feminist blogs

A few weeks ago, a new television advertisement in the UK started to stir up controversy. The ad simply features the question “Are you late?” As well as, the phone number and website for the sexual and reproductive health care provider, Marie Stopes International. This is the first television ad for an abortion provider in the UK.

Abortion is legal in the UK (except Northern Ireland where the ad will not be seen) if two doctors give consent. They must state that ending the pregnancy is in the best interest of the woman and would cause either physical or mental health issues. This law was enacted in 1967 and many reproductive rights advocates believe it should be updated to make the process of obtaining reproductive services easier for women. Still, approximately 200,000 abortions are carried out in Britain each year

Marie Stopes International is similar to Planned Parenthood and was founded in 1976. It grew out of an organization originally set up by Ms. Stopes in 1921. At that time, it served as a resource center for married women and advocated for reproductive rights. Their current mission is simply” children by choice not chance.”  Health screenings, education, birth control access, abortion services, an adoption helpline and advocacy campaigns are some of the many activities this organization does worldwide.

This is a huge milestone that a mainstream media resource is being used to advertise an abortion provider. However, this commercial exemplifies how much further society needs to go to making language surrounding abortion less taboo.

Emotions tend to run high around discussion of reproductive health, especially abortion. This is true of both sides. Open dialogue needs to happen in order to make sure everyone is aware of facts and services. Maybe a commercial like the one in the UK will begin to slowly open up the discussion, but I wish it wasn’t quite so cryptic.

The language in the ad leaves the subject very understated. Not once in the ad is there mention of abortion, any other option or choice. In some ways, it reminded me of posters I’ve seen for pregnancy crisis centers in the U.S. These places claim to provide comprehensive resources for pregnant women, but instead provide coercion and often false information.

Of course, anti-choice groups have reacted poorly to the ad. LIFE (a UK anti-choice group) has issued a letter to the UK’s FCC equivalent (media regulation) protesting the commercial. They claim the ad should feature a warning about the physical and mental risks of abortion despite no significant scientific evidence asserting these risks.

So what are you opinions about the ad? Does it go far enough? Too far? Would you like to see similar ads by Planned Parenthood here in the U.S.?

I feel like it is a good start and maybe more dialogue about reproductive rights is on the horizon.

Baby pictures usually invoke warm fuzzy feelings, which is part of the reason why people flock to newsstands when a celebrity baby is on the cover of a magazine. Between baby bumps, Suri Cruise’s fashions and the whole Jolie-Pitt clan people can’t seem to get enough of famous people’s children. This is why the paparazzi can expect a large payday if they snap a pic of celebrity offspring.

Some celebrities have spoken out against targeting children for photos, while others seem to almost pimp their children for attention.  A member of the paparazzi explains in the Nightline piece that certain parks are known to photographers and celebrities alike. Therefore, when they bring their children to these parks, they know full well they will be photographed. This isn’t a reason to call child protective services, but it isn’t exactly best parenting practice either.  

Overall, I don’t really have a problem with paparazzi. The vast majority of people photographed by them made a conscious choice to become a celebrity. You can be involved in acting, music, etc. without becoming a big star and therefore getting the attention of paparazzi. (This is not to say celebrities should be stalked or put in danger, but they should deal with general photographs.)

As we all know, we can’t choose our parents. The children of celebrities are in the same boat and didn’t choose to be in the limelight. Some celebrity children do grow up to pursue stardom, but until they do I think we shouldn’t bother them. Let them have as normal of as a life as possible.

Ultimately, it is us as consumers that need to stop the obsession with other people’s children. Sure some celebrities feel almost like old friends, but the truth is they aren’t our friends. Their children aren’t any more interesting than our own nieces and nephews. So why not give the kids a break.

