muchomegamountains:

quixotess:

muchomegamountains:

and what’s more—all those fucking feminists at Elite University that told me that I was “ridiculous” and “out there” for asking why we weren’t organizing in shelters, welfare offices, churches, English as a second language classes, etc—because, see, recruitment is so much easier and makes so much more sense on college campuses and it’s so *natural* and it’s so *powerful* and we need to get all the young white college women to call themselves feminists and they actually *understand* why feminism is important—

y’all can bite my big old flaccid hairy vagina.

right after you admit to me that the only reason any of this is even happening is BECAUSE *f*eminism decided the benefits of segregation were more impressive than “women’s lives.”

i.e. *F*eminism is a classist, racist, asshole that has an aversion to talking to people who refuse to masturbate it’s intellectual hard on.

i.e. the “war on women” is aided and abetted on many levels by *F*eminism itself.

and that’s why all their stuff (like slutwalk) folds after a couple of months.

did i make that bold enough??? I DON’T THINK I DID.

and that’s why all their stuff (like slutwalk) folds after a couple of months.

and that’s why all their stuff (like slutwalk) folds after a couple of months.

and that’s why all their stuff (like slutwalk) folds after a couple of months.

and that’s why all their stuff (like slutwalk) folds after a couple of months.

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

Our college campus feminist group decided to organize their SlutWalk two days after Take Back the Night. Yeah, instead of showing our support to survivors by participating in a well-established, annual march and rally that provides a safe space and a microphone in the exact center of the city for survivors to tell their stories, instead of participating in the numerous events organized by local advocacy and education programs, instead of getting other college’s feminist groups to come down to our city for any of those, let’s make people choose (because really, who’s going to both?) and draw attention away from the little publicity these programs already get.

Ugh, sorry for the tangent. Maybe I should have been going to those meetings after all, if only to slap some sense into them.

(Source: iinventedeverything, via iinventedeverything)

muchomegamountains:

thecallus:

muchomegamountains:

and for fucks sake, y’all. this is NOT ABOUT HOW SOME DUDE IS GROSSED OUT BY THE WORD VAGINA.

this is about how the state of michigan just ended welfare eligibility for a HUGE portion of michiganders—of which A VAST PORTION OF THOSE PEOPLE ARE CHILDREN and of which a VAST PORTION OF THOSE CHILDREN ARE CHILDREN OF COLOR.

yes, it’s irritating that some old fucking rich white christian gags at the thought of vagina—but it’s a devastating moral, ethical and humanitarian CATASTROPHE that all those children of color that you are forcing to be born ARE GOING HUNGRY and WITHOUT ADEQUATE SHELTER as a result of your attacks on reproductive rights.

CHRIST.

Just once, I need us to all be looking in the RIGHT FUCKING DIRECTION.

You need to understand that people already looked. That’s the whole point, silly human. They are awful and they outnumber you. This is a country where, quite seriously, people like Scott Walker, Mitt Romney, et al are perfectly comfortable with the idea of steadily starving black people until they leave. It’s fine, to rob women of means and subjugate them again.

And they’ll never say it publicly because they know better nowadays, they know to bury it in mythical meritocracy. They know how to hand you a ladder but pull it up whenever it looks like you’re getting on.

I don’t know if capital letters are going to, like, end the evil inside these people.

you know what? I wasn’t TALKING to mitt romney and scott walker. I was talking to all the *F*eminists who consider themselves “good people” who are now set to do vagina protests all over michigan.

it’s totally fine to THEM TOO that poor black people go hungry or can’t access basic shelter or health services. in michigan in particular—where segregation is as bad as any southern state, and even worse than many of them—white women who consider themselves feminists will organize against a man who gags at the word feminist, but have nothing at all to say about the ending of welfare benefits, the elimination of health benefits for poor women, etc. because it doesn’t affect them—and all those things stand as code words for “worthless black people in Detroit.”

maybe all caps will wake *F*Eminists up to their evil?

Someone tell me these protests aren’t actually happening.

…

Nope, just checked the rest of muchomegamountains’ blog.

It’s one thing to blow off steam by poking fun. It’s an entirely different thing to waste valuable time, energy, and resources doing it.

Man, people are easily distracted.

(Source: iinventedeverything, via iinventedeverything)

Anonymous asked: It wasn't the opposition. It was other "feminists".

I know, I just skipped a few steps. You know, “Everyone knows what I really mean when I say women!” (no, they don’t), or “You’re distracting from the real issue!” (trans* people being denied legal [reproductive] health care, or being mistreated by health care professionals isn’t a reproductive rights issue?). Pro-choice bloggers go through cycles of explaining this stuff to anons, so you’ll have to forgive me if we get a wee bit tired of it.

