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SOWING DIOXIN ON THE SKIN OF AMERICAN PRISONERS
Beginning in 1965, approximately 70 prisoners at the Holmesburg Prison in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania were exposed to large doses of dioxin all over their body. The prisoners reported participating in skin related experiments in order to receive money, cigarettes, and/or to reduce their sentence time. Moreover, the test subjects of the dioxin tests were predominantly performed on black prisoners at an estimated 47 to 9 ratio compared to non-black prisoners. Dioxin, a key component in Agent Orange and a by-product of herbicide production, would be placed on the backs, shoulders, forearms, and hair of the Holmesburg prisoners from 1965-1967.
The Dow Company initially contacted Dr. Albert A. Kligman, a dermatologist working at the Holmesburg Prison, to determine the human threshold and effects of exposure to dioxin on human skin due to a recent herbicide incident in which workers were in contact with dioxin. In 1966, Dr. Kligman reported to the Dow Company that there were no noticeable effects to the exposure of dioxin at minute dosages and requested that he further study dioxin. For his following experiments, Dr. Kligman used about 468 times greater dosages of dioxin than the initial protocol to be studied by the Dow Company. Dr. Kligman continued to sow the dioxin on the skin of the Holmesburg prisoners with no oversight. The prisoners that participated in the dioxin tests signed consent forms that were one sentence long. The consent forms were created to provide legal protection for the hospital, laboratories, and the prison. As prisoners many of their rights were stripped from them and were expected to follow demands. The dioxin experiments continued for an additional year and a half.
During the 1980s, local and nationwide newspapers uncovered the dioxin tests conducted on Holmesburg prisoners. As a result, former prisoners shared their experiences:
I was a prisoner in Holmesburg in 1967 and injected with dioxin as part of a medical testing program there. We were supposed to get money or time off for participating in these tests. I was given injections every 10 days, following a pattern of different colors that were patches on my arm and shoulders and matched with the colors on the card… Six or seven other prisoners were injected with me at one time. We were injected once a week for five or six weeks.
Many of the prisoners were unaware of what chemicals were on their bodies. Some former Holmesburg prisoners detailed having several skin patch tests on their bodies with chemicals, unexplainable foaming at the mouth, and blistering and scarring of their skin. Additionally, one former prisoner reported how he felt embarrassed of the scars and damage to his skin and body from exposure to dioxin and other chemicals or hormones. Several former inmates filed lawsuits against Dr. Kligman and contributing partners for reproductive damages and persistent physiological and psychological damages. Few to none of the former inmates were successful in their lawsuits because the written records of the dioxin experiments were said to have been destroyed.
Sources:
Camerole, Joshua., et al. Acres of Skin the Documentary. Infobase, Films for the Humanities & Sciences, 2013.
Epstein, Aaron. “Human Guinea Pigs: Dioxin Tested at Holmesburg.” The Philadelphia Inquirer, 11 Jan. 1981.
Holmesburg Prison. Photograph. PhillyHistory.org. City of Philadelphia, Office of the City Representative. Web.
Hornblum, Allen M. “‘Danger! This Material Is Extremely Toxic.’ The Dioxin Experiments.” Acres of Skin: Human Experiments at Holmesburg Prison, Routledge, pp. 201–22, doi:10.4324/9780203903957-14.
Maicher, Michael J. Prisoners Volunteer to Save Lives. 27 Feb. 1966. Photograph. Temple Digital Collections. Philadelphia, PA Temple University Libraries. Web.
Reiter, Keramet. "Experimentation on Prisoners: Persistent Dilemmas in Rights and Regulations." California Law Review 97.2 (2009): 501-566.
Rowe, V. K. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Office of General Counsel. Hearing on the Dow Chemical Medical Experiments on Prisoners Transcript, November 1980.