California Documentary Project
¿Mas Bebés?
Visual Communications
Producer and Director: Renee Tajima-Peña
The forced sterilization of Mexican American women and the fight for justice
This is a one-hour documentary about the forced sterilization of Mexican-origin women at the University of Southern California-Los Angeles County Medical Center in the 1960s and 1970s.
The film traces the confluence of factors that led to the sterilization, and it chronicles the legal and political battles that ensued as well as the rise of a new generation of Mexican American women leaders.
Among the individuals featured are immigrant women who agreed to go public with their grievances, hospital personnel who witnessed the sterilizations, a doctor who risked his medical license and career to bring the sterilizations to light, and young Mexican American women lawyers and activists who helped mount a campaign for justice.
“We hope that the film will contribute to the national dialogue around immigration, medical ethics and reproductive rights,” said Renee Tajima-Peña, producer and director of the film.