ThoughtGallery.org > Science Talks: The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks

Science Talks: The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks

On the eve of HBO Films’ all-star adaptation of Rebecca Skloot’s #1 New York Times bestselling book, Claudia Dreifus moderates a conversation with the author, members of the Lacks family and actors from the HBO film to explore the many facets of this remarkable true story. Told through the eyes of Henrietta Lacks’ daughter, Deborah Lacks, the film chronicles her search, along with journalist Rebecca Skloot (Byrne), to learn about the mother she never knew and understand how the unauthorized harvesting of Lacks’ cancerous cells in 1951 led to unprecedented medical breakthroughs, changing countless lives and the face of medicine forever. The story’s multilayered approach raises questions about race, class and bioethics in America. Before you see the movie (which stars Oprah Winfrey as Deborah Lacks), hear the story of how the book came to be; the impact this historic contribution to science has made on the Lacks family’s lives; how Skloot hopes to be able to use her work to help create a kind of justice for the late Henrietta Lacks and her descendants; and about the HBO adaptation.











When: Thu., Apr. 13, 2017 at 7:30 pm
Where: The 92nd Street Y, New York
1395 Lexington Ave.
212-415-5500
Price: $32
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On the eve of HBO Films’ all-star adaptation of Rebecca Skloot’s #1 New York Times bestselling book, Claudia Dreifus moderates a conversation with the author, members of the Lacks family and actors from the HBO film to explore the many facets of this remarkable true story. Told through the eyes of Henrietta Lacks’ daughter, Deborah Lacks, the film chronicles her search, along with journalist Rebecca Skloot (Byrne), to learn about the mother she never knew and understand how the unauthorized harvesting of Lacks’ cancerous cells in 1951 led to unprecedented medical breakthroughs, changing countless lives and the face of medicine forever. The story’s multilayered approach raises questions about race, class and bioethics in America. Before you see the movie (which stars Oprah Winfrey as Deborah Lacks), hear the story of how the book came to be; the impact this historic contribution to science has made on the Lacks family’s lives; how Skloot hopes to be able to use her work to help create a kind of justice for the late Henrietta Lacks and her descendants; and about the HBO adaptation.

Buy tickets/get more info now