Two British men unpack bottles of plasma that have been donated through the Blood for Britain Project.
In April of 1940, World War II was taking place and Adolf Hitler had taken over many European nations except Great Britain. There was a need for blood on the front lines but none could be provided or received in time. Britain was unable to handle the transportation of blood to so many people, so the country delegated the job to the Director of Britain’s Army Blood Transfusion Service, John Beattie. He asked for help from America’s Blood Transfusion Betterment Association and specifically from Dr. Charles Drew. During this time, segregation only allowed black doctors to care for black patients with minor injuries. Charles left his job at Howard University and took control of the Blood for Britain Project. The donation of blood was advertised on the radio and other media sources. During the war, Dr. Drew attracted the attention of 100,000 blood donors for the United States Army and Navy. Dr. Drew took detailed measures to make sure donated plasma was clean and transportation went well. They used blood plasma instead of whole blood because it was less expensive, it didn’t have to be a specific blood type, it could be stored for a longer time, and there were fewer risks when given to the patients. The Red Cross, The Blood Transfusion Betterment Association, and The National Research Counsel for Blood united to support the experiment for mass blood production. America’s Blood for Britain program accepted blood from both races. However, if a black person donated it, the race of the donor had to be specified and labeled. Black blood was treated separately and some say that the blood was not even used.