Mexican abortion laws are becoming more restrictive despite recent gains in the region. In 2007, Mexico City with a population of nearly nine million people decriminalized abortion. This happened after the Inter-American Commission for Human Rights granted a young woman reparation for being denied information on legal abortion services and care. This marked the first time in Latin America that abortion access was acknowledged as a human right by a government body.
Now the Mexican State of Quintana Roo on the Yucatán Peninsula (Think Cancun) is in the media spotlight. Public officials are accused of denying and an eleven-year-old girl information that would have allowed her to get a safe abortion. She became pregnant after being raped by her stepfather and state law allows abortion in cases of rape.
Like many other countries, Mexico needs more access to and education on abortion services, not less. Some women resort to crossing the U.S. border into Texas and other southwest states for the purpose of obtaining safe abortions. “Indeed, a 2009 report from the Guttmacher Institute clearly demonstrates that despite abortion being essentially illegal in virtually all of Mexico, abortion is 40 percent more prevalent in that country than in the United States.” (Marcy Bloom)
Despite this obvious need for reproductive rights, women aren’t getting the respect for their bodies they deserve. Instead they are being met with criminal charges, social stigmatization and a lack of information.
For example, “in the state of Jalisco, a minimum of four to 12 month sentences are imposed on women for having an abortion if they meet four conditions: they have a “bad reputation,” (note from this writer: who gets to judge that?), sought an abortion as result of an “illegitimate union,” attempted to hide the pregnancy, and had the abortion within the first trimester. If one of these requirements is not fulfilled, then the sentence is doubled. If two are not met, it is tripled.” (Marcy Bloom)
Sometimes the fight for reproductive justice seems impossible when every victory is met with backlash. Anti-choice advocates are always ready to fight and we should be too. We need to ensure our rights here at home and for the women across borders.

In the wake of two decades of equality declines, the women of Iraq have been given a glimmer of hope for progress. Iraq’s new constitution mandates that 25% of parliament’s seats must be held by women. Like women around the world, Iraqi women have a history of fighting for their rights.

The 1970s/80s saw an increase in public policy aimed at gender equality in Iraq’s public sphere. Even the constitution of 1970 contained an article stating that all citizens are equal regardless of sex.

Unfortunately, this type of progress didn’t continue in the 1990s which brought sanctions, conflict and an increase in fundamentalist influence on policy. Schools deteriorated and women’s economic development slowed during this time. The literacy rate of Iraqi women dropped from 75% in 1987 to less than 25% in 2000. (Human Rights Watch)

Then came the U.S. invasion in 2003. This so-called liberation put new pressures on the women of Iraq. As with most conflict situations women faced increased assaults, rape and kidnapping. Women are often responsible for meeting the basics need of the family and this became increasingly difficult as infrastructure was destroyed and their mobility limited by insecurity.

In addition, women are often overlooked in the reconstruction process. Most of the economic development projects in Iraq have focused on businesses owned by men. This makes the new parliament mandate even more important. Not surprisingly, some people (particularly men) have taken offense with this mandate. Many female political candidates have faced threats.

Also not surprising is that people in the U.S. are against such quotas and believe it to be a violation of democracy. As I read through the comments on the NPR article about this subject only one was in support of the mandate (shock! It was one of the two women that left a comment).

Those who cry outrage over these types of quotas live in a fantasy world believing that all is truly fair and equal opportunities are available to everyone. This belief disregards the social, cultural, and economic barriers that women face daily, let alone in political life. The United States is supposed to be a role model of equality for the world, yet only 17% of our legislature is made up of women!

Let me be clear, women are not necessarily better leaders, but the different perspective they provide is crucial to making democracy work. As public and private leaders, women tend to focus on issues many times overlooked or patronized by male dominated governments. These include education, childcare, welfare, health care and other family centered policies.

No one denies the theory that people have different experiences based on their gender identity. Therefore, it is logical to have a high number of people with female experiences in order to ensure a more equal (and dare I say fair) representation. Women make up ½ the worlds population after all.

To find out more about gender quotas throughout the world visit http://www.quotaproject.org/.

Anyone who believes that making abortion illegal saves lives has probably never experienced desperation or been affected by misinformation. When access to safe abortion is denied, women turn to dangerous back alley and at-home methods of abortion. Women in countries that outlaw abortions will drink turpentine or bleach, jump from stairs or a rooftop and place foreign bodies such as the classic clothes hanger into their uterus in order to end a pregnancy. 

