Mar 18, 2010

With Liberty and Reproductive Justice for All

By Meghan Shalvoy
I believe reproductive justice is a very important term to understand if you believe in real change for women’s rights.
The term “reproductive justice” is defined by the organizations SisterSong and Asian Communities for Reproductive Justice (ACRJ) as “the complete physical, mental, spiritual, political, economic, and social well-being of women and girls, and will be achieved when women and girls have the economic, social, and political power and resources to make healthy decisions about our bodies, sexuality and reproduction for ourselves, our families and our communities in all areas of our lives.”
For me, the term represents not only the obstacles that many women face because of their gender, but also how these obstacles are compounded for many women by their race, socio-economic status or sexuality. When women don’t have access to basic reproductive health care, it is impossible for them to have complete control over their bodies and their choices for reproduction and personal health.
These services can start as early as elementary, middle, and high school by providing age-appropriate and comprehensive sex education in our public schools. Beyond school, we need to make the resources that all women need available, like contraception, HIV and STI testing, family planning, abortion services, prenatal care, as well as support to care for the families they have. Access to these services cannot continue to be limited by age, race, financial status, or insurance coverage. In order to support working families, we need to work to strengthen the laws and regulations that affect families and ensure that families are represented properly in our legislative bodies.
There are many additional issues that fall under reproductive justice. These issues range from poverty to worker’s rights, immigration, fair pay, race/racism, violence and the environment. Part of the concept of reproductive justice encompasses the idea that in order to allow all women full freedom over their bodies and reproductive health and choices, we must work towards many issues of social justice. Many women and men advocate for issues that can greatly affect reproductive justice without that explicit intention. For example, if we can achieve fair pay for people of all races, genders, sexual orientations, etc., then an individual woman can worry less about how to afford contraception until she decides to have children, and also have the means to support her family if she does choose to have children. This is why the term reproductive justice incorporates more than just issues of reproductive health and services, but all the social factors that may affect or dictate women’s abilities to control their own bodies.
The concept of reproductive justice is especially true not only for American women, but also for women across the world. We need to exercise the rights and privileges that we have as Americans to advocate on behalf of women all over the world, while staying mindful of the principle of reproductive justice: not all women experience oppression equally, and because of this, we have to always consider the needs of different cultures and communities who are affected differently by race, gender, class and sexuality.
The need for all women to control their bodies is too basic to be reserved for those who have the privilege to access and afford reproductive health services, or for those communities that have historically benefitted disproportionately from social change.

Illustration By: Sabba Hussain
13X 9”
oil pastel, ink
Made in 12/07

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