2022

2022 Prize Winning Submissions - Bodily Autonomy

Grand Prize: Breigh Plat, Class of 2025
First-Year Prize: Sreeja Kuppam, Class of 2026
 

2022 Essay Prompt:

By the time it reached pandemic status in early 2031, the viral infection had acquired the nickname “SF,” for San Fernando, the area of Los Angeles where the first outbreaks had been noticed.

As with HPV, SF affects people differently according to sex. People with XY chromosomes tend to be asymptomatic, or to have only mild symptoms such as gastrointestinal distress and headaches, whereas people with XX chromosomes often suffer more severe consequences, including liver and kidney damage.

Regardless of gender or symptoms, simple blood tests can confirm whether someone carries the virus and is capable of spreading it. The virus has various avenues of transmission but is most commonly spread through sex. With contact tracing and genetic sequencing, it’s usually possible to determine specifically who infected whom.

In 2033, a woman in Roanoke won a civil suit against the man who infected her. Several similar suits followed throughout the country, usually resulting in an award of financial damages. Now, the Vermont state legislature has introduced a bill that would require men to donate a kidney or a lobe of their liver to former sexual partners who have suffered organ damage from an SF infection.

Under the new legislation, court-ordered organ donations would no doubt save the lives of many infected people. Opponents of the legislation, though, argue that it discriminates on the basis of sex, and that harvesting organs by statute is an obvious violation of human rights.

You are a legislative aid for a state senator in Texas. Though no bill has been introduced yet in your state, some constituents have begun to express opinions on the matter. Your boss, Senator Sing, appreciates your interdisciplinary educational background and your ability to organize your thoughts in writing. They have invited you to compose an essay discussing the merits of such a law, to help inform their eventual policy position. Address the ethical dimensions of this issue, consider relevant precedents, and argue for or against a policy.