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The Perils of Overpopulation

The document discusses the complex relationship between population growth, urbanization, and industrialization, highlighting historical concerns raised by figures like Thomas Malthus and the Ehrlichs about overpopulation leading to resource crises. It outlines various population control measures implemented by countries, including coercive policies and advocacy for reproductive health as a means of national progress. The text also addresses the stereotypes and political implications surrounding population control efforts in developing nations.

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Kyomai Sen
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16 views11 pages

The Perils of Overpopulation

The document discusses the complex relationship between population growth, urbanization, and industrialization, highlighting historical concerns raised by figures like Thomas Malthus and the Ehrlichs about overpopulation leading to resource crises. It outlines various population control measures implemented by countries, including coercive policies and advocacy for reproductive health as a means of national progress. The text also addresses the stereotypes and political implications surrounding population control efforts in developing nations.

Uploaded by

Kyomai Sen
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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The Perils of

Overpopulation
Urbanization and Industrialization
Population Growth in Modernization
Urbanization and Thomas Malthus ( ) warned The concern resurfaced in the
industrialization are often seen us in “An Essay on the Principle s with Paul and Anne
as signs of development, but the of Population” that unchecked Ehrlich’s The Population Bomb,
role of population growth in population growth would predicting mass starvation and
modernization remains debated. outpace food supply, though his global disasters due to
predictions did not come true by overpopulation.
the th century.
Population Control Measures
Drastic Strategies Advocated by the
Ehrlichs
Taxes on additional children
Chemical castration

Incentives for sterilization

Global population growth peaked


between ‒ at . %
Establishing a Department of
annually, raising alarm.
Population and Environment
Government Responses
Initiatives by Various
Countries
Many countries initiated population control programs:
•Philippines, China, India believed high birth rates would lead
to resource crisis and poverty.
•By , Foreign Affairs journal promoted contraception and
sterilization as global solutions.
•In May , a group of American billionaires warned of how a
"nightmarish" explosion of people was "a potentially disastrous
Reproductive Health and Development
Linking Population Control to National
Progress

Population control linked to Advocates push for: Example: Puerto Rico viewed
national progress and •Universal access to reproductive health as key to
modernization. contraception, abortion, and nation-building.
sterilization
•Women’s right to choose
The Politics Behind Population Control
Stereotypes and Coercive Policies
Developed nations often portrayed
Egyptians and Iranians were
developing countries as overly
stereotyped for high birth rates.
fertile and irresponsible.

Resulted in coercive policies:


•China’s forced sterilizations
In India, lower castes and Muslims
under the one-child policy
were targeted as "hyper-fecund."
•Similar actions in Vietnam and
Mexico

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