The Lomidine Files (Book Review)

Guillaume Lachenal’s The Lomidine Files-The Untold Story of a Medical Disaster inwards Colonial Africa, expertly translated past times Noémi Tousignant, has been i of the most interesting books I receive got read so far this year.
The even out of Lomidine (also known every bit pentamidine), a ‘wonder drug’ idea to forestall sleeping sickness that was applied throughout colonial Africa inwards the 1940s as well as 1950s, is so much to a greater extent than than precisely an impeccably researched as well as vividly presented example study of medical anthropology. It is a historical interrogation into the really essence of how the French colonial the world ‘worked’ as well as how a socio-political apparatus armed alongside a hubristic believe inwards the ability of medical scientific discipline subjugated native populations to unsafe medical interventions. Killing dozens of recipients, the mirage of a preventive wonder drug was eventually uncovered to live on medically faulty as well as the even out of Lomidine was hidden inwards world as well as corporate archives of the drug manufacturer.

My broader aim, however, is to a greater extent than ambitious: past times selecting every bit a historical object this white powder, a pulverisation injected to a greater extent than than 10 1000000 times inwards Africa during the 1950s, I am experimenting alongside a novel shape of interrogation into the relation betwixt medicine as well as colonialism. Considering this drug every bit a therapeutic agent, a technology scientific discipline of government, a commodity every bit good every bit an object of expertise, belief, storytelling, as well as arguing as well as past times tracking its history every bit it unfolded, I seek to study medicine every bit a tool of colonial ability as well as every bit the phase of its legitimation – as well as contestation.
(…)
From sanitary utopia to wellness catastrophe, the history of Lomidine lays bare the mediocre, enthusiastic, as well as obstinate contribution of medicine to European imperialism (2).

There are 3 outstanding features of the volume that I volition focus on inwards my review: First, the even out is a well-crafted historical narrative. Second, the volume is an exemplary example study of what ‘discourse analysis’ or ‘governmentality’ actually hateful from a research perspective. And third, every bit distant as well as outdated or so of the practices of the 1950s instantly seem, the volume opens upwards a fascinating arena for give-and-take of how nosotros count, who counts as well as what counts inwards contemporary evolution efforts. Whether nosotros hash out expat assist workers, communicating evolution or using randomized-control trials inwards research, Lachenal’s volume is to or so extent a mirror of beliefs as well as practices that receive got (and receive got not) changed since the destination of the colonial era.

Laid-back yet sophisticated French doctors handle African ignorance

During the sleeping sickness campaigns, photos on glossy newspaper of gaunt African children circulated for the starting fourth dimension time – such images would receive got a long shelf life inwards the European media – patch the laid-back yet sophisticated figure of the French doctor, fighting an ever-losing battle against disease, African ignorance, as well as Western bureaucracy, also made his starting fourth dimension appearance (p.9).

The volume takes us correct into an exciting catamenia of regain as well as transformation-a post-war world filled alongside modernity’s promises inwards a context of global alter where ‘development’ could become paw inwards paw alongside the aspirations of the colonies.

As therapeutic noesis was transmitted, an international fraternity was brought into being; it was founded on a shared life “in the bush” as well as on conversations most the time to come of Africa as well as the backwardness of the “natives” (p.35).

The volume is an of import reminder that ‘our’ assist industry, ‘our’ habitus is e'er solely i tricky corner away from practices that frequently bear substantial colonial weight.

The history of pentamidine hence is also a history of typists as well as clerks of the Institut Princesse Astrid, which, past times translating, copying, as well as recopying articles written past times members of the network simultaneously communicated, legitimated as well as stabilized trust inwards the novel technique (p.56).

I retrieve that these practices are closer to today’s ‘filter bubbles’ than nosotros may think, but inwards whatsoever case, the details as well as vignettes of the volume actually brand the notion of a ‘discourse’ come upwards to live. What makes Lachenal such an fantabulous author is that he does non demo off his noesis of French sociology as well as philosophers. The volume could easily plough into a fully theoretical handling featuring Foucault, Bordieu or Latour. But their plant create an almost musical or lyrical background to the ‘actions’ of the example at hand. You basically demand to read all the vignettes earlier an almost magical wood opens upwards as well as y'all tin clearly meet ‘biopolitics’ or ‘power-knowledge’ architecture.

My aim is to grasp the performative dimension of the deed of counting: what it meant, inwards the class of injection campaigns, to “make numbers” both inwards the feel that large-scale repetitions of a tricky medical gesture entailed organizational constraints as well as alongside reference to the burden imposed on the day-to-day operate of mobile teams past times the really acts of counting as well as accounting (p.58).

