24 thoughts on “Please post your response to the week 14 readings here!

  1. Jazzy06

    I really enjoyed some of the points made in the “Feminism is for Everybody” article, especially when referring to the inequalities of abortions between women in different social classes. I believe that this problem stems directly from the power struggles that are so often seen within society. This inequality is an issue between socio-economic classes, races, as well as between men and women, and I think it is important to point out these differences so that they can be recognized and corrected by those affected.

    I was slightly surprised, however, to read what was said about the introduction of the birth control pill at the height of the women’s sexual liberation. It is a little scary to me that women saw this pill as a sense of freedom – from unwanted pregnancies and abortion – considering that it was s drug consisting of possibly dangerous hormones. The fact that women were so desperate to maintain their sexual freedom that they chose to jeopardize their health by using the birth control pill proves that they had previously been subordinated.

    To me, it seems that the birth control pill is still another way that women are caught under the control of men in terms of fertility and pregnancy. While it is understandable that women should be responsible for protecting themselves from becoming pregnant, I don’t believe that it is fair for them to be persecuted and put in danger because of it. Furthermore, the idea that birth control pills were invented by a group of male scientists only furthers the fact that they were designed to eliminate the element of choice for women’s form of birth control, making the pill seem like the only option better than an unwanted pregnancy and abortion. I believe that, while it is very important for women to have forms of birth control, as well as having the power to choose what is best for them, men should also have birth controls which they can choose from, instead of leaving all of the responsibility to their female partners.

  2. Lilly

    This week’s reading were very eye opening for me, especially because I am an immigrant in the United States. I really enjoyed the article, “immigrant rights are women’s rights” just because there were a few things that I could relate to myself and the struggles of my mother. When we first moved to the U.S. 9 years ago, there were a lot of difficulties we had to face. The biggest obstacle in my life was the language barrier. I remember I started 12th grade here and I had no knowledge of English. My fellow classmates used to make fun of me and I had no friends in school. My mother had a tough time finding a job. She is a well educated woman but due to the language barrier, nobody would hire her. With my heavy accent I had to face a lot of challenges through my high school career. Because we were immigrants in the country I remember we were having tough time with the health insurance policies and many other things. Our family income was low and my mom would work under the table to make both ends meet. The first 2-3 years my sister and I used to wear clothes bought from the thrift store, because my mom would always say we don’t have any money and we can’t afford the expenses. Just because of my brown skin and no English, people used to think I was illegal in this country. My mom and I were travelling to California one summer and we both were stopped by the immigration services to show the proof of residency in the States. Even though we were flying locally they made us go through a whole process of unnecessary questions. Finally my mom started taking ESL classes, so she can have a better job. Now, she is a manager in the company with good pay and proper health insurance. I mean it definitely is a struggle especially for an immigrant woman to settle in this country but if you fight for the rights and work hard I think anything is possible.

  3. Liz

    Women have continually had to fight for basic health rights. Abortion has been a primary focus of women in the past and still continues to be a pressing issue. Although this issue is important to many different races and classes, it is also important to focus on the class bias when it comes to reproductive rights. Reproductive health is central to a woman’s health and should not be brushed aside when focusing on her overall health. But, many women, including women of color, immigrants, and low income women, do not have access to the important reproductive health services and education that they need.
    As a white woman, I have been privileged enough to have access to the reproductive health services and education that is important to staying healthy, but I would like to promote equal access to all women and communities. I am not sure how someone might go about doing this. The article “Policing the National Body” mentioned that many providers lack cultural competency to provided a safe and accessible environment for women of color to pursue good health care and make sound health decisions. A possible solution to the lack of cultural competency would be to require medical staff to have cultural classes as part of their medical training that emphasize the differences between different cultures and how to be more accommodating in their work environment. I think that with the growth of minority groups, working with and understanding different cultures is of utmost importance, especially since these groups tend not to receive important medical services.

  4. Blush

    This week’s readings all addressed the essential need for reproductive justice- not just for women, but for everyone. Immigrants, people of color, and gay men, lesbian women, and transgender people were all addressed in the articles this week. In addition to these traditionally disadvantaged groups, I think it is important to make EVERYONE a part of the reproductive justice movement. It somewhat annoys me when only women seem to be involved in reproductive justice movements because men need to be involved just as much as women! I don’t think reproductive justice should have to be a “feminist issue” as was suggested in the Our Bodies Ourselves article. Rather, I think comprehensive sex education, availability to resources and real, honest information is critical to men and women and should be part of a healthcare agenda for everyone. After all, anyone can be affected by an STD, an unplanned pregnancy, infertility, or sexual problems.