My favorite, though, is when we’re accused of confusing people about the real issue - misogyny. I mean, first, you’re starting with the assumption that confusing people is bad, that we should keep the language nice and simple, so no one ever has to question what they’re hearing or learn anything new. Bullshit. You know what I do when I’m confused? I go to fucking Google. I search through tags on Tumblr to see what other people have to say. I look at people’s FAQs. Never once have I had to ask anyone about what “cis” means, or why they’re saying “men can get pregnant, too,” because I have an infinite supply of information at my fingertips. It’s the internet, folks. Welcome. Learn something.

I’m fairly certain that misogyny is not a revolutionary concept to most of my followers, and the idea that it’s the basis for the anti-choice movement isn’t a new one. It’s basic. It makes sense. People who don’t want us to control our own bodies, who call us whores and sluts and murderers, who think our place is making babies - yeah, that’s all pretty obviously misogyny. And guess where misogyny comes from?

The gender binary! The idea that there are exactly two opposite sexes and genders. We know that’s not true - we see it in nature, we see it in indigenous and non-Western cultures, and we see it in our own genes and genitalia. Those are the rules the opposition’s given us, and I don’t fucking buy it.

Now, that is new to a lot of people, politicians and health care providers included. Guess what happens when your identity and your body are strange and unfamiliar to the people making laws and treating you? Guess what happens when the movement you’re trying to support calls you “collateral” and tells you to “wait your turn,” or that these things don’t even involve you? Not great things! And that’s an issue, and should be an issue to everyone involved in reproductive rights.

When talking about intentions, by all means, call out the misogyny. It’s not a difficult or heroic task, since it’s often staring us right in the face, if not jumping up and down and blowing horns. But when you’re talking about who needs health care, and who’s affected by the draconian laws being put in place, you’d better be talking about everyone involved.

(I think what kills me about this is how outraged people get over one tiny sentence. Paragraphs upon all-caps paragraphs about how oppressed cis women are and it’s all the nasty trans* folks’ fault for being so selfish as to want health care and recognition in a movement that’s steadfastly ignored them and their contributions for decades, all because we dared to acknowledge that some people have uteruses and don’t identify as women. It shouldn’t be a big fucking deal, and it’s disturbing that so many feminists devote that amount of time and energy into disenfranchising people.)

TL;DR: Tell them to go fuck themselves, and save up a good supply of “whatever” gifs.

Birth Is A Feminist Issue →

apwbirth:

“From a feminist perspective, it’s all about taking the power back. We are powerful and smart and amazing enough to make these choices for ourselves. We can rely on the help and expertise of doctors, midwives, and doulas to walk with us through our journeys in birth — but it’s essential that we’re put at the forefront of the decision making process. The power of birth is systematically being taken away from us by a culture that believes that our bodies and minds are fundamentally flawed to the point where birth is no longer a natural process, but rather a medical one —and that absolutely makes birth a feminist issue. Our babies and ourselves deserve so much better.”

I really love this perspective. While medical and technological advancements have made birth exponentially safer in many settings, we have been doing this with little to no assistance since humans as we know them first walked this earth. Our bodies are made for it.

However, I think it’s important to remember that this sentiment doesn’t apply to everyone. Some people’s bodies aren’t made to give birth safely. Some people can’t trust their bodies or minds, for any number of reasons. And sometimes, because of these issues, people are prevented access to alternative birthing options, like home birth or birthing centers.

Many of us can seek empowerment through these kinds of sentiments, but many others must find it somewhere else. Anyone giving birth should be “set up for success,” as our music therapy professor puts it. This means the pregnant person gets the supports they need to have a safe and successful birth (whatever that means to them) with the fewest restrictions possible, whether it’s through a birth team, a doula and/or midwife, their partner, or a medical team.

If anyone knows of resources where I can continue to educate myself on birth and disability, I would appreciate it. Google brings up a Radical Doula post, but the rest of the results are about disabilities in the fetus or baby, but not the birthing person themselves.

(I should add that Ness does touch on this issue: “Don’t get me wrong: having access to medical intervention is an absolutely essential piece of the puzzle that keeps people safe and maternal mortality and morbidity rates down. But studies also show that in healthy pregnancies, the outcomes for women who have planned home births with midwifes are as good if not better than those with planned hospital births (whether attended by a midwife or physician).” I don’t want to discredit an awesome blogger.)

