On Wednesday September the 24th the History Department is hosting “Thinking about the History of Thalidomide in Transnational Perspective,” a one-day conference about the impact of thalidomide in Canada and Africa. The event begins with welcoming remarks at 10:00 a.m. that are followed by two speakers:

First Speaker: Alexandra Niblock
Title of Talk: “The Hurdles of Federalism: The Canadian Experience of Thalidomide”
Time: Wednesday, September 24, 10:30 to noon
Description: This presentation provides an historical overview of the Canadian experience with the licensing, sale and withdrawal from the market of thalidomide, the infamous drug often prescribed to pregnant women for the nausea of pregnancy in the late 50s and early 60s, and which caused severe abnormalities to the fetus in utero. It will then consider the hurdles that thalidomiders and their families encountered because of the federal nature of Canada's geo-political, legal and social welfare systems and how these hurdles affected the potential opportunities available to Canadian thalidomiders for compensation.

Second Speaker: Julie Parle, PhD (Honorary) Associate Professor in History, School of Social Sciences, University of KwaZulu-Natal

Title of Talk: "Dark Continent, Dark Remedy? Is There a
History of Thalidomide in Africa?"
Time: Wednesday, September 24, 1:00- 2:30 p.m.

Description: It is difficult to underestimate the extent to which thalidomide has shaped the last half-century. From both advances and reforms in pharmaceutical science and medicine; to reframing the laws of contempt; in debates about women’s reproductive rights; in the moral imperatives and ethics of investigative journalism; in disability rights and more, thalidomide and its survivors have had a strong presence across the much of the English-speaking world. It has however become conventional wisdom that there are no histories of “this dark remedy” of thalidomide in “the dark continent” of Africa. This paper questions this view and suggests that a new story of thalidomide in Africa may just be beginning.

Dr. Parle’s presentation is being co-sponsored by the Institute of Interdisciplinary Studies/Disability Studies