Henrietta Lacks
The Untold Story
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Narrated by:
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Anthony Bell
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By:
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Ron Lacks
About this listen
I really need people to understand the reason behind me writing this book about my grandmother Henrietta Lacks. For those who have never heard of her, she is the first human whose cell line was able to grow in culture; her cells were unlike any other cells. While others cells would die, Henrietta Lacks cells doubled every 20 to 24 hours. She has contributed to the medical field in ways that no other cell line has done. HeLa cells has helped with the polio vaccine, gene mapping, in vitro fertilization, sensitivity to tape, dental, and even used in the cosmetic field.
To hear and read constantly that Henrietta Lacks was a poor Black farmer is hard to accept. Anyone who looks at her picture can tell that Henrietta and her husband, David Lacks, weren't poor Black farmers—they enjoyed the finer things in life. They moved from Clover to Baltimore, not out of poverty, but because they felt their children would get a better education here.
I decided it was time to let people have an inside look from the side of the family that people don't hear about much and that's Lawrence Lacks' family—Henrietta Lacks' oldest son. He's the only one who's still alive who knew his mother. My dad was 16 years old when his mom passed away. It still brings tears to his eyes when he thinks about all the pain and suffering that she went through before her passing.
Our family has always wanted people to know about Henrietta Lacks, because we have always been enthused by the millions of lives that "Henrietta Lacks' HeLa cells" have done to help save and cure people all over the world. But what we didn't want is for her history to be told incorrectly. I'm so thankful that I am able to tell her family side of the story from the people who were there while she was still living and things that I personally witnessed for myself as time went on. As I get older, I now realize if I didn't tell this story, no one else would. This is a story that needs to be shared because there is a huge part of her history that has been left out.
As stated in my book: "It's not often that we as African Americans get to share in the telling of our own stories; most of the time the people are long gone, and we can only go by what people decide to say happened and not the actual truth of what happened."
©2020 Ron Lacks (P)2022 Ron LacksListeners also enjoyed...
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- By 1mercedeb8 on 11-08-18
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My Two Moms
- Lessons of Love, Strength, and What Makes a Family
- By: Zach Wahls, Bruce Littlefield
- Narrated by: Kris Koscheski
- Length: 6 hrs and 53 mins
- Unabridged
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On January 31, 2011, Zach Wahls addressed the Iowa House Judiciary Committee in a public forum regarding civil unions. The 19-year-old son of a same-sex couple, Wahls proudly proclaimed, "The sexual orientation of my parents has had zero effect on the content of my character." Hours later, his speech was posted on YouTube, where it went viral, quickly receiving more than two million views. By the end of the week, everyone knew his name and wanted to hear more from the boy with two moms.
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You will not regret listening to this.
- By V. Brown on 06-07-12
By: Zach Wahls, and others
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My Lobotomy
- A Memoir
- By: Howard Dully, Charles Fleming
- Narrated by: Johnny Heller
- Length: 9 hrs and 1 min
- Unabridged
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"In 1960 I was given a transorbital, or 'ice pick' lobotomy. My stepmother arranged it. My father agreed to it. Dr. Walter Freeman, the father of the American lobotomy, told me he was going to do some 'tests'. It took 10 minutes and cost 200 dollars." Assisted by journalist/novelist Charles Fleming, Howard Dully recounts a family tragedy of Sophoclean proportions.
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Freeman's Folly
- By James Gordon on 10-28-07
By: Howard Dully, and others
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Because I Come from a Crazy Family
- The Making of a Psychiatrist
- By: Edward M. Hallowell
- Narrated by: Paul Boehmer
- Length: 13 hrs and 41 mins
- Unabridged
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When Edward M. Hallowell was 11, a voice out of nowhere told him he should become a psychiatrist. A mental health professional of the time would have called this psychosis. But young Edward (Ned) took it in stride, despite not quite knowing what "psychiatrist" meant. With a psychotic father, an alcoholic mother, an abusive stepfather, and two so-called learning disabilities of his own, Ned was accustomed to unpredictable behaviour from those around him and to a mind he felt he couldn't always control.
