The lengthy syphilis reports that are found in the John C. Cutler records details the conditions of Guatemala at the time of the experiment. Essentially Guatemala’s institutional dependency on the United States Public Health services and Pan-American Bureau along with its race and class hierarchies left Guatemala open to conducting this experiment. A brief review of post-colonial relations between the United States and Guatemala regarding medical institutions is fundamental for an understanding of the Guatemalan Syphilis Experiment. By the late-twentieth century, post colonialism as both a term and as a conceptual category had been discussed within the topics of decolonization of African and Asian colonies around the second world war. It…show more content… In this passage, Cutler articulates the benefits that the United States will bring to the host country. He continued to write, “during the period of development of penicillin therapy ad the orvus-marphaside prophylaxis [Juan Funes] chief of the Venereal Disease Control Division of the country’s Public Health Service was assigned as a fellow at the VDRL by the institute of the Inter-American…show more content… Funes as the key connection between the US PHS and the VDRL in Guatemala, Cutler also mentions the legality of prostitution in Guatemala and the legal provision that allowed for the usage of the state penitentiary, orphanage, psychiatric hospital and army barracks (2012:9).In this passage, Cutler introduces three important details that illustrate the post-Colonial relationship between the United States and Guatemala that played a role in the choice of Guatemala, however, it was chosen not because it would be overlooked, but because of its long history of reliance and dependency. The political power of the US PHS and the few United States trained Guatemalan researchers worked together to use Guatemalan subjects as surrogates for the benefit of military
