Dehumanisation and the Enduring Legacies of Eugenics

Eugenics is a term coined in the 1880s defined as the selection of desired heritable characteristics in order to improve future generations. Eugenics failed as a science in the first half of the 20th century, particularly after Nazi Germany used eugenics to support the extermination of those it considered “socially inferior.” This exhibition reveals how eugenics has influenced programmes of human betterment in different national and international contexts since the 1880s.

The exhibition unveils a hidden history, and reorients the focus on anti-eugenics, to create a sense of togetherness, of acceptance and inclusion, together with the ability to respond forcefully to any form of discrimination.

By engaging with the history of eugenics, and demanding its condemnation, we strive to understand and reckon with our hidden past, and work for a more fair and just society.