Any of these methods and others used by women around the world can cause injury and even death. The Center for Reproductive Rights released the report In Harm’s Way: The impact of Kenya’s restrictive abortion law, which details how women are dying because of fuzzy legal language and the criminalization of abortion.

Women in Africa are not more or less likely to have an abortion than any other women in the world. However, women in Africa are more likely to have unsafe abortions and Kenya has one of the highest rates of abortion related deaths. “In Kenya, 35% of maternal deaths are attributable to unsafe abortion.”

Kenya’s current law about abortion states:

Any person who, with intent to procure miscarriage of a woman…unlawfully administers to her or causes her to take any poison…or uses force of any kind, or uses any other means whatever, is guilty of a felony and is liable to imprisonment for fourteen years.”

A loophole is written in the law that allows abortion in the preservation of the women’s life under reasonable care. However, fear of imprisonment, stigmatization, lack of financial support and bureaucratic barriers causes women to resort to unsafe methods of abortion and often they do not seek help if these procedures go horribly wrong.

One contributor to Kenya’s problem is girls resorting to having sex for money in order to help their families. A 2003 study by the Center for the Study of Adolescence found that 56% of secondary school students “had exchanged sex for money.”  The summary of the report opens with a story of a young woman who turned to having sex for money in order to help feed her family.

Sarah was 14 years old when she died from complications from unsafe abortion. She lived in a one-room shack…with her mother, four siblings and two nieces. Her father had died of AIDS and tuberculosis. Her mother, Evelyne, is HIV-positive and was hospitalized for two years with tuberculosis complications…and has permanent limited mobility.

When she couldn’t find work washing clothes for other women, she would have sex with men [for money]. She would use [her earnings] from these encounters to buy food for the family.

When Sarah became pregnant [she] procured an unsafe abortion…Afterwards, Sarah developed a dangerous, life-threatening infection… The cost of emergency healthcare and the fear of arrest kept Sarah from seeking medical care. Sarah died at home on June 29, 2009

 Violence also plays a big role in Kenya’s reproductive issues. Kenya has a high rate of sexual violence, which contributes to the rate of abortion. According to the report, “52% reported being sexually abused in their lifetime while over 30% reported an experience of forced sexual intercourse in their lifetime.”

Currently, there is discussion in Kenya about whether to include in the new constitution language that states “life of a person begins at conception.” This is another attempt in the world to treat women as machines of reproduction rather than full humans. Language like this would only make abortion access more restrictive and continue to criminalize and stigmatize women and doctors.

When looking at international issues there is a lot of debate about how or if western viewpoints should play any role in the policy and community of developing countries. I agree that the western world can’t take over and should always look to local stakeholders to lead and generate ideas.

However, when it comes to decriminalizing abortion this is not something that needs to be debated. Women and girls are dying. According to the World Health Organization “the lowest rates in the world are in Western and Northern Europe, where abortion is accessible with few restrictions.” Isn’t fewer abortion what we all want?

Over the last few months there seems to be an increase in visible advertisements from the anti-choice camps.  One of the more controversial is a billboard campaign sponsored by organizations like Georgia’s Right to Life and Operation Outrage. These groups have posted between 60-80 signs around the Atlanta metro area. Despite the fact these organizations are predominately made up of white members, the message they are espousing is about black women and abortion.

The signs picture a cute baby with the headline “Black Children are an Endangered Species.” For me the most disturbing part of the sign is how they are treating black children as if they are a separate species from other babies. These groups claim that Planned Parenthood targets black women. This is an insult to black women and continues the dehumanizing theme of the billboards. It is as if black women do not have the intellectual capacity to make educated decisions for themselves, but instead are prey of the abortion providers.  

Reproductive issues for black women have been trying throughout history. During slavery, women were rewarded for reproducing thus increasing the plantations workforce, while an infertile woman would suffer more abuse and ridicule. Later, black women were more affected by threats to take away welfare benefits if they didn’t get sterilized.

The signs in Atlanta are supposed to bring attention to the fact that black women disproportionally have more abortions than other races. They point to Center for Disease Control and Prevention statistics and the number of Planned Parenthood clinics in minority neighborhoods. However, they don’t look at the whole picture. Could there be an inequity in prevention education, economic development, healthcare access and self-empowerment programs in these areas as well?