    I think reproductive rights should really apply to more than just abortion rights, which is what many people associate with the phrase “reproductive rights”. There are SO many issues that need to be addressed- such as how poor women and especially poor women of color are often pressured to be sterilized, how black women are more prone to delivering premature babies, how gay men and lesbians are still not being given the same rights as heterosexual couples, how mentally and physically handicapped women are often not fully given the opportunity to make reproductive choices about their own bodies…the list goes on and on. Abortion, in my opinion, is a mother’s choice for what is best for her and her unborn potential child. Deeply personal and emotional, it is definitely not up to some government official to make the decision for a woman!

    To me it is ridiculous for there to be so much opposition to abortion because every woman has a different story, different needs, different options (or lack of options). I was really upset when I read the story of the woman who attempted to self abort in the “Immigrant rights…” article. I was just shocked that this poor woman ended up in jail at an already extremely difficult time in her life. In South Carolina, where the migrant farm worker woman lived, abortion must be performed by a licensed physician for it to be “legal”. However, this woman obviously didn’t have some kind of resource (money, transportation, etc.) to have a “legal” abortion, so she tried to self induce one with Misoprostal. Needless to say, I am sure she did not want to do anything illegal and I’m sure she didn’t plan to end up in jail, but that’s what happened and I think it’s disturbing. Government policy just doesn’t take into account that some women simply do not have the means or resources to have a so-called “legal” abortion.

    Another point in the articles was the “blurring line between church-and-state”. This is blatantly obvious in the attack against a woman’s right to have an abortion if she so chooses and in the lack of comprehensive sex education available in so many schools. Hopefully, however, both of these issues will change now that we have a more progressive president who supports a womans right to choose for herself and realizes the logic of comprehensive sex education.

    What I really took away from these articles is the fact that people who are “in charge” in terms of government and policy making are the ones who are ultimately making reprodutive decisions for all indivivuals from all kinds of backgrounds and it doesn’t make sense because there isn’t just a one-size-fits-all method to making reproductive decisions. In fact, reproductive decisions are LIFE decisions and I think women and men, regardless of race, sexual orientation, class, or religion, need to be trusted to make decisions for themselves without government policy interfering on the basis of who can be trusted to do what with their own bodies. A comprehensive educational system, more access to services, and access to honest and diverse information on reproductive health matters would make men and women from all backgrounds better equipped to make decisions for themselves without having to be controlled by what the government thinks is best for everyone.

  5. the_fallen

    Women’s reproductive rights.

    The article mentioned the different women of color and the issues that they face around reproductive justice matters. Also, it was very interesting to me when the author mentioned the many clouds that hang over them and in many instances shape their choices and views. Women around the world are affected by these issues and their social beliefs. Some may see it as awful since it is not their cultures but the most important fact is that different cultures have different views and people do tend to follow their cultural traditions and beliefs.

    As far as Native American women, their health cares have been denied therefore impacting their beliefs especially with the many forced American beliefs on their cultures. I guess people care too much about controlling a “certain” population to a point where they would do anything and by that I mean using human beings as lab rats. Many women in developing countries have been sterilized without their consent and that greatly impacted their future and their beliefs. In countries like Puerto Rico, many women were sterilized without full consent or without telling them what the long time effects are. It is also very interesting to see how people always realized that they are doing something wrong after the drastic effects and changes. In this case, the sterilization programs were going on for many months until someone finally stood up and said that it was wrong. The pro is the fact that the programs stopped and the con is that many women were already affected and it was an irreversible experience for them.

    All women have been affected by these crucial circumstances but it is mostly the women of color and immigrants that suffer the most. Though there are human rights’ movements asking for changes

  6. ILoveBueno

    The LGBT article made me think about the congruence of LGBT issues with issues from other reproductive justice movements. The basic right that members of reproductive justice movements seek is bodily autonomy. For the LGBT community one important issue is the ability to have children and receive social support for doing so. In vitro fertilization is expensive and it cant be covered by insurance because there may be no medical reason why a gay or lesbian couple can’t have children.

