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Wednesday, November 1, 2006
Our Bodies, Ourselves: Consent is crucial
Critics of an exhibition of human bodies have put a finger on something intangible and important: consent.
Lawmakers here, in Olympia and Washington, D.C., ought to pay attention to the growing controversies that are developing as for-profit exhibits of dead Chinese men, women and fetuses spread around the country. The unease many feel is appropriate.
We respect the stated goals of various exhibiters to educate the public about the wonder of the human body and the need to take care of it. (The Seattle P-I is a sponsor of "Bodies ... The Exhibition" here.)
But the exhibits traveling around the United States have offered little or no documentation that, during their lives, the people whose bodies are on display gave permission for such an exhibition. As the P-I has reported, Atlanta-based Premiere Exhibitions, which brought cadavers here, has said its contract with a Chinese university guarantees the bodies are not from political or religious prisoners. Given the anemic state of China's legal system and the government's weak human rights record, it would be only modestly more reassuring if the group made the contracts public. But anyone deserves say about whether his or her body is shown.
Last year, San Francisco passed a law requiring proof of consent for such exhibits and empowered health officials to judge the evidence. Seattle City Council, the Legislature and Congress should also demand respect for the wishes of the dead.
Tell us what's on your mind.
 | |
| Should exhibits of human cadavers be allowed without proof of the consent of the deceased? | |
 27.4%Yes |
67.4% No |
| 5.2% Not sure or other |
|
| Total Votes: 230 | |
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