(via fuckyeahsexeducation)

I am overwhelmed

The amount of anti-choice activity since Tuesday is sickening. It’s easier to manage this blog when the news comes in as it happens, but I simply can’t handle reading through four days of state after state gutting health care programs and tightening the chains on people seeking what should be rightfully theirs - safe, affordable, reproductive care. It’s too much.

My followers most likely follow other pro-choice blogs, but in case you don’t, you can keep up on the news by checking them out:

Pro-choice Websites:

Guttmacher Institute - conducts research and provides education on sexual and reproductive health in the US and worldwide.

NARAL Pro-Choice America

RH Reality Check

Abortion Care Network

Planned Parenthood Advocate

Our Bodies Our Blog

Abortion Gang

Abortioneers

Every Saturday Morning - a group of clinic escorts write about their experiences at the only abortion clinic in Louisville, Kentucky.

I Am Emily X - stories by activists and staff at Planned Parenthood

Blog For Choice

Feminists for Choice

Pro-Choice Thank Yous

Thanks, Abortion!

Many Voices. Many Choices.

45 Million Voices

Project Voice

I Am Dr. Tiller

Radical Doula - a blog run by a doula of color who identifies as genderqueer and provides doula services at a low cost to people not only giving birth, but having abortions.

Prolonged Eye Contact’s list of pro-choice Tumblrs and Twitters:

Amazing prochoice people to follow on Twitter: Auragasmic, Clinic Escort, Abortion Funds, I Am Dr. Tiller, Georgia Lewis, Trust Women, Period Piece, Realtin Connor, PPact, Ms_UK_American, Lizzy_Massacre, Psychomia, Jingurei, Happy_Sai, Lady Atheist, ProLifeLove, Mjbyars, Sapient Ape, Canned Sexy, Raindncemaggie, Katsworld500, Heathen Chick, Magnetist, Which Crafty, GOP Choice, STLhousewife, MSizer, letat_lechat, Catholics For Choice, SineQuaN0nUSA, evrybdeezgt1, Gloria Feldt, Kushiels Moon

Amazing prochoice people to follow on Tumblr: Bebinn, Propaganda For Life, Rabble, Fuck Yeah Choice, STFU Anti-Choicers, Keep Your Boehner Out of My Uterus, She Had An Abortion, Prolife Hypocrisy, The Oppressed Little Fetus, Lady Atheist, STFU Pro-Life, I Am Dr. Tiller, STFU Hypocrisy

*Not focused on prochoice, but still awesome and informative: My Culture is Not a Trend, Hipster Appropriations, Redlight Politics, Genderqueer ID, Marxist Feminism, Non-Binary Conversations, Ask A Non-Binary, Equality Myth, Carefree White Girl, Microaggressions, Fuck Yeah Feminists, STFU Fauxminists

ETA: STFU Conservatives, you weren’t left off on purpose. Sorry!

"Men, in return, thrived. The ego candy they feasted on by virtue of automatically outranking half the world’s population was only the start of it. They got full economic and social control over our bodies, our labor, our affections, and our futures. They got to make the rules, name the gods we would worship, and dictate the terms we would live under. In most cultures, they had the right to sex on demand within the marriage, and also to break their marriage vows with impunity — a luxury that would get women banished or killed. As long as pregnancy remained the defining fact of our lives, they got to run the whole show. The world was their party, and they had a fabulous time."

Why Patriarchal Men Are Utterly Petrified of Birth Control — And Why We’ll Still Be Fighting About it 100 Years From Now (via janedoe225)

An absolutely fantastic article.  Amazing.  Please go read it.

(via missworded)

(via thepersonalispolitic)

TW: CISSEXISM

prolongedeyecontact:

bebinn:

prolongedeyecontact:

[Catholic Girl Problem #40: Having our dignity and femininity under attack for almost 40 years under Roe v Wade. Screenshot from: mycatholicgirlproblems.tumblr.com]

“Many feminists insist that abortion is necessary for women to participate freely and equally in society. Anyone who disagrees, they argue, has merely adopted patriarchal standards and accepted women’s ‘place’ in society. Yet this argument demonstrates how deeply the roots of sexism run in our culture. Its premise is a sexist one—that women are inferior to men and that in order to be equal, we have to change our biology to become like men—wombless and unpregnant at will. What other oppressed group in history has had to undergo surgery in order to be equal?” Marilyn Dickstein Kopp

Hey, cissexist prochoice “feminists.” I bet you don’t like it when antis conflate femininity and reproduction like this. It’s kind of gross right? Well, guess what? You don’t get to complain because this is precisely what you advocate for when you actively refuse to be inclusive. Which, you know, would weaken every outdated stereotype they peddle [and would meet the bare minimum for being a decent human being!]. They use gender essentialism against you and you’ve chosen to “fight” it by…fighting for the “right” to be gender essentialist and cissexist towards us. Funny how that works.