    A problem that the LGBT community faces comes from being separated from the reproductive rights movement. Reproductive rights activists don’t support the LGBT causes because they may not associate the movements in their minds or because they are already dealing with so much controversy they don’t want more from conservatives for allying with the LGBT community even though both groups want similar things.

    The reproductive rights movement has tended to focus mostly on abortion. This can be both good and bad. Good because abortion is a issue that garners a lot of media attention which gets mainstream people talking about reproductive rights. Bad because it trumps all other issues so everything else gets ignored. This means that reproductive rights issues that are important to women who aren’t middle and upper class and white get ignored. This class bias exists because historically the leaders of the reproductive rights movement are women who fit into that social group. It also exists because if we accept that there is unequal access to education and birth control we need safe, legal and inexpensive abortions to maintain women’s bodily autonomy. Unfortunately as conservative politicians erode abortion laws to make them more difficult to get once again the women who get left behind are the women who don’t fit into the white, middle and upper class category.

  7. Finkle

    This week’s readings I feel are a good conclusion to the class. The reading “Feminism is for everybody” touched on different aspects. It touched on the beginning on the feminist movement as being a movement of highly educated white women whose issues are obviously different from women in minority groups. It talked about the sexual revolution bringing the issue of unwanted pregnancy which then brings the question of access to contraceptives and safe abortions. The quote” and we were clear about that there could be no genuine sexual liberation for women and men without better, safer contraceptives-without the right to a safe legal abortion” can be used to describe the beginning of the reproductive justice movement in my opinion. The article also mentions an interesting aspect in highlighting the abortion issue versus the reproductive rights as something that reflected the class bias of those who were at the head of the movement. I thought this was interesting because as per last weeks readings and one of the videos we watched in class, the issue of access to safe abortions is still an issue for women of color in this country.
    The article mentions some of the issues that motivated people to be involved ranged from prenatal care, forced sterilizations, unnecessary cesareans and hysterectomies among others. In reading this especially after the class presentation on “challenging technocratic conceptions “ I was interested specifically in the unnecessary cesareans being one of the vital issues that fire up people in joining the movement. The video we watched in class highlighted the notion of the doctors encouraging women to go for C-Sections to save time and the fact that there is a financial incentive behind that. This seems like an issue that should be revived in the reproductive justice movement today.

  8. Smile

    In the reading “Our Bodies, Ourselves”, it discussed about the importance of reproductive rights that women have tried to fight for or need. One of the most controversial issues that still goes on to date is the idea of abortion and how women should have the right to what she wants with her body. The ideas of pro-choice came into play and how important it is for woman and not the government to have a say in what we want to do to our bodies. I understood what the author was saying about abortion however she also mention that some women view abortion even as means of their own birth control which is a hard for me wrap finger upon because I don’t exactly agree with women who do this. I am all for women being able to choose whatever they want to d to their bodies however there should be limitations in terms of abortion and how many a women is allowed to have. I say this because I think it would be a serious problem, even a health issue if women who are having unprotected sexually intercourse and happen to get pregnant and goes to have an abortion, which is fine however if they continue to do this more than two or three times this could not only be an issue but also a health problem. But I understand what the author is saying how back in the day if women especially poor and underprivileged women, had more options for birth control there would be less unwanted pregnancies as well as a better way for women to feel more empowered about their bodies . Also the author mentions how there are other issues that need to be looked at other than abortion and how these issues can also help clear up problems with the issue of abortion. She states that these issues are “basic sex education, prenatal care, preventative healthcare that would heal females understand how their bodies worked, to forced sterilization, unnecessary cesareans, and/or hysterectomies and the medical complications they left in their wake.” We need to tackle other issues that also causes a threat to reproductive rights rather than the issue of abortion which will always be an issue.
    What I also found to be very interesting was the reading “Immigrant rights are Women’s Right”. In this reading it discusses the importance of feminist to come together in the rights for immigrants because it is similar to what they stand for. The author mentions Latina women who are unable to get healthcare and look to unfunded public clinics and even the emergency rooms to get the care they need. It also mentions how many of these Latina women do not know much about contraceptives, and that they used illegal abortion methods because they can’t afford going to or even know about going to a physician for it. It is so important that we look at these issues that affect all women, no matter what their race, class, or sexual preference maybe and help to make a difference and help women become aware of their reproductive rights and to also become aware of the health issues we face on a daily basis, so that we are able to understand and do something about it.

