A Leading Cause of Death Among Negroes: Syphilis

“Disease and Delinquency Know No Color”: Syphilis and African American Female Delinquency

“…African Americans also engaged in classist social thought regarding sexual delinquency. Issues of female delinquency were seen as a problem of the lower classes (Du Bois, 1913;Frumkin & Brandyburg, 1954;Hazen, 1937). It was widely believed that social uplift and middle-class ideology were viable solutions to sexual delinquency among the lower classes (Aery, 1915;C.…”

“…African American girls were the most vulnerable to sexual exploitation and, hence, were most likely to be labeled delinquent. In addition, they were at an increased risk of contracting sexually transmitted diseases, the most prevalent of which was syphilis (Hazen, 1937;Spinney, 1995), a highly contagious disease that is spread primarily through sexual contact. A child who is born to a mother with syphilis may also contract congenital syphilis (Jones, 1993).…”

“…Although syphilis presented a major health problem for all citizens during the early 20th century (Spinney, 1995), it was the leading cause of death among African Americans (Hazen, 1937). African Americans were 1.5 to 3 times more likely to contract syphilis than were Whites (Callis, 1935;Crow, Escott, & Hatley, 1992), and African American women were 2.5 times more likely to contract the disease than were White women (Hazen, 1937).…”

“…Although syphilis presented a major health problem for all citizens during the early 20th century (Spinney, 1995), it was the leading cause of death among African Americans (Hazen, 1937). African Americans were 1.5 to 3 times more likely to contract syphilis than were Whites (Callis, 1935;Crow, Escott, & Hatley, 1992), and African American women were 2.5 times more likely to contract the disease than were White women (Hazen, 1937). In addition, as a result of the shortage of African American health care providers (Carlton-LaNey, 2000), there was a dearth of available and adequate medical treatment (Crow et al, 1992), which exacerbated the spread of this disease in the African American community.…”

“…Poor, rural African Americans were the most vulnerable to contracting and transmitting syphilis. As Hazen (1937) wrote, "there are absolutely no records of any real value regarding the prevalence of syphilis among the Negro teachers, professional men, business men, or students" (p. 321). Efland Home supporters and caretakers were typically members of the middle class, and their values were characteristic of this social and economic class.…”