Declare a national day of recognition for Henrietta Lacks, the woman whose cancer cells formed the HeLa cell line.

Henrietta Lacks died in 1951 from cervical cancer. During treatment at Johns Hopkins Hospital, doctors removed cervical samples from Lacks without her knowledge. A new cell line, HeLa, was created from these samples. Clones of HeLa were instrumental in manifold scientific breakthroughs, such as the development of the polio vaccine. While the use of Lacks' cells without her or her family's consent has been ethically debated for decades, strains of HeLa are still used in disease and human sensitivity studies. Though they have gained public recognition for the cells' origins, Lacks' descendants have been unable to acquire rights to HeLa. Henrietta Lacks' sacrifice has benefited humanity in immeasurable ways. Please sign my petition in support of a national day of recognition.