  9. faves06

    I read the article LGBT Reproductive Rights and it ceases to amaze me how unfair this country is. I’ll say now that if I offend anyone, I am not doing it intentionally, these are just my feelings toward the issue.

    The fact that some people can honestly live in 2009 and believe that homosexuality is wrong and they are inferior and should be treated so, blows my mind. It is an issue that truly gets under my skin. Our government continuously tries to keep their hands clean of controversial issues for their own personal goals (like being re-elected) and it is completely detrimental to our country. They should not have the power to tell someone what they can and cannot do, especially when it involves reproductive rights. The issue of health insurance not covering anything regarding homosexual’s infertility is another topic that I won’t even get into because it pisses me off. It brings back the continuous question of “who is to judge who can and cannot have children?” or “who can say what a “fit” parent is?” I had a conversation recently about teaching sexual education in schools and my friend said, “It bothers me that the people who have nothing to do with our children are the ones making decisions for them. They aren’t in the classrooms with them day after day, they don’t see each individual situation our children face, yet they’re have the most power and control over how and what they should be taught.”

    I took a Women’s Studies class last semester about Queer US Culture that truly opened my eyes. I understood that they have always faced inequality issues for decades but never knew the extent. I believe that every person in the US should take a course on LGBT issues so they aren’t so ignorant when they talk about them. You can see, I’m obviously very liberal politically and it truly pisses me off that people are still discriminated against, even though we’ve come so far.

  10. Boston

    The article “Our Bodies, Ourselves” discusses the ongoing battle that women that have been fighting for decades about the rights to their own body. As a middle class college student I did not recognize that women were still struggling to have control over their rights and choices regarding their body. My friends and I have all been able to prevent unwanted pregnancy by using contraceptives and more importantly, birth control pills. Even the morning after pill has become available for college students that feel that they need it. I can not imagine living in a more conservative state that does not allow me to make the best choices for my own body and life. Although I do not think I would have an abortion, it is an important option for women around the world. I do understand that it is important that abortion is not used as the only prevention of pregnancy but it is frightening that some states are removing abortion clinics all together because they are necesary in some situations for some women. I have seen illegal abortions depicted in movies such as Dirty Dancing and Revolutionary Road and it is a gruesome thing. If all abortions were made illegal then women would take it into their own hands which is a frightening reality. It is very important that abortion clinics are left open so that women have their own rights and choices for their body.

  11. sand

    Many of the readings this week were review to me. I have studied the history of reproductive movement often before. I know it’s shortcomings. And I completely agree with the statement “In retrospect, it is evident that highlight abortion rather than reproductive rights as a whole reflected the class biases of the women who were at the forefront of the movement.” Also, Our Bodies Ourselves belief that even within the “abortion issue” the movement has been tainted. Historically feminist pushed hardest to have abortion become legal, not affordable/free. Having abortions free would be the only way to ensure women of all classes had access to them.
    Despite my understanding of the history of the movement, I found the pieces from “Off Our Backs” very interesting because they provide an up to date look at the ongoing movement (something often history classes do not provide). I agree with the writers of “Immigrant rights are women’s rights.” All feminist should be taking a strong stance in supporting immigrant women and their families. Especially in health. Our immigrant health care policy is insane and cruel. The fact that immigrants are excluded from federal Medicare for the first five years they live in the states is horrible. People need health care their whole lives through. And I agree with the writers, that many immigrants avoid health care in general because of fear of being deport. The idea of making it a criminal offense to provide health care to legal immigrants is disgusting. Even such a suggestion is a blemish. As a community, we cannot close our doors to anyone. Instead of that horrible law, I think we should pass a law that makes it illegal to deport immigrants from clinics and other health care faculties. That way they can come without fear. Also, I found the writers point about how our government provides care for pregnant women because of their soon-to be American fetuses and not the women who carry the children interesting. It really makes no sense on the government part, why go forth all the effort of supporting the soon to be child health, when they will be sent home to parents of poor health? It’s not a very wholeistic view. Also, it reminds me of the idea that “women are good for making babies, and they themselves are not important.”
    Also I am glad I read the LBGT article. I had not thought about some of the more current problems in this part of the movement. Gay men cannot donate to sperm banks? Why. That’s nuts. Doctors need to prove heterosexual couples unable to reproduce before treatment? Why can’t they such say homosexual couples fall in the same category? In my view there are some clearly oppressive issues. These problems are not hidden or subliminal. There is no “well this could just be a product of underlying … “ or “well it might be that…” It’s simply oppressive. Completely without a doubt horrible. Soon feminist and LBGT need to realize that their oppression; spurs from the same corner stone. Gender formation, gender identity, gender assumptions and roles.

