Deborah Lacks

Although Deborah Lacks may lack a mother, part of her lives on today. Deborah's mother,  Henrietta Lacks, was the woman whose cells became the first immortal (forever reproducing) cells. Lacks was born in 1949 (GALE, Biography in context). Lacks was barely two years old when her mother died and far too young to remember anything. She grew up in Virginia, in a poor household, and her life was tumultuous. In 1970, Lacks' life was turned upside down with the discovery that her own mother, twenty years dead, was a staple in modern science. A hero must possess faith and willpower. Lacks possessed  these traits abundantly to survive learning the truth about her mother. She believed that the cells of her mother possessed part of her soul and that there was a way to save her mother from the pain that her cells were put through every day. The willpower required to hold off hundreds of people who were trying to take advantage of the Lacks family was tremendous. Deborah Lacks overcame the issues her mother left her with willpower and faith.

Deborah's mother, Henrietta Lacks, and father, David Lacks

Lacks experienced hardship throughout her entire life but survived with her own faith. Lacks' mother was a woman who died for science without knowing. Doctors took her cells without her knowledge which ended up being the first cells to reproduce indefinitely. Thirty years later Lacks discovered this information and was scarred for life. Her mother was alive forever. Lacks believed her mother's soul was alive in these cells (Lombardi). Rebecca Skloot, a renowned author, spent years gathering information for her book, "The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks." This is a story about Lacks' mother's cells being wrongly taken."HeLa cells remain in use in universities and medical labs around the world"(Encyclopedia of World Biography). Lacks' concerns that her mother's cells are still alive with her mother's soul were never truly eased because they are still used today. Lacks found strength in her faith even when her world turned upside down. She attended daily church services and found faith in god. This was not enough; her belief did not stop the onslaught of scientists taking advantage of her mother's cells.

Over many years, Lacks developed strong will, and met a woman with a kind heart to help her understand what truly happened to her mother. This woman was Rebecca Skloot. A woman's voice advocate, Chris Lombardi, said "It took Skloot nearly two years to gain the confidence of Henrietta's daughter Deborah Lacks- Pullum"(Lombardi). Lacks repelled the people who would have taken advantage of her and kept moving. The Lacks family was deeply affected by the betrayal of the white community, and did not communicate freely with anyone who tried to find them. "Lacks family members remained largely unwilling to discuss their mother"(Encyclopedia of World Biography). The family endured hardship and media and made it through the storm following the revelation that their mother was a scientific hero.  Lacks was a resilient soul whose faith and willpower carried her through the last years of her difficult life with a mother whose cells spread across the planet.

With the power of her will and her own beliefs, Deborah Lacks overcame the problems her mother's cells created. It took many years for the Lacks family to find out the truth about their mother's extended existence. They were lacking a kind person willing to help them. Even when their reality was shattered and they didn't have safety, Deborah didn't give up believing that she could discover the truth behind the HeLa (Henrietta Lacks) cell line. Without Deborah's tenacity and work ethic, no-one today would be aware of the mistreatment of black patients in hospitals.

Deborah Lacks with a picture of her mother's cells

Works cited

"George Gey." Encyclopedia of World Biography. Vol. 32. Detroit: Gale, 2012. Biography in

Context. Web. 8 May 2015.

"Henrietta Lacks." Encyclopedia of World Biography. Vol. 31. Detroit: Gale, 2011. Biography in

Context. Web. 8 May 2015.

Lombardi, Chris. "Women's Voices For Change." Women's Voices For Change. Women's

Voices For Change, 21 Feb. 2010. Web. 08 May 2015.

"Rebecca Skloot." Contemporary Authors Online. Detroit: Gale, 2011. Biography in Context.

Web. 8 May 2015.