Oh and, “What other oppressed group in history has had to undergo surgery in order to be equal?” That’s cute.

Transcript for video.

Pretty much all of that.

People with penises also undergo surgery so as not to have any more children, too. It’s about being able to participate equally in society, and people with the capability to become pregnant are automatically at a disadvantage.

On a different note, I’m not sure what’s with the horror and disgust about being “unpregnant at will.” Whatever your political leanings, I’m pretty sure we all enjoy not being pregnant when we don’t want to be.

There’s another population that always seems to get left out by these anti-choice feminists bewailing the loss of femininity: People who have had their uteruses removed to prevent the spread of cancer, say, or people who are infertile. Anti-choicers are typically totally dismissive (or worse) of people who don’t fit all nice and neat into Boy with Penis or Girl with Vagina, but surely they could be sympathetic to this group. But what are these people, according to anti-choicers? After all, without our reproductive organs, what good are we, really? Who are we, if we aren’t Boy Who Impregnates and Girl Who Gets Pregnant?

That’s the problem with the anti-choice view, and with anti-choice feminism. People don’t fit into boxes. They don’t fit into the categories the anti-choice so desperately want them to. There are boys with uteruses, girls with testicles, people who don’t identify as either or identify as both, and people who’ve had all of their reproductive organs removed. To inextricably tie - no, to base someone’s identity entirely on the contents of their pants just doesn’t work. To say that refusing to live at the whim of our reproductive organs is denying our dignity or femininity is absurd. Gender and identity is so much more than that, and it absolutely blows my mind that people who call themselves feminists can’t see that.

I don’t know guys, I’ve been real sick all week, so this might not even make sense.

All good points from Bebinn in relation to original post. They have a tendency to willfully misinterpret everything that we say. I know of zero prochoice people that believe pregnant people must have abortions to be equal to people that can’t get pregnant. What I will say is essential to equality, and therefore essential for feminists, is access to reproductive healthcare and that includes abortion. Pregnancy effects a person physically, mentally, emotionally, financially, in every possible way essentially. There are so many laws that are on the books right now that restrict, and even criminalize, the lives and bodies of pregnant people, even with wanted pregnancies, that our government is virtually creating a lesser class of people solely on the basis of pregnancy. It’s just a fact that people cannot participate fully or equally in society when they are not allowed to choose parenthood freely, without the use of guilt-tripping and coercion. If people can be impregnated and forced into parenthood on the whims of others they are no longer free to plan or live their lives as they see fit. Having something like that hanging over your head is the antithesis of freedom.

As for fitting people into boxes, I agree entirely. When you live life with absolutist beliefs it can be incredibly uncomfortable to be presented with the myriad of circumstances that make up other people’s lives. I know they hate to think about all the what ifs and the complexities that make abortion necessary, but if they’re not prepared to do so, if it’s too much work, then they really have no business interjecting themselves into someone’s life when they refuse a nuanced position. 

I will say, though. The jarring effect of shattering their essentialist way of thinking is precisely what we need. And that’s why I made this post to begin with. Essentialist ways of thinking are detrimental regardless of which side is using them. And it’s hard to take people seriously when they object to being objectified and characterized in the above fashion while doing the same to trans* people. It’s sort of the epitome of cognitive dissonance. I just hope all the people who are rightfully disgusted by their worth and identity being tied to reproduction are cognizant of our own movement’s gender essentialism.

Pro-life Feminist = Creationist Geologist

stfuprolife:

one-uneasy-heart:

The more I see about how pro-lifers can’t be feminist, the more disgusted I get. If that were the case then reproductive rights would be the only thing feminist fought for. Last time I checked we like to focus on things like expectations of women in businesses and society, and rape culture too. Not to mention equal pay, women in the military, and oppression overseas.  

If you’re a modern wave feminist I can see where it would be hard for you to be pro-life. But as a feminist in general, well to be frank, that’s not for other people to decide. Mary Wollstonecraft (considered THE Mother of Feminism) was anti-abortion, as was Susan B. Anthony and Elizabeth Cady Stanton (The wonderful ladies responsible for achieving voting rights for women in the United States). 

Where they not feminist? I think they were. 

That’s a different time period.  It seems too regressive to compare contemporary feminists to feminists then.

Be a feminist in general.  Identify as however you want.