  12. Mew

    Each of the articles stresses the need to incorporate different groups of women and different health issues into the reproductive justice movement, since the movement is unquestionably about more than abortion rights for all women. The article Immigrant Rights are Women’s Rights brings to light a marginalized group that has never really been incorporated into large reproductive justice movements: immigrant women. Immigrant women have been blamed and stigmatized as over-populating the U.S. with a deviant non-white culture. Because of this, immigrant women face even greater challenges in accessing appropriate reproductive health care, and specifically in accessing contraception and safe abortion.

    The article discusses a devastating paradox faced by pregnant immigrant women: rights are given to their fetuses (future citizens of the U.S) by redefining them as “unborn children” under the State Children’s Health Insurance Program, while at the same time once their children are born, they become part of the “immigration problem.” Clearly this is an instance where the humanistic rights and reproductive rights of a woman are pushed aside in favor of her “unborn child.” The woman’s body is used as a mechanism of reproduction, and she is not given the right to access appropriate health care or an abortion (if she wants one) because the fetus has been given more rights. Yet, once her fetus is born, she is ultimately blamed for bringing an immigrant child into the U.S, and the child becomes a further complication in the “immigration problem.”

    It is aggravating to see other ways that immigrant women are blamed and stripped of rights to access health care. The article discusses how access to abortion clinics is very minimal for such marginalized groups. This made me think about the video we watched on abortion in class, and how in a southern state (I can’t remember which one), anti-abortion groups had closed down nearly every abortion clinic in the state. Women living there must now travel out of the state to access an abortion, but obviously this task may be difficult for women without access, such as with immigrant women, particularly if they have no means of transportation or monetary funds to get there and pay for the abortion. This may be further complicated if a woman does not speak English. Thus, many women are left desperate to terminate their pregnancy and will seek other methods, many of which can be very dangerous. The article tells a story of a Latina woman in South Carolina who took Misoprostal to self-induce abortion. She was then arrested since it is illegal for a non-licensed physician to perform an abortion. She was ultimately blamed and punished for her inability to access appropriate care, something that has been imposed on her by broader social inequalities beyond her control. This does not seem to make sense.

  13. Arewa

    A lot of immigrants come here to better their lives. It saddens me to hear that immigrants are denied access to health care. Back in their country somtimes they don’t have the opportunites that we have here in America. When I say opportunities I mean the education, jobs, and even the access to treatment or insurance for the treatment. Reading “Immigrant rights are women’s rights” I learned that it is a challenge for pregnant immigrants women to access prenatal care. They have to rely on underfunded public clinics and hospitals for their care which is extremely expensive especially if you’re not working or if your job does not pay them well. Besides prenatal care, immigrant women have limited access to contraceptives, abortions, HIV treatment and sex education. I think its good that reproductive justice advocates are trying to raise awareness about the connections between immigrants right’s and women right’s. In order to make a change we have to learn to speak out and let our voices be heard. When it comes to something as important as health care, I don’t understand where the inequality stands between who deserves it and who doesn’t whether you are an immigrant or not. Everyone should have a right to access health care ESPECIALLY if one can not afford it.

  14. cupcake

    I really enjoyed how all the articles for this week stressed different issues within reproductive rights and targeted different groups. The articles point out just how important and how unequal reproductive rights are in this country. It is sad that as a white, middle class, female I will have no legal issues regarding having/adopting a child, birth control, etc. compared to different ethnic, racial, and social groups.

    My favorite article was “LGBT reproductive rights”. Before I read this interview I had never really thought about the impact or issues in the LGBT community. For example, same sex couples have to jump through hoops to have a child since they cannot reproduce “naturally” and many people have prejudices against them. It is a shame in such an advanced society that there are still such unfair values.

