Henrietta Lacks, without consent, an unknowing miracle worker

When the Catholic Church raised concerns about the development of coronavirus vaccines and their connection to “morally compromised” cell lines from aborted fetuses, I thought of Henrietta Lacks.

That’s puzzling, I know, but the issue of morally acceptable vaccines got me thinking about the moral and ethical issues surrounding the unauthorized harvesting and use of the cells of Henrietta Lacks.

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Where were you when the curtain fell? Arts leaders reflect on one year under Covid

For arts organizations, producers, performers, artists and aficionados alike, Friday the 13th of March, 2020, was particularly jinxed.

While the coronavirus had been spreading like wildfire across America, it wasn't until this very week, one year ago, that the word pandemic entered our common vernacular, when the World Health Organization and the Centers for Disease Control declared Covid-19 an extreme and immediate threat to public health, followed by state and local government mandating the immediate closure of public gathering places. Business were shuttered and everybody went indoors, into a lockdown of their own choosing. Masks and social distancing came later.