It still won’t make sense to be anti-choice and a feminist at once because of what an incredible oxymoron it is, but go for it. 

Susan B. Anthony and Elizabeth Cady Stanton worked together 160 years ago. Mary Wollstonecraft lived over 200 years ago. I’d say measuring today’s feminism against their standards is pretty fucking regressive.

Having to reach that far back to validate your cause does say something about today’s pro-life feminism, though.

(Source: pensieridiresa, via stfuprolifers)

"Anti-choice activists are trying to use women’s best tool of empowerment: education, against her. Now, instead of giving us a straight answer and just forcing us by law to go ahead with our pregnancy, they will try and impose counselling sessions, books and movies to psychologically manipulate our sexual identity and makes us give up to their principles. The result? Well, you guessed right, a bunch of women feeling ashamed of themselves, of their sexuality and of their rights, dignity and peace of mind won over decades of relentless fights; a bunch of women being brainwashed to believe that they are potential murderers. It doesn’t matter to these campaigners how traumatising it can be to go through an unwanted pregnancy and then raise the baby. Nor does it matter how traumatising is to feel that you don’t have a say over your sexuality and to feel that your identity and body belong to somebody else."

Adriana Pérez, Abortion and Sexuality, Under Attack (via moriartree

)

(Source: oliviabishops, via stfuprolifers)

Glitter Femin1sts: Time for a Controversial Subject: Abortion. [TW: RAPE, INCEST] →

dosed-by-you:

psychosissunshine:

Normally, I don’t want to talk about this subject. Everybody either already has an opinion about it, is really uncomfortable about talking about it, or is unsure of how they feel about it. But, I feel that I must make my personal feelings about it now, after reading some…

glitter-femin1sts:

i’m sorry, but as much as you try to dispute it, you can’t be a pro-life feminist. if you’re going to value a fetus (IT IS A FETUS. MY DAD’S A DOCTOR. THE MEDICAL TERM IS FETUS.) over a an autonomous uterus-bearing person, then that’s not feminism.  The pro-life ideal reduces women to just incubators, and fetuses to some holy being. that’s not feminism. 

and yes, some women DO choose to have an abortion even if they haven’t been raped or victims of incest. they have that choice. you act like you know every woman’s reason for abortion. some women have an abortion because they can’t afford a child, or it’s not the right time or place for one. (and don’t come back at me with that “well then they should have closed their legs”, because that’s slut shaming and as i’ve repeatedly said before, consent to sex =/= consent to having a child.) and it shouldn’t be anyone’s business but her own.

and don’t say it’s like “killing your baby.” it’s nothing like that. at all.

Susan B. Anthony was one of the first feminists, and against abortion (“When a woman destroys the life of her unborn child, it is a sign that, by education or circumstances, she has been greatly wronged.” - Susan B. Anthony). There were plenty more. So your argument on what a feminist should or shouldn’t believe is invalid and helps destroy the idea of feminism. Psychosissunshine’s point looked like she was saying there is no wrong way to be a feminist. However, it’s wrong to say a feminist is not a feminist simply because they do not support ending another person’s life.

The medical term is indeed “fetus”, but psychosissunshine was saying there are many people who believe fetus =/= human. Many people even try to dismiss the preborn being as a “blob of tissue” or a parasite (these same people aren’t virologists, and sadly/clearly have absolutely no idea what they’re talking about).

Since women will typically get an abortion on the 10th week after conception, I’ve provided a breakdown of fetal development before the 10th week - plenty happens by day 52.

Unborn women don’t have many voices sticking up for their right to life. As much as you try to dispute it, abortion is murder. It’s literally ending a life. Every new life begins at conception. The pro-life movement doesn’t view women as incubators, that’s an ignorant assumption. It’s just as ignorant as claiming the pro-life movement views fetuses as “holy” beings, as well as assuming psychosissunshine would snap back with the retort “well then they should have closed their legs”. I didn’t read any “slut-shaming” in her post. When you consent to anything, as long as you know what your choice brings - you consent to what may happen next. Whether that’s having sex and becoming pregnant, or having an abortion and suffering a physical ailment (or even death - and that isn’t the only case. Feel free to Google more).

You have the ability to murder another being - however, you’re not free from the consequences. A woman’s health, and her own life, is at risk when she chooses to end her preborn child’s life. Of course, we don’t hear about it often, because quite a number of people still want abortion to be kept legal. But when you hear about a pregnant woman being killed, the suspect is charged for a double homicide (remember this big story?); the death of a pregnant woman and her unborn child. Why can that happen while millions of children are aborted each day in the name of “choice”?