  15. Nemo

    LGBT Reproductive Rights, an interview with Carmen Vazquez….Ok, so I am a little naïve, sheltered or what not but it would have been nice if this paper had defined what LGBT stood for. I wasn’t on the same page as the author when she wrote “Another issue-the whole question of surrogacy ant the ethics of that as well as the amount of money involved in adoption. All these issues are rarely addressed in the policy work of LGBT or pro-choice organizations”. What was pro-choices involvement or stand on this, do they need one or do they have enough on their plate? Other than that I thought the interview was really great. I was surprised that homosexuality only became legal in Texas in 2003. The Ford meeting in 2003 was a turning point for reproductive rights for all, it is a shame immigrant rights (are women’s rights) wasn’t included in the meeting, I am sure there would have been causes in common. It was really interesting that gay men were the hardest group to deal with, but I think men are men, gay or not and their issues and concerns are different from women’s, lesbian or not. It would be good to see immigrant women’s groups taken under the wing and become a more powerful united front.

  16. Mufasa

    After this weeks readings I was actually really surprised. Since these controversial topics are kept on the down low by the government and others, people do not always get to express their feelings about such touchy subjects. After reading the LGBT Reproductive Rights it is hard to believe such topics are still so conservative in a country considered to be so liberal. Being born and raised in the US I always considered myself to live in a country with freedom and comfort and where topics such as homosexuality are not a concern. I am very upset that people who are homosexual are alienated from the rest of the world and have to fight for rights most people have. Reproductive rights are very controversial with people who are homosexual. Is it fair to tell people their love for the same sex is wrong? Along with not fitting into the norms of today’s society, they struggle more with adoption and proving themselves as good parents to everyone and the government. To show my support to the gay and lesbian community I went to the gay parade in New York 2 years ago. Being from New York I have grown up with such topics being open and liberal, and to see that the government is suppressing people for their own rights because their different really bothers me. I remember my mother being very upset because she is more conservative and feels that we should not get involved if it does not involve us, I think differently though. I really enjoyed myself going to the parade as a straight person and seeing the gay community being open and happy. I do think there has to be some changes made with the rights people should have, not based on if they are homosexual or heterosexual.

  17. HM

    I think one of the most important things to take from this week’s readings is that reproductive issues don’t just affect certain groups of people, but really affect everyone. It’s always made me angry that people think it is fine to deny people certain rights around their bodies and their health. One of the strongest examples of this is the campaign to block immigrant women from accessing reproductive health services. People automatically assume that immigrant women want to have children in the United States so that they can gain citizenship and stay in the country. I’m sure everyone in our class can see the flaws in that line of thinking, but what that really highlights for me is how little we care about people who we perceive as being different from us. Everyone deserves reproductive health care, regardless of where they come from or their reasons for needing such care. It seems strange that people can just ignore the fact that immigrants are human beings too, and deserve the same respect, dignity, and care we perceive middle class white American women as deserving.
    In the interview with Carmen Vasquez, I was pleasantly surprised that she brought up the fact that many feminists and people involved with reproductive health issues like abortion are wary to partner up with LGBTQ organizations because they feel like their cause is already tough enough to gain support for and adding gay rights issues would just make it tougher. A lot of mainstream LGBTQ organizations, like the HRC, try to emphasize just how much the LGBTQ community has in common with heterosexuals and end up taking the stance of “we’re normal just like you” toward straight people and try to make LGBTQ advocacy as unthreatening as possible. While I can understand that perspective, you don’t want to alienate possible supporters, it seems like many mainstream advocacy groups go out of their way to thank any other causes that are also willing to take on some LGBTQ issues or who are willing to admit that there are a lot of things in common between movements and will just ignore how little other causes are willing to admit in public that they support gay rights. I liked that Vazquez was willing to say that the causes are similar and that people who want to ignore that should just get over it. I’ve always been annoyed that some organizations are willing to say to LGBTQ organizations, “we support you and identify with your issues” in liberal contexts but then keep quiet about that support when in front of a more center or right leaning audience. Vasquez is right, some people might want to ignore it, but all of these issues relate to one another and are centered around the right to decide what to do with your own body.

