New Mexico to Investigate Forced Sterilization of Native American Women in 1970s

State legislators approve measure to examine history, scope, and impact of coerced sterilizations by Indian Health Service

Published on Feb. 21, 2026

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In the 1970s, the U.S. agency that provides health care to Native Americans, the Indian Health Service, sterilized thousands of women without their full and informed consent, depriving them of the opportunity to start or grow families. Decades later, the state of New Mexico is set to investigate that troubling history and its lasting harm. The state legislature approved a measure for the Indian Affairs Department and Commission on the Status of Women to examine the forced and coerced sterilizations and report their findings to the governor by the end of 2027.

Why it matters

This investigation aims to shed light on a little-known but deeply troubling chapter of history that has had devastating impacts on Native American communities. The forced sterilization of Indigenous women was part of a broader pattern of federal policies meant to disrupt Native people's reproductive autonomy, including the removal of Indigenous children into boarding schools and non-Native foster homes, as well as restrictions on abortion access at tribal clinics. Uncovering the full scope and lasting effects of these atrocities is crucial for addressing this legacy of disenfranchisement and trauma.

The details

In 1972, Navajo Nation citizen Jean Whitehorse was admitted to an Indian Health Service hospital in Gallup, New Mexico, with a ruptured appendix. She says she was rushed into emergency surgery after providers presented her with a flurry of consent forms, and later learned she had received a tubal ligation without her knowledge or full consent. Advocates had already been sounding the alarm about similar cases, and in 1974 a Choctaw and Cherokee physician named Connie Redbird Uri reviewed IHS records and alleged the federal agency had sterilized as much as 25% of its female patients of childbearing age. A 1976 GAO audit found the IHS had sterilized 3,406 women in four of its 12 service areas between 1973 and 1976, including in Albuquerque, and that some patients were under 21 and had not provided fully informed consent.

  • In 1972, Jean Whitehorse was admitted to an Indian Health Service hospital in Gallup, New Mexico.
  • In 1974, Connie Redbird Uri reviewed IHS records and alleged the agency had sterilized up to 25% of its female patients of childbearing age.
  • Between 1973 and 1976, a GAO audit found the IHS had sterilized 3,406 women in four of its 12 service areas, including in Albuquerque.

The players

Jean Whitehorse

A Navajo Nation citizen who was sterilized without her full consent at an Indian Health Service hospital in Gallup, New Mexico in 1972.

Connie Redbird Uri

A Choctaw and Cherokee physician who reviewed IHS records in 1974 and alleged the federal agency had sterilized as much as 25% of its female patients of childbearing age.

Indian Health Service (IHS)

The U.S. agency that provides health care to Native Americans, which was found to have sterilized thousands of women without their full and informed consent in the 1970s.

U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO)

The federal agency that conducted an audit in 1976 finding the IHS had sterilized 3,406 women in four of its 12 service areas between 1973 and 1976.

Linda Lopez

A New Mexico state senator who sponsored the legislation to investigate the forced sterilization of Native American women in the state.

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What they’re saying

“It's important for New Mexico to understand the atrocities that took place within the borders of our state.”

— Linda Lopez, New Mexico State Senator

“The women in these communities carry these stories.”

— Sarah Deer, Professor, University of Kansas School of Law

“Each time I tell my story, it relieves the shame, the guilt. Now I think, why should I be ashamed? It's the government that should be ashamed of what they did to us.”

— Jean Whitehorse

“It's such a taboo topic. There's a lot of support that needs to happen when we tell these traumatic stories.”

— Rachael Lorenzo, Executive Director, Indigenous Women Rising

“It's still an issue that is affecting women's choice of birth control today.”

— Donald Clark, Retired Indian Health Service Physician

What’s next

The New Mexico legislature has laid the groundwork to create a separate healing commission and for a formal acknowledgment of the forced sterilization of Native American women. The findings from the investigation by the Indian Affairs Department and Commission on the Status of Women are expected to be reported to the governor by the end of 2027.

The takeaway

The forced sterilization of Native American women in the 1970s was a devastating and little-known atrocity that was part of a broader pattern of federal policies aimed at disrupting Indigenous reproductive autonomy. New Mexico's investigation represents an important step towards accountability, healing, and addressing this legacy of trauma and disenfranchisement within Native communities.