These curt quotes cannot do the well-crafted narrative fully justice, but they fourth dimension as well as in i trial to a greater extent than hint at the meat of the book: Any procedure, whatsoever elaborated shape of counting, whatsoever sophisticated medical or technical intervention is a political deed

Did they receive got ‘fail fares’ inwards Republic of Cameroon inwards the 1950s?

Being perceived but every bit misunderstandings, its failures stimulated the imagination of doctors, who designed instruction campaigns containing a novel as well as surprising joint of the number of private responsibility. At the same time, the drug’s misses justified a serial of constabulary as well as state of war machine initiatives to Lomidize, past times strength if necessary, individuals or villages refusing injections (p.99).

At today’s events celebrating failure lives of people are ordinarily non seat at risk. Lachenal’s research is research into bêtise ‘an enthusiastic as well as enterprising shape of stupidity, a confident as well as calculated shape of foolishness’ (p.13) that nosotros nowadays frequently meet inwards the philanthrocapitalist as well as Silicon Valley entrepreneurs who claim to ‘eradicate poverty’.

Nurses as well as local chiefs hardly appeared at all. The colonial state’s representatives, featured at the pump of the activity past times the really shape of the report, as well as so turned themselves into detectives as well as sociologists (p.122).

So when things went incorrect at that spot was an enthusiastic volition to figure out what went wrong, assess technical procedures as well as position the culprits, ordinarily an inattentive nurse or poorly trained local helper. But learning lessons was hard!

At best, it reveals the mediocre character of its archival mechanics (…). Worse, what is unmasked hither is the capacity of the scheme to forget, even, i mightiness say, to ensure its ain amnesia (p.158).

Lachenal unearths many artifacts that were filed as well as stored away. The author uses his vast, unique archival cloth precisely inwards the correct dosage. After so many years of engaging alongside the cloth at that spot must receive got been a temptation to introduce to a greater extent than letters, quote from to a greater extent than telegrams or include to a greater extent than medical studies. But to regain the remainder betwixt the obligation to await into every bit many boxes every bit possible as well as selecting cloth for a readable volume is an of import work of academic writing, mayhap i that frequently gets a fleck sidelined every bit funding runs out, novel projects are lined upwards as well as a feel of fatigue creeps into the physical care for of ‘getting the manuscript done’. Lachenal masters this tricky remainder actually really well.
Among many things, the book, the in conclusion printed product, is a reminder that fantabulous research takes time. From starting fourth dimension steps into the archive to the publication of the translated volume nosotros are looking at 10+ years. Allowing this to occur is i of the features when academia is genuinely a wonderful, privileged house to live on in.

Lomidine never worked-and this is of import inwards 2017

Thus, pentamidinization had acted non past times preventing novel infections inwards salubrious individuals, but rather past times treating unknowingly as well as on a massive scale, parasite carriers who were non detected inwards the class of screening. (…) it became an embarrassing, almost incomprehensible, episode inwards the history of tropical medicine (p.173).

Although Lachenal’s even out ends to a greater extent than or less at the destination of the 1950s the volume is highly relevant for contemporary discussions.

On Nov 12, 2014, the French National Academy of Medicine blacklisted this book. (…) The quondam white manlike soul French doctors who wrote the press unloose had evidently non read my book; they had solely heard most inwards the press, as well as apparently idea at that spot was cypher to live on learned from most colonial medicine, Lomidine, or Africa. (pp.191-92).

Not solely were French doctors concerned most the research, but nosotros receive got discussions most the ‘value’ of British colonialism correct instantly amidst the instantly Failing inwards the field inwards remove heed or research on evolution statistics past times Morten Jerven the give-and-take of counting better, of using approaches pioneered inwards medicine for evolution research, of legitimizing noesis production as well as finding ways to generate ‘objective data’ is soundless at the pump of conceptualizing evolution theories as well as practices.

Maybe the economist has replaced the pith-helmeted medical MD inwards or so areas as well as their Excel sheets are less invasive as well as unsafe than colonial experiments, but the Lomidine Files is a volume most like desires to understand, assist as well as ‘eradicate’ poverty inwards contexts of making bodies, states as well as (our) aspirations count.

Lachenal, Guillaume: The Lomidine Files-The Untold Story of a Medical Disaster inwards Colonial Africa. Translated past times Noémi Tousignant. ISBN 978-1-4214-2323-4, 237pp, 34.95 USD, Baltimore, MA: Johns Hopkins University Press, 2017.