  18. Woo

    I work in a domestic violence shelter and I was surprised when our training was largely focused on immigrant and racial issues. Since my time there I understand why the training was less about domestic violence and largely about social issues. For example, there are many women who we work with from Porto Rico who daily face issues surrounding immigration. They are assumed to be illegal aliens and face many obstacles because of such. Furthermore, their children often have a difficult time adjusting to an english only classroom, which is the law in MA. I use this example because PR’s are US citizens from the moment they step onto this soil- this includes federal voting powers since PR is an “unincorporated territory” of the US. I believe because of their citizenship status the prejudice becomes even more obvious. I found the article Immigrant Rights Are Women’s Rights a very good article and I am never ceased to be amazed by the severity of the issues surrounding immigrants. There is certainly a “last in close the door” phenomena in the US in which the immigrant groups that used to be worst persecuted now take an active stance against incoming immigrants.

    In the Our Bodies Our Selves article bra burning at the MIss America pageant is referred to. I found this interesting since I have read many articles that say this is untrue. Bras were burned at later points in time however they were NOT burned at the Miss America Pageant, fire permits did not allow for such. As far as my research goes this is one of histories widespread myths which I thought I would mention. On another note, this article summarized the problems which exist among underprivileged women. This article was really supported by the article we read earlier in the abortion section by Judy Simmons titled Abortion: A Matter of Choice. The Simmons article effectively illustrated the theoretical and academic arguments in meaningful terms. I am glad that I had this as background when reading this selection for this week.

    One of the issues that has been addressed numerous times throughout these articles is the distinction between focusing on class issues instead of racial issues. I honestly have mixed feelings on this because while I certainly believe that racial issues are present and have a strong effect I am skeptical about how policy action should be constructed. In other words sometimes I question the extent to which separating people by racial groups actually recreates what we are trying to get away from.

    Lastly, I would like to comment on the grassroots discussion in the Policing the National Body article. If we are to compare the setup of the civil rights movement with that of the feminist movement many things come to light. The civil rights movement was much more effective in pursuing policy change overall as compared to the feminist movement. I would argue that the civil rights movement did this very effectively because they assimilated people. For example, Rosa Parks was not the first women to refuse to move from the white section on the bus. There was a women about 6 months earlier who had done the same thing. However, the civil rights movement did not take a stand at that point in time because the women had a child out of wedlock. They were very systematic and meticulous about what they stood behind as a group. This, I would argue, is largely the reason that the civil rights movement has not gained the negative connotation that the feminist movement has and also the reason they have had very large legal advances compared to the feminist movement. The feminist movement on the other hand, I would argue, dissolved from united movement to take care of its individual members. This resulted in support groups / consciousness raising groups. These groups were very effective compared to the civil rights movement at addressing individual members concerns however this drew away from large scale policy change because there was no united stance. I do not intend to overly reduce this history however I do wish to point out that there were overall differences between the how these two movements were structured. Maybe we need to look at how the structure and stance of a movement affects it members and its broad-scale policy change and from such choose carefully how a movement is lead depending on the type of change desired from the movement. Both movements made many important changes however these changes were drastically different.

  19. lolo

    The reproductive justice movement has been a very important part of my academic studies, but has also reflected my own understanding of women’s issues as a whole. I definitely first decided to incorporate women’s studies into my concentration quite early one, but it was very much founded in the women’s health and 2nd wave feminist movement: that is, a lack of inclusion of individuals outside of white and middle-class women. The past couple of years at school I’ve expanded my views of issues of racial privilege which has been incorporated into my work in school and out through the framework of reproductive justice.

    Although I’ve read quite a few articles about reproductive justice that use similar titles (aka ______’s rights are reproductive rights issues or ____’s rights are women’s rights), the article on issues of immigration especially showed how integrated many movements are. I’ll go through more of the related issues of women’s rights and immigrant rights in the presentation tomorrow, but I just wanted to emphasize how important it is to have an inclusive movement. That isn’t to say that women of color, or disabled women, or transgender individuals shouldn’t have their own organizations or safe spaces, but that a movement that calls itself a “women’s movement” but really means “White upper/middle-class professional women” is ridiculous. It’s increasingly apparent that there are many issues that affect a woman’s health and that it is unreasonable to focus exclusively on one issue like abortion or sex education, without also being mindful of the political, social, and economic oppression that affect women across racial lines.

