User reviews

Well done Erika Cohn. This documentary moved me in so many ways, from rage to triumph and everything in between. I watched this documentary as part of the Black History Talk events.

Kelli Dillion, one of the key women the documentary follows who had an un-consented sterilization, truly deserves a happy ending after what she has survived in life. Her story and what she has done will thankfully now live for many years is this visual documentation.

The documentary follows Kelli's story, and other women that had un-consented sterilizations whilst inmates in California correctional facilities. I had absolutely no idea anything like this was still happening. It also shows the sacrifices of the legal team and campaigners, and some of the huge obstacles that they had to face.

Highly recommended.

Erika Cohn's "Belly of the Beast" exposes a history of forced sterilizations of female prisoners in California's prisons, which continued into the 21st century. Throughout history, sterilization was a favored punishment for those considered "feeble-minded"; it was eugenics plain and simple.

It's a grim story, and one that reaffirms everything that's wrong with this country's prison system. The prison system focuses on punishment instead of rehabilitation. The US now has over two million people incarcerated, most of them black and Latino.

Anyway, the documentary does a great job focusing on the treatment of these women, and lawyer Cynthia Chandler's efforts to expose this treatment. Definitely see it.