Today, in 1954, the first trials began of the polio vaccine. The vaccine was developed using cells unknowingly donated by Henrietta Lacks, a black woman from Baltimore. Her cells — known to researchers as HeLa cells — have been used for everything from understanding the long-term effects of radiation to conducting experiments in space.
Phoebe Connelly is a former web editor of the Prospect. Previously, she was managing editor of In These Times. She writes on political culture, human rights, and feminism. More by Phoebe Connelly
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