  20. Pinkis123

    The readings for this week kind of caught my off guard. I say this because I am so used to having birth control readily available to me, along with the thoughts that abortions are legal and also available if needed, that I do not usually stop to think about what happened either before all of these options were legal and openly used, or what happens to those part of a social economic class that makes accessing these options difficult or impossible. Being educated in these health areas does make a difference in being able to access health care; however, that did not matter too much if reproductive rights were nearly impossible to access. The article Our Bodies, Ourselves: Reproductive Rights opened my eye to what it was like for women in the past in terms of rights and options for their bodies. It bothers me how much women have had to constantly fight for these health rights, especially when it seems so easy for me to do so in today’s society, and how much I have taken for granted that I can pop a birth control pill each night with no barriers or discrimination. Abortion has been a very controversial issue in women’s history and still remains so today, however access has been made legal and therefore easier to access. I cannot imagine what it was like for women in the past who made a mistake, whether they were educated about unwanted pregnancies or not, and needed to get an abortion but could not access services, either because it was illegal or problems due to economic class, such as not being able to afford the service. Women’s health is so important in the overall health of a women and I am thankful that now it holds a higher importance than in past generations. We have overcome so much in terms of reproductive rights for women. Even the way that people view women or the way that women view themselves has changed, including how women view sexuality.

  21. Daisy

    The article “Our Bodies, Ourselves: Reproductive rights” talked about the way that women are given control over their bodies. Or in this article, the lack of control that women are given. It talked about how in different parts of the country, women are not given the rights that we have here in New England. I cannot seem to fathom not being able to make my own choices when it comes to my future and my body. It is important to research the choices that I make and hopefully gain knowledge about how I can better take control of my body. Like the movie that we watched in class, abortion is such a hot issue, especially in the southern states where there is only one abortion clinic in the state. It makes women’s choices very limited and ultimately non-existent. It also turns into an issue of class as well. If abortions were free then women of all classes could have control of their bodies and are able to have the same access to abortions. It is important that women have options and should not be punished for having their bodies.

  22. Pearls

    I have never thought about the rights that other women may or may not have compared to myself. Compared to these women I have noticed that I should be thankful for what I have. There have been many groups that fight for the same right, but I was not surprised to hear that the anti-immigrant camp was right on target to make sure that they did not get what they wanted. Since we live in the United States it is obvious that we do not have to go very far to notice the differences between women of different races and cultures. For most women of color it is necessary for them not only o consider what is right for them, but also what they can afford. This has an influence on what type of care that they are going to receive. There are a lot of different ways that people can be treated and whether they are a different race, or transgendered or part of the LGBT everyone is going to be treated differently and unfortunately not given the same care when it comes to their medical needs.

  23. Sashi29

    The question of why it has been difficult to get women of color organizations to focus on reproductive health issues was interesting to me. The article explained that many of the reproductive rights issues are believed to be too controversial and polarizing for many of these organizations which already have limited resources and membership, especially when it involves abortion rights. In the LGBT movement, Vazquez in the article, LGBT and Reproductive Rights, explains that “the biggest challenge concerning why LGBT community has not focused more on reproductive health, comes from
    gay men. We [lesbians] get the thing about the state intervening in our bodies, whereas I think that’s a much harder link for gay men to make, and more of them are less interested in reproduction. There’s even a fairly conservative wing of the gay world that says this is not a gay issue”.
    These are non-majority groups who already have an awful lot on their plates, many of them are activists for other causes that may more directly impact their lives or the lives of their families. It certainly makes sense why it has been so difficult to enlist their support.

  24. b.green

    I though that today’s class and presenters engaged with the readings really well. I really liked how they spoke about different organizations and the different needs that women of color have. I really liked the video clip about the founding women of Sistersong, I really liked what she had to say about building an inclusive movement that meet the needs of women of color. The activity was also really cool and demonstrated how even though we are educated and fortunate we still have the same concerns as people who may not be. The reading that I liked most was the Vazquez article because it talked about how to build an collective coalition and I like learning about how people turn theory into practice and into movements. I left class early to attend a talk about how women are portrayed by the media. The presenter touched on many of the issues that we have talked about in class, including how women are constructed and how is considered to be a women and what attributes that they inhibit.

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