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Love and connection permeates through this book!
- By Steve Steinmetz on 06-29-18
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Normal Gets You Nowhere
- By: Kelly Cutrone
- Narrated by: Kelly Cutrone
- Length: 3 hrs and 42 mins
- Unabridged
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With Normal Gets You Nowhere, Kelly Cutrone invites us to get our freak on. History is full of successful, world-changing people who did not fit in. Think Nelson Mandela, Joan of Arc, Eleanor Roosevelt, Amelia Earhart, John Lennon, and Rosa Parks. Instead of changing themselves to accommodate the status quo or what others thought they should be, these people hung a light on their differences - and changed humanity in the process. “I know you don’t feel normal, so why are you trying to act it and prove to everyone you are?” Cutrone says.
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For open minds and hearts.
- By Kelly on 01-06-12
By: Kelly Cutrone
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Walking on Eggshells
- Navigating the Delicate Relationship Between Adult Children and Parents
- By: Jane Isay
- Narrated by: Ann Marie Lee
- Length: 7 hrs and 31 mins
- Unabridged
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We raise our children to be independent and lead fulfilling lives, but when they finally do, staying close becomes more complicated than ever. And for every bewildered mother who wonders why her children don't call, there is a frustrated son or daughter who just wants to be treated like a grownup. Now, renowned editor Jane Isay delivers the perfect gift to both parents and their adult children-real-life wisdom and advice on how to stay together without falling apart.
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Disappointed
- By tammy alvarez on 01-13-19
By: Jane Isay
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American Wife
- A Memoir of Love, War, Faith, and Renewal
- By: Taya Kyle, Jim DeFelice
- Narrated by: Taya Kyle
- Length: 9 hrs and 53 mins
- Unabridged
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Though Chris and Taya Kyle's marriage had its difficult moments, it was always a love story. Together they'd endured military service, a best-selling book, unexpected fame, and a film deal starring a hot Hollywood actor. But just when Taya thought that she and Chris were finally going to live their dream together, her husband was murdered. In the wake of his death, a grieving Taya was left to raise her two young children and handle the many things Chris left behind.
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Amazing
- By John W. on 05-05-15
By: Taya Kyle, and others
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George Anderson's Lessons from the Light
- Extraordinary Messages of Comfort and Hope from the Other Side
- By: George Anderson, Andrew Barone
- Narrated by: Chris Sorensen
- Length: 13 hrs and 57 mins
- Unabridged
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In his years working with bereaved families to communicate with lost loved ones, George Anderson has earned an international reputation for his astonishing abilities. Now, for the first time, Anderson offers a vivid and intimate account of his spiritual communications. He explains what it's like to be a psychic, what he experiences, and what it means. He directly answers the many questions most commonly asked of him.
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Absolutely LOVED this book!!!
- By Tasha on 06-13-19
By: George Anderson, and others
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In Search of Our Roots
- How 19 Extraordinary African Americans Reclaimed Their Past
- By: Henry Louis Gates Jr.
- Narrated by: Dominic Hoffman
- Length: 16 hrs and 13 mins
- Unabridged
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Most African Americans, in tracing their family’s past, encounter a series of daunting obstacles. Slavery was a brutally efficient nullifier of identity, willfully denying Black men and women even their names. Here, scholar Henry Louis Gates, Jr., backed by an elite team of geneticists and researchers, takes 19 extraordinary African Americans on a once unimaginable journey, tracing family sagas through US history and back to Africa.
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Amazing
- By Placeholder on 04-17-19
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Secrets of the Monarch
- What the Dead Can Teach Us About Living a Better Life
- By: Allison DuBois
- Narrated by: Renee Raudman
- Length: 5 hrs and 24 mins
- Unabridged
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If you want to understand life, you must understand death. In Secrets of the Monarch, DuBois shows how communicating with the dead has taught her important lessons about life and how listeners can apply those principles to their own lives.
