Uploaded January 2022 | Updated September 2026, 9 hours ago
Henrietta Lacks, the HeLa Cell Line, and the Long Wait for Justice
The topic of our first meeting in 2022 is Henrietta Lacks, 1920 - 1951, an African-American woman born in Roanoke, Virginia. She was the source of the first immortalized human cell line, HeLa. Her cells sparked a biological revolution, starting with the polio vaccine. But she never gave permission for the harvest of her cells, and her family is seeking restitution.
Wikipedia: web.archive.org/web/20211231043440/https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Henrietta_Lacks
New Story on the legal case: web.archive.org/web/20211231043440/https://www.cnn.com/2021/10/05/us/henrietta-lacks-estate-sues-biotech-company/index.html
1997 BBC Documentary, "The Way of All Flesh":
youtube.com/watch?v=FgMUlVl-poE
Petition from the Ben Crump legal firm: Henrietta Lacks Deserves Genetic Justice
act.bencrump.com/a/henrietta-lacks?fbclid=IwAR3UDoU0shm5v2x-PLXLLtd70rugrRMh0xSokTuuPGetFGMDcaokRfW4q48
Henrietta Lacks, the HeLa Cell Line, and the Long Wait for Justice
The topic of our first meeting in 2022 is Henrietta Lacks, 1920 - 1951, an African-American woman born in Roanoke, Virginia. She was the source of the first immortalized human cell line, HeLa. Her cells sparked a biological revolution, starting with the polio vaccine. But she never gave permission for the harvest of her cells, and her family is seeking restitution.
Wikipedia: web.archive.org/web/20211231043440/https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Henrietta_Lacks
New Story on the legal case: web.archive.org/web/20211231043440/https://www.cnn.com/2021/10/05/us/henrietta-lacks-estate-sues-biotech-company/index.html
1997 BBC Documentary, "The Way of All Flesh":
youtube.com/watch?v=FgMUlVl-poE
Petition from the Ben Crump legal firm: Henrietta Lacks Deserves Genetic Justice
act.bencrump.com/a/henrietta-lacks?fbclid=IwAR3UDoU0shm5v2x-PLXLLtd70rugrRMh0xSokTuuPGetFGMDcaokRfW4q48