I actually would love to decrease the number of abortions women of all colors have each year. However, the bill currently in the Georgia legislature won’t be effective at helping any women, especially minority women. Real change requires comprehensive sex education and giving women the power to demand their rights in and outside the bedroom.

Today is International Women’s Day. Around the world women will be celebrated through rallies, political action, and gifts.

 To celebrate both International Women’s Day and Women’s History Month here is a timeline showing a bit of the history of International Women’s Day:

1857- New York Lower East Side Female textile/garment workers staged a protest against 12 hour work days and poor working conditions. For female trade union members this began International Women’s Day (IWD).

1909-The first National Woman’s Day occurred on February 28^th in the United States.

1910- The Copenhagen Initiative established a Women’s Day to honor the fight for women’s rights and universal suffrage. The day was approved unanimously by over 100 women from 17 countries. No fixed date had been chosen yet though.

1911-Austria, Denmark, Germany and Switzerland held rallies for International Women’s Day for the first on March 19^th.

1914-International Women’s Day became part of anti-war movement during World War I. Russian women observed their country’s first IWD on the last Sunday of February. Other places in Europe celebrated around March 8^th by holding rallies and/or protesting the war.

1917-Again Russian women protested on IWD and four days later the Czar stepped down and the provisional government gave women the right to vote.

1975-was designated as ‘International Women’s Year‘ by the United Nations.

1978-The Education Task Force of Sonoma County in California began “Women’s History Week.” It was purposely chosen to occur along with IWD.

1987-A Congressional resolution made March Women’s History Month nationally.

Today- IWD continues to have its political roots, but is also a day to just take a moment to recognize and pay respect to the women in our lives.

IWD is now an official holiday in China, Angola, Armenia, Russia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Bulgaria, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Macedonia, Moldova, Mongolia, Tajikistan, Ukraine, Uzbekistan, Vietnam and many other countries.

 To find an event or more information about International Women’s Day visit http://www.internationalwomensday.com/

Media outlets are once again frightening women into reproducing sooner rather than later. The headline “Women Lose 90% of Their Eggs by Age 30,” is being seen across the globe. It does sound a bit scary until you really do the math.

• At puberty girls are estimated to have approximately 300,000-400,000 eggs left.
• At 30 years old women have 10% of those eggs, which is 30,000 – 40,000 eggs
• From what I remember from biology 101, it only takes one healthy egg to make a baby.

 Now those numbers don’t seem quite as scary as the media wants women to think.

Scientists have discovered the reason why women find it difficult to conceive later in life – they have used up about 90 per cent of their “ovarian reserve” by the age of 30.
While they may continue to produce eggs throughout their 30s and 40s, the reservoir of potential eggs from which they are taken has shrunk to almost nothing, it suggests. –UK Daily Telegraph

By the time a woman hits 30, nearly all of her ovarian eggs are gone for good, according a new study that says women who put off childbearing for too long could have difficulty ever conceiving. -ABC News

They use such anxiety filled language that isn’t painting a completely accurate picture of women’s fertility in their 30s and even 40s. These lines make it seem like the chances of a woman getting pregnant in her thirties is as likely as an immaculate conception.

Luckily, we do have alternative media that is try to shred a different light on this subject. Author Elizabeth Gregory wrote an excellent piece on Alternet pointing out left out science and asking valid questions that no one seems to be talking about in mainstream media.

“And sure, older women need to know that fertility declines with age. But what are the actual fertility rates of women in each age range? And why is it that increasing numbers of women choose to delay in the first place? What is lost when they don’t? Instead of facts and understanding of the causes and effects of delay, we get a lot of sentimentality aimed at getting you to start your family now.”

 Science doesn’t occur in a vacuum, but in a complex society.  Gregory has a lot of valid question that need to be part of the dialogue in fertility research and analysis. Why women delay childbirth is extremely important. Education, life experience, financial security and time to develop a general desire to be a mother are all good reasons to delay childbirth.

 Women who don’t have children and don’t want children need to be recognized as well.