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Secrets of the Monarch
- By MikeH on 07-28-11
By: Allison DuBois
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Life Beyond Measure
- Letters to My Great-Granddaughter
- By: Sidney Poitier
- Narrated by: Sidney Poitier
- Length: 10 hrs and 2 mins
- Abridged
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Sidney Poitier is one of the most revered actors in the history of Hollywood. He has overcome enormous obstacles in extraordinary times and is a role model for many Americans because of his convictions, bravery, and grace. Poitier reflects on his amazing life in Life Beyond Measure, offering inspirational advice and personal stories in the form of extended letters to his great-granddaughter.
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Mix of family history and life advice.
- By Adam Shields on 10-31-19
By: Sidney Poitier
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Peace from Broken Pieces
- How to Get Through What You're Going Through
- By: Iyanla Vanzant
- Narrated by: Iyanla Vanzant
- Length: 11 hrs and 55 mins
- Unabridged
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New York Times best-selling author Iyanla Vanzant recounts the last decade of her life and the spiritual lessons learned—from the price of success during her meteoric rise as a TV celebrity on Oprah, the Iyanla TV show (produced by Barbara Walters), to the dissolution of her marriage and her daughter's 15 months of illness and death on Christmas day.
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Iyanla is Inspirational! A GREAT LISTEN!!!
- By Theresa on 12-04-11
By: Iyanla Vanzant
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American Spirit
- Profiles in Resilience, Courage, and Faith
- By: Taya Kyle, Jim DeFelice
- Narrated by: Taya Kyle
- Length: 9 hrs and 32 mins
- Unabridged
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From Taya Kyle, New York Times best-selling author of American Wife and widow of “American Sniper” Chris Kyle, an inspiring collection of stories, both personal and drawn from American history, that showcase the resilience of the “American spirit”.
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Just love Taya Kyle!
- By Rebecka R. Murray on 05-14-19
By: Taya Kyle, and others
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Between Friends
- By: Debbie Macomber
- Narrated by: Amy Tallmadge
- Length: 9 hrs and 39 mins
- Unabridged
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Jillian Lawton and Lesley Adamski. Two girls from very different backgrounds become best friends in the turbulent '60s, but their circumstances and choices - and their mistakes - take them in opposite directions. Lesley stays in their hometown. She marries young, living a life defined by the demands of small children, never enough money, and an unfaithful husband. Jill lives those years on a college campus shaken by the Vietnam War, and then as an idealistic young lawyer in New York City. But they always remain friends.
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good story crappy format!
- By Denise on 06-12-18
By: Debbie Macomber
What listeners say about Henrietta Lacks
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- An Herbalist at Home
- 09-21-22
I have mixed feelings...
First, I read the Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks. it was fascinating. This book made me feel a little bit sick to my stomach. Why? Several reasons. It is fantastic that he wants to establish the fact that they were a happy, middle class family, instead of a poor family. It's just hard to see such a hateful rebuttal of Rebecca Skloot's hard work of doing all the research. I agree wholeheartedly that the family ought to be compensated for the money made from HeLa Cells. That is ludicrous to me, that the family doesn't see any rewards for their Grandmother's stolen cells. Anyway, it's just hard to read such hateful words towards Rebecca Skloot, who wanted his Grandmother's name known for her incredible contribution to Science. I can see how the family is divided, but Rebecca's goal was to bring notoriety to Henrietta Lacks. Would that be annoying to get free health care coverage by filling out papers? You bet. It always is. Good luck to all the descendants, and maybe someday they will receive compensation for those amazing cell sales of Henrietta Lacks!!
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- Diane Vorbroker
- 08-09-22
Anger and family pride
Nice to hear a different perspective but I didn't enjoy the vengefulness. It is sad to hear a family get torn apart by fame.This family should have been compensated for allowing the book to be published and movie made
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1 person found this helpful
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- Judy
- 06-20-23
Don’t listen to this
The narration is monotone and boring. Ron Lacks “book” adds no further insight to Henrietta Lacks story. His constant berating of Rebecca Skloot is tiresome. To say that his grandfather Day didn’t mess around until after Henrietta died is a lie. Either Day gave her syphilis, gonorrhea and HPV, or she was out and about. You can’t have it both ways, Ron.
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1 person found this helpful