If you’re interested in viewing this from another perspective, I highly recommend the film 180, and Gianna Jensen (abortion survivor) giving her speech (pt 1, pt 2) on abortion and women’s rights. That is, if you’re actually open to hearing opposing viewpoints and not just pretending you did while still adamantly voicing your opinion.

Women deserve better, and they deserve to know that abortion (stated as a reflection that our society has failed to meet the needs of women, ie. practical resources and support) isn’t the only choice.

Thank God your mother chose life, right?

Sorry, but the feminism of 160 years ago is still relevant in this discussion…how? Does historical context mean nothing? Comparing the abortion debate of the 19th century to the abortion debate of the 21st century is deliberately misleading. First-wave feminists opposed abortion because they saw it as masculinizing women and devaluing motherhood. They were completely stuck in a gender-essentialist mindset, even as they fought for increased rights for women. They opposed abortion because in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, abortion was a much more dangerous procedure than it is now. First-wave feminism was racist and classist, and many believed that abortion represented the inferiority of working class women and prostitutes. They opposed it because they feared a reduced population of “desirables:” White, mid- to upper-class, Christian, able-bodied.

Many of Susan B. Anthony’s quotes have been misattributed to her or taken out of context, and I wouldn’t be surprised if that was the case for other first-wave feminists. Abortion was not high on their list of priorities - suffrage, property rights, education, and empowerment in the family structure were their main concerns.

But, just to humor you, I do wonder how Anthony felt about forced childbearing:

I went to the home of another tenant, and there again was one room, and sitting around a pile of smoking-hot potatoes on the cold, wet ground - not a board or even a flag-stone for the floor - were six ragged, dirty children. Not a knife, fork, spoon or platter was to be seen. The man was out working for a farmer, his wife said, and the evidences were that “God” was about to add a No. 7 to her flock. What a dreadful creature their God must be to keep sending hungry mouths while he witholds the bread to fill them!

-Ida Husted Harper: The Life and Work of Susan B. Anthony: including public addresses, her own letters and many from her contemporaries during fifty years. Vol. 1

Embryos and fetuses have plenty of people sticking up for them:

-so we can do without the whole martyrdom shtick. As for the ending life = murder bit, does that apply to any ending of a life? Stepping on an ant? Killing a cow for food? Surprise! It doesn’t. Murder applies to legal persons, and embryos and fetuses are not legal persons.

Your ideas about consent are pretty fucking sick. Consent is an ongoing process - it can be given and taken away at any point. Consenting to one sex act does not in any case mean consent to another, nor does it mean consent to childbirth or consent to an untreated STD.

All your examples of deaths during abortion occurred during illegal abortions. I mean, Jesus, that’s the shit that happens when you make abortion illegal! Gosnell preyed on people who didn’t speak the language, didn’t understand our legal system, and didn’t know they were pregnant or have the resources to get an abortion earlier. That’s what happens when you put out misinformation and reduce access to safe abortion - butchers looking to make money are more than happy to take care of everyone. The other instances of death occurred during late-term abortions, which are more dangerous than earlier abortions. Most abortions take place during the first 9 weeks of pregnancy. Fewer than 12% take place after the first trimester, and only 1.5% occur after 21 weeks.

There are a lot of reasons people have later abortions, too, and most of the reasons have to do with added restrictions on abortion access. Fancy that! Turns out, making abortion harder to access doesn’t actually reduce the need for abortion! Who would’ve guessed?

Early, legal abortion is actually one of the safest surgical procedures in existence. Fewer than 0.3% of patients experience complications requiring hospitalization. There is no connection between abortion and breast cancer, or abortion and mental illness.

No matter what we do to improve things for women in this country, there will always be a need for abortions, simply because there will always be people who don’t want to be pregnant. Even if we eliminated poverty, all illness and health conditions, abuse, and rape, implemented comprehensive sex ed in all schools, and made contraception easily accessible, there would still be unwanted pregnancies.

Removing the safety net solves nothing. The goal of completely eliminating abortion is impossible, but we can reduce the occurrence of unwanted pregnancies by working towards that list.

Oh, and I do thank my mom for having me. I wouldn’t have existed if she had an abortion. I wouldn’t have existed, too, if my parents had had sex at a different time, or if the contraception had worked, or if she had miscarried. And that’s okay. I don’t let a personal existential crisis get in the way of other people’s rights.

(Source: ladylockhart)

Time for a Controversial Subject: Abortion

psychosissunshine:

Normally, I don’t want to talk about this subject. Everybody either already has an opinion about it, is really uncomfortable about talking about it, or is unsure of how they feel about it. But, I feel that I must make my personal feelings about it now, after reading some highly offensive statements.