“And, hard though it may be to imagine in our baby-wild world, many women are happy without kids. They’d be even more likely to be happy if they weren’t being reminded all the time of how unhappy they should.”

This comes down to reproductive choice. Women are actually given a lot of choices between natural conception/birth, adoption, IVF and not having children. However, society seems to only value natural childbirth and the other options should only be executed as last resorts.   This is exactly why a deeper discussion about these scientific findings is necessary for all women.

Every generation worries about the upbringing of the next. Many times this includes criticizing the younger generations’ way of dressing. In the 60s it was long hair and bellbottoms. In the 90s the midriff ruled. Now parents are dealing with what their children are wearing at an even younger age. Apparently, baby heels are all the rage!

Good Morning America featured this segment about little girls in high heels. Apparently, celebrity children are leading this trend. Like responsible adults parents are asking question about how these shoes may be affecting their child’s mental and physical development. Maybe it isn’t the best thing to follow a celebrity trend blindly?

I think it would be a shame to push girls to wear heels at 3 years old, 13 years old or even 30 years old. High heels won’t help if you want to climb trees, ride bicycles or walk on the beach. However, shoes are not the real issue here.

As one mother stated in the video, a girl needs to “learn to be a lady.” This is where I seriously start to question the importance of shoes! Socialization and gender is a much more complicated issue than shoes! Creating rigid gender roles at such young ages is the real problem.

When I was a kid I played dress up with mom AND dad’s clothes. Really I would wear whatever got the grown-ups in the room to swoon or laugh. It was attention I desired more than a feeling of being girly or not.   

 But back to the shoes. If your child wants to wear heels I don’t see a serious problem with letting them wear heels. This goes for if they are a girl or a boy. Of course, follow doctor’s advice and limit the amount of time you put their poor little feet through the stress of heels. Really whatever you decide on the shoe front is fine because you know your child better than anyone.

Media outlets continue to flash scenes from the devastated nation of Haiti. A ticker of organizations that need money in the relief effort run under newscasts as we sit, watch and hope for better news. Even before the 7.0 earthquake shook this nation about 2000 miles from the U.S., people were suffering.

Haiti is the poorest nation in the western hemisphere. Some estimates of people living in poverty are as high as 80% of the population. A UNICEF representative told Rachel Maddow only 46% of the country had access to clean water prior to the quake. These numbers are devastating in their own right, let alone how they affect people’s ability to access needed assistance.

My heart goes out to everyone impacted by the devastating earthquake. However, I’m particular emphatic towards the women of Haiti. Females are unequally affected by crisis situations. 

Women are often more impacted by crisis situation than other groups. Education and access to aid is crucial after a disaster like the Haitian earthquake. Since women make up 70% of the world’s poor and two-thirds of the non-literate population, it is understandable that they would have extra obstacles to obtaining aid services.

Many small farms and home businesses are run by women to sustain their family. These are also the vulnerable to tragedies like the earthquake. Workloads for women are already larger for women across the world and these only increases with rebuilding efforts. Then to top it off, intimate partner and sexual violence increases in times of crisis.

Despite the bleak forecast for women in a crisis, they are not simply damsels in distress. Women take a central role is preventing disaster and reconstructing their communities after one occurs. As care-takers women are more likely to prepare family emergency plans, kits and be aware of who will need the most help in their community. They are also the ones that take on the responsibility of organizing reconstruction of homes and community structures.

Many of us want to help. It seems right now money is one of the few ways to help Haiti. One women’s organization that has a good reputation and is helping in the relief effort is MADRE.

Those local to New York may want to help Haitian Women for Haitian Refugees, Lakou New York, and Movement of Dominican Haitian Women which are planning an immediate delivery of first aid relief. They will be going to the Dominican/Haitian border and donations are encouraged. IFCO/Haiti Relief, 418 West 145th Street, New York NY 10031.

For a broader look at places to give, ABC News has a list of organizations that are bringing supplies and support to the field. Read through them and give to the one you feel most comfortable.

Also, I am sure as time goes by and pictures stop showing up on the news Haiti will need support more than ever. I suggest checking back then and maybe as a world community we can help Haiti reconstruct and revitalize.

 Photo Credit: New York Times