanted to spread the truth about the woman whose cells they were, but she is guilty just like the reporters who harassed the family for info.
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Loodachris
4/28/2016 11:44:27 am
The Lacks family is annoyed by people calling them about Henrietta's cells, and we can see this by their attitude towards Rebecca Skloot. Skloot only wants some of the information about Lacks, so she can write a story about the mother, wife, sister, and all the other things Henrietta was. I don't think Skloot is being invasive because she isn't prying, she is only taking the information that is freely given by the family.
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Noah
4/29/2016 02:07:58 pm
An example of the Lacks family's tiredness of being interviewed or talked to about Henrietta's cells is show when Rebecca called the number of Day and the reaction the kids say and the reaction of Day him self. Is shown when she first calls and after the pure usual of a stranger calling the child then said "Lady on the phone for pop about the cells." even without Rebecca saying anything about the cells. It gives a good example that the family is accustomed for people to be calling about the cells when they are not known.
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Bryan
4/29/2016 09:16:58 pm
I think that Rebecca shouldn't feel guilty about invading their privacy because she's trying to get their family noticed and show people what the doctors were doing with her cells. I think that the Lacks family was getting annoyed about people calling about Henrietta's cells and we're getting mad about it. I don't think that Rebecca should feel as guilty as the doctors but she should feel kind of guilty because she bugged the family so much about it.
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Mikayla
4/30/2016 01:47:49 pm
I think they have every write to be mad they were lied to for a long time and uesed in a way. I all so didn't really like the way Rebecca called them and just said I'm so exited to talk to you in I'v been trying to get hold of u for so long to Henrietta's daughter without asking how her day was how is she first.But I don't think that she is invading their privetce she wants to write a book and just let everyone know what scientist can do behind people's backs to make them big and famous for doing something completely unhuman.
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Brian
5/1/2016 09:30:35 pm
I think that the kids had a right to be mad and think of it as kinda harassment. I mean doctors had stolen their mother's cells and they happened to be immortal and then didn't tell them. Now I think Rebecca Skloot didn't mean to "harass" them for the information. She just wanted to shed light on a touchy subject so everyone could read and understand the horror if it to help ensure it never happens again. I don't think she meant to do any harm and then so she should maybe feel bad for them because it's a tough situation Henrietta's going through but not guilty.
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