Project MK Ultra

By Mark Choe

In this blog post I will first provide a brief synopsis of Project MK Ultra and its consequences. I will then discuss the ethicality of Project MK Ultra by comparing this project to the current ethical guidelines for science experiments. Finally, I will sum up the significance of this project in science today.

Project MK Ultra was a collection of subprojects conducted by the United States federal government (specifically the CIA) on both United States citizens and foreigners alike from 1953 to 1964. These subprojects ranged from drug administration to behavior modification to assassination delivery systems, and most often utilized, if not specifically targeted, nonconsenting participants. Additionally, the CIA was not alone in conducting Project MK Ultra, for numerous universities and institutions unknowingly provided aid and resources to this project as well. The stated purpose of this project was to “develop a capability in the covert use of biological and chemical materials” and defend the Unites States against the possibility of Russia and China already possessing these capabilities. Despite fatalities and Project MK Ultra’s egregious lack of consideration for the wellbeing of participants and the public as a whole, victims of Project MK Ultra have seen little justice. Two Supreme Court cases against Project MK Ultra were ruled in favor of the federal government (see CIA vs. Simms and  United States v. Stanley) and most records of Project MK Ultra were destroyed in 1973. The only remaining evidence of Project MK Ultra is a scarce collection of overlooked records found in 1977 and the experiences of Project MK Ultra’s implementers and victims. My source for this summary can be found here along with some more details regarding MK Ultra.

Though not in place during the time of Project MK Ultra, the Belmont Report, a current ethical guideline for science experiments, can still be superimposed upon past experiments to determine the ethicality of said experiments, because ethics do not change with the times; that which is wrong now will always be wrong. Based upon the Belmont Report, Project MK Ultra was highly immoral, for this project violated all three of the Belmont Report’s key principles (respect for persons, beneficence, and justice). In order to follow the first key principle of the Belmont Report (respect for persons), science experiments must obtain informed consent from participants. Project MK Ultra completely disregarded this. Most of Project MK Ultra’s participants did not even know that they were a part of an experiment, and thus could never have given any form of consent, neither informed nor uninformed. Additionally, the truth behind Project MK Ultra and the possible dangers of its experiments were not even revealed to those who did know of their participation in an experiment (such as in the case of Ken Kesey and Robert Hunter). Thus, though these participants may have provided consent, they were never in a position to provide informed consent. In order to follow the second key principle of the Belmont Report (beneficence), science experiments must prioritize the safety of its participants. Project MK Ultra did little to uphold this principle. Not only were Project MK Ultra’s participants not warned of possible dangers, but also Project MK Ultra failed to prevent harm and even fatalities in some instances (such as in the case of Harold Blauer). In order to follow the third key principle of the Belmont Report (justice), science experiments must avoid exploiting their participants. In other words, participants ought to be compensated with benefits for their suffered burdens. However, Project MK Ultra certainly did not provide unwitting participants any benefits. It did not even benefit its own (such as in the case of the CIA’s Technical Services Staff). Project MK Ultra simply exploited participants to potentially bolster the federal government’s strength. Thus, Project MK Ultra fails to follow any of the Belmont Report’s three key principles. As a side note, the cases used to back this conclusion (the cases of Ken Kesey, Robert Hunter, Harold Blauer, and the CIA’s Technical Services Staff) can be found here along with other notable cases related to Project MK Ultra.

Project MK Ultra is a blemish upon America’s history and science as a whole. Its gross disregard for ethics and life shattering effects upon its victims has made it out to be an antithesis to good, ethical scientific research. However, this, in and of itself, has become significant to science. Because of Project MK Ultra, today’s scientists can now better appreciate the limitations placed upon their research by the Belmont Report, for Project MK Ultra has proven that failure to follow the Belmont Report’s three key principles can lead to serious consequences (public scorn, lawsuits, injury, and even sometimes death). Additionally, Project MK Ultra underscores the importance of preserving all scientific records of a scientific experiment, for it essentially conducted years of research and made dozens of people suffer in vain by destroying its records. Whether or not an experiment is ethical, no conclusions or scientific truths can be gleaned from destroyed records. An experiment is practically worthless without proof of its occurrence and its observations.

In this blog post I have provided a brief synopsis of Project MK Ultra and its consequences. I have discussed the ethicality of Project MK Ultra by comparing this project to the guidelines of the Belmont Report. Additionally, I have summed up the significance of this project in science today.