RTBS 01 08 “Of Medical Flesh and Blood Libel: The Polish ‘Cadaver Affair,’ Medical Education, and Inter-War Anti-Semitism”

Remains to be Seen

In this episode, Natalia Aleksiun, Professor of Modern Jewish History at Touro College, joins us in the studio to discuss her work on Jewish medical students in Central Europe between the world wars. In Poland and elsewhere, nationalist medical students under the rallying cry “Christian Bodies for Christians!” attempted to drive Jewish students out of the medical schools on the argument that Jews did not contribute a “fair share” of their dead for medical/anatomical education. We discuss this strange episode that nevertheless has resonances with the current moment, along with shared passions, strange playground conversations, and why they don’t let Jake carve the turkey. Special thanks to Lisa Parker and the Center for Bioethics and Health Law at in University of Pittsburgh for supporting our web hosting!

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