Someone wrote that people who are pro life have no right to be feminists. This hurts me to know that someone who is a fellow feminist would say such a thing. “If you don’t feel exactly the same as me about this subject matter THEN YOU ARE TOTALLY WRONG!” Since when did abortion become the litmus test for whether or not you are a feminist? I consider feminism to be about earning equality for ALL PEOPLE. Everyone. All people, men, women, and children, have the right to be successful, loved, healthy and occasionally very happy. Everyone deserves to make their own choices in life.

Abortion is about more than a choice. It is a decision. And a grim decision at that, no matter the situation. No matter how much we try to dance around it, and disguise the reality of it, abortion means taking a human life. To make the decision to take a human life is a bit more complicated than making a simple choice.

Let me be clear: I love women. I love all sorts of women. We are wonderful, intelligent, beautiful creatures and our voices and decisions matter. I don’t know whether or not I consider myself pro choice, or pro life. All I know is that I hate the fact that women would be forced into a position where abortion seems to be the only option that might save her life. I understand that there are situations where a woman who unintentionally concieved would be put in physical danger if she gave birth. I do not condemn these women for protecting themselves, or preserving their health. No one could ever ask them to sacrifice their life if they were not totally willing.

Otherwise, I would have to oppose the decision to have an abortion. I understand that the majority of arguments used for abortion is in the case of rape, a horrible and serious crime. It is demeaning in every sense of the word, and men and women deserve justice if they are subjected to such a thing. However, the blame of this crime does not lie on the child. I don’t believe that little children should die for the sin of the father. I understand that not all women are prepared or suitable to be mothers. In this case, there are plenty of adoption agencies that are readily available.

Why would we ever choose to make abortion the staple of feminism? It’s an awful thing. Whats worse is, the majority of abortions are not commited in the instance of rape. It was just a choice. Like choosing a new purse at the mall. Why would we want this to be a statement of feminism? “I have the right to kill my baby if I want to.” It shouldn’t sound that horrible and blunt, but it does. We excuse it by saying calling it a “fetus”, saying it isnt a human life, but really, most women do not even suspect they are pregant until at least three months. By that time, it is irrefutable.

I don’t mean to step on anyone’s toes, although I undoubtebly will, speaking so plainly about such a controversial subject. I only ask that you understand one point: Feminism is NOT about choosing whether or not to have an abortion. It is about acheiving equality for all people. It is about freedom for all. About being seen as more than a beautiful woman, but simply as a human being. All sorts of people are feminists, all with varying ideals and views. As long as you have the well being and betterment of societal standards at heart, you are a feminist.

You have the right to disagree with me, but do so in a manner that is respectful, and calm.  

It always baffles me when people compare the choice to buy a trivial, material good with the decision of whether to be pregnant for nine months, then give birth or not. If we’re going to be talking about respecting and loving women*, I don’t want to hear that shit. My body is not a purse or a pair of shoes - it is a vessel that houses me: a person. It’s what I use to get around and take care of myself and my loved ones. Pregnancy is a nine-month commitment to a growing, changing body, with a virtually endless list of possible side effects and complications. We are more than our bodies, and we deserve to be treated as such.

Abortion is the choice you make when you don’t want to, or simply cannot be pregnant. Abortion is the choice you make when faced with losing your home, your job, or the ability to feed your children. Abortion is the choice you make to escape your abuser. Abortion is the choice you make to save your sanity, your health, or your life. Abortion is the choice you make so you can get your degree and get a job. Abortion is the choice you make when you know you simply cannot care for another being.

We call it what it is - a zygote, a blastocyst, an embryo, or a fetus. That’s not excusing anything - that is what it is. We refuse to conjure up an image of a chubby, smiling baby, when the reality is most abortions happen when the embryo is indistinguishable from a shrimp or a bundle of a few hundred cells.

We see the value inherent in a person who can feel and think, who has relationships, and who has responsibilities and dreams that a pregnancy does not fit into - not now, at least. We see, given the enormous variety in sexuality, that sex is not solely to facilitate reproduction, and that consent to sex is not consent to childbirth.

We know that complete control over our reproductive futures is the only way people with the potential to be pregnant can be on equal footing with the rest of the world. Unintended pregnancy is a possibility for over half the population of the world. Is it unrealistic to assume that many of those people don’t want to be pregnant, either now or ever? Is it unrealistic to imagine that an unintended pregnancy could derail or destroy any possibility for some of those people to succeed and be well?

