Reproductive Justice, a never ending fight!

I have always had the passion to help others, specially the Latino community as I can relate to many of the stories I hear from these families. After exploring more about reproductive justice I have a better understanding of what it means. I have concluded that reproductive justice is the fight for women to be able to access their reproductive rights, and that economic status, immigration status, sexual orientation, environment, discrimination and disabilities should not prevent women from these rights. I believe that although many women in history have accomplished many great things in history for the benefit of women, reproductive justice will be a never ending fight as new issues are constantly arising for women.

I still want to do more research on the type of work that different non-profit organizations are doing to fight for reproductive justice. I feel that this is an area that I will like to focus my career on so I will want to get involve with an organization and get familiar with the work different communities are doing for women. I am still thinking about how the current laws are affecting women of color specifically. I wonder if the immigration reform, that I am hoping will be ready soon, will incorporate the quick access to public health care. However, I am concern about the requirements to apply for the immigration reform as many Latino women might have a hard time providing proof of the work they have been doing such as day care services at home or cleaning homes. I believe that labor is a very important part of reproductive justice as many women are the head of their household. I now think that the main objective of reproductive justice is for women to be able to focus on their bodies, sexuality, labor and reproduction.

 

Activism is Crucial for Reproductive Justice

In my last post, I explored some of the reasons why women face oppression with reproductive justice. I found this video on the Sister Song Women of Color Reproductive Justice Collective’s website; it talks about the progress women have made in history but also the work that still needs to be done. It is less than two minutes, take a look:

 

This video made me realize that changes can happen, but these changes will not happen if nobody does anything about it. But what can women do to make the necessary changes to the laws that are preventing them from accessing a lot of their basic health needs? Below is a video from the National Latina Institute for Reproductive Health (NLIRH) National Advocacy Weekend 2013, where shows activists around the country lobbying for at the US House and Senate:

 

There is phrase in the video that is not translated but it says; “I have to decide to either get a pap-smear done or feed my kid.” I know that moms are choosing to feed their children instead, this makes me wonder; how is it possible that basic checkups for these women are not even an option? To me it is unbelievable that women have this struggle in the 21^st century. After watching these two videos, I can see that activism is a key point to reproductive justice. Will reproductive justice be a never ending battle?  If it is, is good to see that women are not giving up!

Reproductive Health Challanges that Women of Color Face

I ended my last post with the following question; why it is that woman of color are the ones facing the struggles of accessing reproductive health and practicing their reproductive rights? I did more research on the school’s online library and came across an article about reproductive rights activism. In this article Gerber has an endnote with the following; “Women of color have different histories of reproductive oppression. For example, prioritizing the killing of women and children was part of a strategy to conquer and destroy Native Americans. During slavery, African American women faced rape, forced childbearing, and the destruction of their families. More recently, the right of women to have children has been undermined through punitive policies such as welfare reform, and coercive sterilization and the criminalization for their pregnancies.” This makes me believe that although these issues have seem to have happened some decades ago, I feel that women are still facing barriers when it comes to health care services, insurance, cost, language and locations to these services.

I receive weekly e-newsletters from Lorena Garcia, Executive Director with Colorado Organization for Latina Opportunity and Reproductive Rights (COLOR); a few weeks ago I received one where she states that “Latinas have the highest rate of women without health insurance, and therefore, seeing a provider and accessing birth control is not an option for many women”. Although these two sources touch on the issues women of different races have been going through for many years, I can see how they relate as it affects their reproductive rights and health. With the research that I have done so far I find that many factors  effect only women of color, for example as a Latina I am concern on the legal immigration status of many women and how it impediments them on accessing basic health insurance.  Also, many of the jobs that oriental women practice, for example the nail salons, do not offer health insurance. I also see how many minority families live in the rural communities, how are women racing their families in these areas accessing their own basic health care?

 

Works Cited

Fried, Marlene Gerger. “Reproductive Rights Activism In The Post-Roe Era.” American Journal Of Public Health 103.1 (2013): 10-14. Academic Search Premier. Web. 15 Apr. 2013.

Lyn M. Paltrow, “Roe v Wade and the New Jane Crow: Reproductive Rights in the Age of Mass Incarceration,” American Journal of Public Health, 102, no. 1 (2013); 17-21.

Understanding the relation between Reproductive Health, Rights and Justice.

In my previous post, I expressed what Reproductive Justice means to me with the information I had and I wondered how it is different from Reproductive Health and Reproductive Rights. I have since searched in the school’s online database and came across an article titled, What is Reproductive Justice?, published in 2010, where the author shares the thoughts of many women activists of color. The following caught my attention; “The term Reproductive Justice was coined in 1994 by women of color…. As activists in the U.S., we needed an analysis to connect our domestic issues to the global struggle for women’s human rights that would call attention to our commitment to the link between women, their families, and their communities.” (Ross 2006, 6). This makes me believe that there is more to Reproductive Justice than just making decisions and being in control of our body than what I thought.   

I met a couple of representatives of the Asian Communities for Reproductive Justice (ACRJ) organization at my recent trip to Washington, D.C. I decided to view their website and this is what they believe “Reproductive Justice exists when all people have the social, political and economic power and resources to make healthy decisions about our gender, bodies, sexuality and families for ourselves and our communities”. This source gives a more broad meaning and what to expect when you have Reproductive Justice than the first one.  

Taking this two sources in consideration, it is more clear to me that as reproductive health refers to; health care services, insurance cost, language, locations then reproductive rights refers to the women’s right to have access to reproductive health. I now see how Reproductive Justice is the fight to assure that every woman is able to practice their reproductive and human rights. So why it is that woman of color are the ones facing the struggles of accessing reproductive health and practicing their reproductive rights?

 

Works Cited

Price, Kimala. "What Is Reproductive Justice?: How Women Of Color Activists Are Redefining The Pro-Choice Paradigm." Meridians: Feminism, Race, Transnationalism 10.2 (2010): 42-65. Academic Search Premier. Web. 10 Apr. 2013.

I want to know more in depth what does Reproductive Justice mean.

As a 29 year old Hispanic woman and single mother of two children, my daughter is 14 years old and my son is 12 years old, I want to get informed in many subjects to provide my children with a good education that include the morals and principles that I believe in. At my current job I have access to many resources to provide to the families that I work with. A few months ago I received an email with an invitation for all parents with teenagers to meet up and give each other ideas on how to have the “sex” talk with our children. This is how I first got involve with COLOR (Colorado Organization for Latina Opportunity and Reproductive Rights) and where I first heard about Reproductive Justice. With the information I have so far, to me Reproductive Justice means to be able to make decisions and being in control of your own body. However, I want to have a better understanding on what Reproductive Justice means and what it means to others. Why Reproductive Justice is so important for minority women? How is Reproductive Justice different from Reproductive Health or Reproductive Rights? Can every women exercise those rights? Why women are unable to exercise those rights?

I recently attended the National Advocacy Weekend in Washington, D.C. organized by NLIRH (National Latina Institute for Reproductive Health).  Where I met powerful women involve in different organizations around the United States that fight for Reproductive Justice. I was able to share my story with them as well as get to know theirs. I was able to stay connected with them and the work that they are doing via social network. I am planning on seeking answers to my questions with COLOR, NLIRH, social network, blogs, and with close friends and families that I am sure they have a story to tell even if they do not believe so. I am very fortunate to have a good job to provide to my children, be a home owner where my kids feel safe, and continue with my education to better my future. However, I know many women are struggling through many obstacles and they do not have the same opportunities to succeed in life. I am very passionate about helping people, so I want more information to be able to speak up for those who do not have the same opportunities.

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