By Jos Truitt • 14 years ago

Quick Hit: Surrogacy: The Next Frontier for Reproductive Justice

Check out Miriam’s new piece about surrogacy over at RH Reality Check:

Surrogacy is a complicated subject, to say the least. It involves many of the issues central to reproductive justice–bodily autonomy, a woman’s right to abortion, definitions of parenthood, and custody of children. It’s also an option increasingly relied upon by gay couples–usually gay men–to create families. It invariably brings up concerns about racial and economic justice when the majority of surrogates are low-income and many are women of color. It’s an issue on which few reproductive rights and justice groups are currently working but one that deserves our close attention.

Click here to read the article.

Check out Miriam’s new piece about surrogacy over at RH Reality Check:

Surrogacy is a complicated subject, to say the least. It involves many of the issues central to reproductive justice–bodily autonomy, a woman’s right to abortion, ...
By Jos Truitt • 14 years ago

Debunking myths about immigrants and health care costs

Fears and negative assumptions about immigrants have been used by opponents of health care reform to build opposition, appealing to an already large anti-immigrant sentiment in the U.S. This came to a head when Joe Wilson shouted “You lie!” after President Obama spoke the sad truth that undocumented immigrants would not be eligible for federal subsidies to purchase health insurance.
Via the National Latina Institute for Reproductive Health’s blog comes word of a study conducted by Project HOPE that refutes the assumption that providing health care to immigrants requires too much public funding:

An examination of health care spending during 1999-2006 for adult naturalized citizens and immigrant noncitizens (which includes some undocumented immigrants) finds that the cost of providing ...

Fears and negative assumptions about immigrants have been used by opponents of health care reform to build opposition, appealing to an already large anti-immigrant sentiment in the U.S. This came to a head when Joe Wilson shouted ...
By Jos Truitt • 14 years ago

It’s the hair removal baby doll!

Because it’s never too early to shame girls about body hair and normalize hair removal. This doll teaches children to remove hair from those typical problem areas like sides, ankles, and that pesky full bikini bottom of hair that wraps around your waist.

via The Frisky.
UPDATE: Turns out the doll is an art piece designed to highlight the socialization of girls. Guess it worked.

Because it’s never too early to shame girls about body hair and normalize hair removal. This doll teaches children to remove hair from those typical problem areas like sides, ankles, and that pesky full bikini bottom of ...
By Jos Truitt • 14 years ago

VA legislator Bob Marshall says children with disabilities are God’s punishment for abortion

Virginia State Delegate Bob Marshall said Thursday at a press conference opposing funding for Planned Parenthood that children with disabilities are a punishment from God for women who have previously had abortions:

“The number of children who are born subsequent to a first abortion with handicaps has increased dramatically. Why? Because when you abort the first born of any, nature takes its vengeance on the subsequent children,” said Marshall, a Republican.
“In the Old Testament, the first born of every being, animal and man, was dedicated to the Lord. There’s a special punishment Christians would suggest.”

What a disgusting statement in so many ways, from the cruel ableism of saying children with disabilities are a punishment at all to the

Virginia State Delegate Bob Marshall said Thursday at a press conference opposing funding for Planned Parenthood that children with disabilities are a punishment from God for women who have previously had abortions:

“The number of children who ...
By Jos Truitt • 14 years ago

Transgender youth and their families on The Dr. Oz Show

Last week “The Dr. Oz Show” featured interviews with two transgender youth, their families, and a Doctor who works with young trans folks. The teaser and opening video package were typically sensationalistic. But the interviews were very different from previous daytime talk show segments about trans folks. Dr. Oz asked important questions without being overly invasive about anatomy or the details of surgery. His framing of questions also recognized the young people’s genders as real and accurate and did not focus on the gender they were assigned at birth. This may sound like a very basic level of respect and accuracy, but it’s pretty much unprecedented in a talk show segment about trans folks.
Here’s video of the segment, broken ...

Last week “The Dr. Oz Show” featured interviews with two transgender youth, their families, and a Doctor who works with young trans folks. The teaser and opening video package were typically sensationalistic. But the interviews were very ...
By Jos Truitt • 14 years ago

Nicaragua’s abortion ban preventing cancer patient from receiving necessary treatment

The cruelty of Nicaragua’s extreme abortion ban is undeniable in the case of Amelia (an alias), a 27-year-old woman with cancer. Passed in 2006, the law criminalizes abortion, even if the woman’s life or health is at risk. Amelia, who has a 10-year-old daughter, needs to have an abortion so she can undergo treatment for the cancer, which may have metastasized in her brain, lungs and breasts.
The Strategic Group for the Decriminalization of Therapeutic Abortion in Nicaragua, whose members include the Nicaraguan Center for Human Rights, the OB-GYN Society, the New Family Association (ANFAN) and international organizations including Women’s Link Worldwide, the Center for Justice and International Law (CEJIL) and IPAS Central America, filed a petition on ...

The cruelty of Nicaragua’s extreme abortion ban is undeniable in the case of Amelia (an alias), a 27-year-old woman with cancer. Passed in 2006, the law criminalizes abortion, even if the woman’s life or health is at ...
By Miriam • 14 years ago

What We Missed

It looks like Hawaii is about to repeal it’s extremely restrictive state abortion policy, which has been on the books for over one hundred years. Yay! (This would be a today in history what we missed, since this article is from 1970–thanks for the correction commenters!)
Holla Back NYC is shooting it’s first ever PSA and looking for participants! Check out the details here.
Feministing has been nominated for a Lezzy Award in the Feminist/Political category! Go vote for us.
The cast of Glee has been invited to perform at the White House by President Obama. Pretty cool!
It’s National Eating Disorder’s Awareness Week.

It looks like Hawaii is about to repeal it’s extremely restrictive state abortion policy, which has been on the books for over one hundred years. Yay! (This would be a today in history what we missed, ...

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