via abortiongang: Transgender and Choice: Can We Start a Conversation?

The language of the last reproductive justice wave was about women, “women’s health,” “women’s needs,” and “women’s rights,” and with good reason, but it is becoming increasingly apparent that that language is exclusionary – too exclusionary, to my mind, for the movement I hope to be a part of building. We’ve had the start of this conversation several times on this blog. Women are no longer the only ones who get pregnant. Many people now can and do get pregnant who do not identify as women. This war on reproductive justice may in many ways still be the “war on women” it is often referred to as, given the narrow gender identities the antichoice community too often ascribes to, but it is not only a war on women when so many people suffer in a silence imposed by language and many kinds of violence.

How do we make prochoice about more than the gender binary? How do we work with language? How do we do direct outreach, how do we make clinics and doctor’s offices and family planning centers truly safe spaces?

–abortiongang

Making it clear that I don’t believe it’s anyone’s responsibility to teach/inform, I’d be really excited to see where this conversation goes. More than that, it’s going to require research, and active learning, rather than waiting for someone else to come teach those of us still ignorant on the subject.

Oh yeah, and hopefully this means I’m back on a more regular basis.

Monday Linkspam

In Brazil, blacks live six years less than the white population || Brasil Defato
The life expectancy of the black population – made up of blacks and browns – is 67 years in Brazil. According to the Annual Report on Social Inequalities, this time is lower than that recorded among whites, who live 73 years on average. The survey was conducted by the Center for Population Studies, Unicamp, and published by the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro (UFRJ) on Tuesday (19).

What Voting and Fetal Pain Laws Have in Common || Abortion Gang
The list of absurd laws goes on: South Dakota has a new law that forces women to wait 3 days before having an abortion and Indiana even has a bill working its way up to the governor that would force doctors to tell women in writing that abortion causes cancer (yet there is medical no link between the two).  Abortions cause cancer the same way voting causes cancer: it doesn’t.

Standardizing Sizing || Feministe
It would be nice if women’s clothes, like men’s, were sized in inches and were fairly standard; it would also be nice if so much value weren’t assigned to the size on your pants tag.

ABW’s The Tyler Perry Project || Angry Black Woman
Really, Tyler Perry? Is that what your movies are about? You could have fooled me, because from the small sliver I’ve seen in passing or been forced to watch by my family members (who have unfortunate bad taste), I haven’t seen much that’s spiritually uplifting or been imparted any wisdom that might make my life better. Perhaps it’s because I have not sat down and watched any of these films in full that I’m not experiencing the full effects…I will watch every movie made by this man in an attempt to offer critical analysis based on actual experience and viewing. As I watch each, I’ll liveblog it, then I’ll write up my thoughts after it’s over and I’ve had time to settle.

Women are Wild Animals; Men are Hunters || Sociological Images
Dmitriy T.M. sent in another example, via Jezebel, of the use of hunting as a metaphor for dating/attaining sex with women.  The metaphor portrays men as predators and women as prey,  suggesting that women are inherently unwilling and men inherently deceitful, coercive, and aggressive.

A Year After SB 1070, the Deportation Pipeline Still Begins in Washington || Colorlines
For the last year, the country’s stare has focused on Arizona as it has vied for most fantastically anti-immigrant state in the country. This month, that designation has shifted to Georgia, and the fight is on to ensure that it’s the last place where this show unfolds. But whether or not the SB 1070 wave has finally crested, little will change unless immigration policy changes at the federal level, where the ultimate the power lies.

Five Different Types Of Racism Explained || Angry Black Woman
She argues that there are five main types of racism, each equally as detrimental as the next: Aware/Blatant Racism, Aware/Covert Racism,Unaware/Unintentional Racism, Unaware/Self-Righteous Racism, Internalized Racism.

Links: Abortion Debate Myths

What Is And Isn’t Abortion: A Primer || RH Reality Check

Repeat after me: The recent standoff over the budget came down to funding for contraception, STD testing and treatment, and cancer screening. Make special note of what word was not in that list: abortion. That’s because abortion wasn’t on the table in the fights—there was pre-existing consensus that the government will not subsidize abortion care.

Of course, if you read the mainstream news, you would not know this. For instance, this front page article from the New York Times falsely characterized the fight over “abortion funding,” even though the funding in question was over health care that is not abortion. The actual funding fight over contraception, cancer screening, and STD testing and treatment was not mentioned, though it was alluded to parenthetically.

For Texas Lawmakers, ALL Family Planning = Abortion || Mother Jones

Republicans in Texas (and in Washington) are going after family planning as way to defund Planned Parenthood, which, separately, also happens to operate abortion clinics. But that’s a strange way to defund “the abortion industry.” It might actually accomplish the opposite. If funding goes down for birth control and pregnancy counseling, abortion providers could find themselves in higher demand.

Incorporate My Uterus!

In Florida, state House members are forbidden from using the word “uterus” on the floor. This came about as a result of [D] Rep. Scott Randolph’s argument against reproductive rights restricting measures (including the requirement that doctors detail a description of a mandatory ultrasound before an abortion is performed) that included the words “incorporate her uterus”. This did not go over well with the GOP members of the House who forbade Rep. Randolph from naming any body parts on the state House floor.

.if the debate is going to contain language that would be considered inappropriate for children and other guests, the Speaker will make an announcement in advance, asking children and others who may be uncomfortable with the subject matter to leave the floor and gallery.

To be exempt from the ultrasound, a woman would have to be suffering from a medical condition putting her at “risk of substantial and irreversible impairment of a major bodily function” or otherwise provide documentation in the form of a “restraining order, police report, medical record, or other court order” to prove that they are exempted as a result of “rape, incest, domestic violence, or human trafficking”.

In protest, the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of Florida created IncorporateMyUterus.com arguing that “businesses get special treatment these days. If lawmakers and other politicians see your uterus and your body as a business, maybe they’ll work to get government out of the uterus regulation business as they do for every other company”, highlighting the GOP’s faux-small government rhetoric. The website notes that “you can’t legally Incorporate Your Uterus, but you can online. And by doing so, you can send a message to the Florida Legislature that less regulation and government intrusion begins with a woman’s uterus. ”

So spread the word and incorporate your uterus!

ETA: Always informative and relative to my interests, The Rachel Maddow Show spoke with Rep. Scott Randolph: