The Tuskegee Experiment: What Really Happened for 40 Years

The Tuskegee Experiment: What Really Happened for 40 Years

The Tuskegee Syphilis Study was a 40-year U.S. Public Health Service study involving Black men in Macon County, Alabama. The men were not infected with syphilis by the government, but many were deceived about the purpose of the study and were not given effective treatment once penicillin became available.

This video looks at how the study began, why it continued for so long, the role of Nurse Eunice Rivers, how the story was exposed in 1972, and the lasting impact Tuskegee had on medical ethics, informed consent, and trust in the healthcare system.