Tuskegee
Miss Evers’ Boys
David Morehan
Miss Evers’ Boys portrays the emotional effects of one of the most amoral instances of governmental experimentation on humans ever perpetrated.
It depicts the government’s
involvement in research targeting a group of African American males (“The Tuskegee
Experiment”), while simultaneously exploring the depths of human tragedy and suffering that result, as seen through the eyes of Eunice Evers. The viewer watches as a seemingly innocuous program progresses into a full-blown ethical catastrophe—all the while taking Miss Evers through a moral journey, with her decisions having ramifications on the life and well-being of her best friends—her “boys.”
I.
Structure
This movie deals with the ethical considerations present in human experimentation. The
government, wanting to mimic the Oslo Experiments, intends to study a population of AfricanAmericans inflicted with syphilis. The movie takes place in alternate settings, transitioning between a 1973 Senatorial hearing and the site of the actual study in Alabama, beginning in 1932 and moving forward. Miss Eunice Evers, a nurse at a local Tuskegee hospital, is the centerpiece of the movie.
II.
Setting & Plot Summary
With an ominous lead-in quote, Miss Evers’ Boys begins to tell the tale of an emotionally
courageous young woman and her struggle to protect her “children.” Within the first few frames
1
of the movie, the viewer is automatically entrenched into the already tenuous history of racial tension in America—except, this time, under the auspices of segregation founded upon disease.
The movie begins, placing the viewer as an observer of a 1973 U.S. Senate Hearing, where we are first introduced to Miss Eunice Evers. Miss Evers is testifying as a nurse, one who took the nurse’s oath to protect the health of those in her care. The claimed Senatorial goal is to discover the truth underlying the “Tuskegee Study.” Miss Evers worked in the study from
David Morehan
Miss Evers’ Boys portrays the emotional effects of one of the most amoral instances of governmental experimentation on humans ever perpetrated.
It depicts the government’s
involvement in research targeting a group of African American males (“The Tuskegee
Experiment”), while simultaneously exploring the depths of human tragedy and suffering that result, as seen through the eyes of Eunice Evers. The viewer watches as a seemingly innocuous program progresses into a full-blown ethical catastrophe—all the while taking Miss Evers through a moral journey, with her decisions having ramifications on the life and well-being of her best friends—her “boys.”
I.
Structure
This movie deals with the ethical considerations present in human experimentation. The
government, wanting to mimic the Oslo Experiments, intends to study a population of AfricanAmericans inflicted with syphilis. The movie takes place in alternate settings, transitioning between a 1973 Senatorial hearing and the site of the actual study in Alabama, beginning in 1932 and moving forward. Miss Eunice Evers, a nurse at a local Tuskegee hospital, is the centerpiece of the movie.
II.
Setting & Plot Summary
With an ominous lead-in quote, Miss Evers’ Boys begins to tell the tale of an emotionally
courageous young woman and her struggle to protect her “children.” Within the first few frames
1
of the movie, the viewer is automatically entrenched into the already tenuous history of racial tension in America—except, this time, under the auspices of segregation founded upon disease.
The movie begins, placing the viewer as an observer of a 1973 U.S. Senate Hearing, where we are first introduced to Miss Eunice Evers. Miss Evers is testifying as a nurse, one who took the nurse’s oath to protect the health of those in her care. The claimed Senatorial goal is to discover the truth underlying the “Tuskegee Study.” Miss Evers worked in the study from