Why must we live our lives at the whim of our ovaries? We are mental, emotional, spiritual, and social creatures, too. Why can’t the outcome of a pregnancy be respected after evaluating those aspects of ourselves? We are the gateway through which new life passes, and we have a say in who comes through.

(Source: ladylockhart)

carlovely:

Here’s a “Roller Derby girl breastfeeding” pic, and it’s an amazing picture. I know I’m a straight white guy and thus, by default, haven’t a clue, but the author of the blog post I found it on (click here if ya want to read more) says it way better than I ever could: 

The feminist campaign to allow women the full freedom to breastfeed is about all of us. It is not really about the choices of individual mothers and their babies. It is about women being considered as important..  as fucking normal as men. We are all made stronger when a woman can breastfeed, in public, as a member of her community, while getting shit done.  Because when that happens it says that women belong, it says that women’s bodies belong, it says that women are here.

(ned hepburn)

(via prolongedeyecontact)

"Some nineteenth century feminists opposed abortion because it threatened the social status of women. The mostly middle-class, white leadership of the women’s movement thought abortion represented the misfortune and inferior morality of working class women and prostitutes. Thus, feminists of the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries were unable and unwilling to advocate for legalized abortion. Perhaps the complexity of the issues overwhelmed their good intentions and caused them to do unintentional harm."

Linda Weber’s Life Choices: The Teachings of Abortion

You have to consider the historical context in which feminist opposed abortion. Ciswomen’s roles were almost completely different a century ago. Abortion procedures weren’t nearly as safe. Classism and racism absolutely influenced the feminists’ stance on abortion, as seen above, which fed into concerns about the shrinking population of “desirable” people (white, able-bodied, Christian, upper-class).

If anyone has more information on the history of anti-abortion feminism, I’d love to see it.

‘Sex-Positive’ Sex Shop

ouroborosdream:

So if you don’t know about it, two women in my town of Iowa City have decided to open a “sex positive” feminist sex shop downtown called “The Toolbox.” But the landlord is trying to kick them out due to “offensive items” but that is bull since there are sooo many headshops downtown.  

Here’s the link to the story:

http://jezebel.com/5865668/landlords-boot-iowa-sex-store-for-selling-offensive-products

And if you could please please please sign this petition to try to get them to stay that would be great. 

http://www.change.org/petitions/bremer-trust-administered-by-midwest-one-bank-trustee-stop-the-termination-of-ms-schaefers-lease-allow-the-tool-box-to-open

From an article earlier this year:

Iowa City City Councilor Connie Champion said zoning rules are enforced for a reason.

“Sex is always positive, isn’t it? But I don’t think it belongs downtown,” she said, noting Iowa City’s young foot traffic. “It’s not Interstate 80.”

Conniieeeee. That’s the point. We shouldn’t have to drive out to the middle of a cornfield to find a sex store. (That sentence was so quintessentially Iowa. God damn it.)

[Look at this. LOOK AT THIS. Cornfield. RV.]

(Yes, I realize there is another store near-ish downtown but it’s kind of skeevy and come on, this new place would have couches and stickers and be located above Jimmy John’s. IT’S PERFECT)

Iowa City is a college town - everybody’s fucking, and nobody wants to acknowledge it. Sex positivity leads to safer, better sex. What’s not to like?

You know what I’m offended by? Rising STD rates. Sexual assaults involving heavy drinking. Seriously, about 45 places to buy a beer and one place out by the railroad tracks to buy a vibrator? Not cool, dudes.

Also I really want this place to open because it will be hilarious to see how many people confuse it with InBox (a boutique). Pretty dresses? Nope. Dildos.

But seriously. Sex positivity. Retail diversity. Small businesses. Petition. C’mon.

(via ouroborosdream-deactivated20111)

In Case You’ve Missed It: The Week of October 31, 2011 

nicole-clark:

From sexual health, mental wellness, relationships, and everything in between, these are some of the news highlights that have happened this week:

The Governor of Mississippi, Haley Barbour is expressing concerns over the ambiguity of the Mississippi Initiative 26 (aka the Personhood Amendment), that has the potential to ban abortion, fertility treatments, AND birth control in Mississippi. (and while you’re at it, spread the world to your contacts in Mississippi and tell them to vote NO on Initiative 26)!

Between these crappy anti-abortion billboards and new public speakers, it’s becoming more clear that the next wave of the anti-choice war is to recruit men to talk their partners out of abortions.

What does an innocent virgin look like? Wanna take a guess at the color?

#NotFunnyFacebook: Demand that Facebook remove pages that promote sexual violence. Sign the petition! 

Read More

(Source: nicole-clark)