“Why Did They Die?”

Abstract

In the second half of the twentieth century, Indigenous populations from different parts of the world were identified as key subjects in a wide range of investigations into patterns of human biological variation. Focusing on Amazonia, a prominent region for such research, this paper explores some of the complex relationships between biomedicine, anthropological knowledge, political regimes, and Indigenous rights. We focus on the roles of Francis L. Black (Yale University) and James V. Neel (University of Michigan), leading American scientists working in lowland South America from the 1970s to the 1990s, in knowledge production and scientific disputes at the intersection of human biology and susceptibility to infectious diseases, as well as the use of specific biomedical technologies (e.g., vaccines). During the Cold War, arguments concerning genetically determined susceptibility to infectious diseases and the role of biomedicine in health care for Indigenous populations became highly disputed, as scientists were concerned about how scientific knowledge could be used in the implementation of public policies. We argue that analysis of unpublished debates about the political implications of the trajectory of biomedical research about Amazonian Indigenous peoples helps to broaden and complexify the global history of human biological diversity research in the post-World War II period. 1. Unlike other scientists such as James V. Neel and Franciso M. Salzano, whose works on the topic of human biological diversity in the Amazon have been analyzed extensively (

The seroconversion history to SARS-CoV-2 in Indigenous people from Brazil – the interplay between exposure, vaccination, and tuberculosis

“…Authors also reported that mortality associated with disease outbreaks originating in urban areas take longer to reach indigenous communities ( 5 ). Furthermore, the “Virgin-soil” hypothesis, which proposes that indigenous populations that had no previous contact with certain pathogens, upon first exposure would be highly susceptible to disease due to lack of preestablished immunity, is unsubstantiated by scientific evidence ( 21 , 22 ). Beyond genetics, other factors exert a significant effect over the health of indigenous population in Brazil, such as economy, geographical location, contact with non-indigenous people, sanitation and access to basic health assistance ( 4 , 23 ).…”