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Ohio Senate OKs Bill to Designate Oct. 4 as Henrietta Lacks Day
Summary
The Ohio Senate unanimously passed Senate Bill 111 to designate October 4 as Henrietta Lacks Day, honoring the Black woman whose cells, taken without her consent in 1951, became foundational to medical research, sponsors said.
The Ohio Senate on the floor passed Senate Bill 111 to designate Oct. 4 as Henrietta Lacks Day.
Senator Craig, a sponsor, told colleagues that Henrietta Lacks — diagnosed with cervical cancer in 1951 at age 31 — had samples taken at Johns Hopkins without her knowledge or consent. "Miss Henrietta Lacks was a remarkable African American woman whose DNA and story continues to shape science, medicine, and ethics in research," Craig said, noting that her cells became the first immortalized human cell line and were instrumental in developing the polio vaccine, cancer treatments, gene mapping and COVID‑19 vaccine research.
Senator Johnson, a joint sponsor, said he had not known Lacks's story during his medical training and urged members to support the measure. The clerk called the roll and the chair announced the result as 33 yeas and 0 nays; the bill was declared passed and entitled and the title agreed to.
The designation recognizes Lacks's contribution and the ethical questions her case raised about consent and medical research; sponsors said the recognition will join "other states and institutions" in honoring her legacy.
