ABSTRACT
This chapter examines how population control measures, far from saving the planet from catastrophic overpopulation, bring together apparently disconnected public policies and stereotypical attitudes to constrain communities of color. It emphasizes the dialectical connections between the communities and reproductive decision-making by bringing land-use policies and gentrification into the conversation as one example of contemporary population control. Historically, population control measures in the United States, including sterilization abuses, promotion of dangerous contraceptives, and separation of family members, employed reproductive strategies to control communities of color. The phrase “population control” is loaded with assumptions, stereotypes, and hidden values. With the development of the eugenics movement at the beginning of the twentieth century, African Americans opposed the targeting of their communities for population reduction.
