By Jessica • 16 years ago

Voices of the USSF: Maria Nakae

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Contributed by Maria Nakae, Asian Communities for Reproductive Justice
Reproductive Justice: A Vision of Another World
A new movement is gaining momentum and changing the way that we view our world, think about our lives and take action for change. It is a movement that is working toward a vision where all people 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.
What is so unique about the Reproductive Justice Movement that makes it so powerful and vibrant? It addresses our selves comprehensively, rather than singling out parts of our bodies and our lives. It pushes for an understanding of how reproductive oppression exists in all aspects of our lives – at work, at school, at home, and on the streets. It strives for the self-determination of those who are most impacted to be part of the solution and create change in their communities. And it recognizes that by working together to fight for the needs of all of our communities, we are much stronger and more effective than working on our issues separately.
By placing our reproductive health and rights within a social justice framework, the Reproductive Justice Movement offers an authentic way for us to understand how reproductive oppression – the control and exploitation of our bodies, sexuality, and reproduction – is a result of intersections of multiple oppressions based on race, class, gender, sexuality, ability, age and immigration status, and is inherently connected to the struggle for social justice and human rights.
At Asian Communities for Reproductive Justice (ACRJ), we believe in the centrality of organizing as a way for those who are most impacted by reproductive oppression to become the active agents of change in their lives and leaders in the movement, by directly challenging the power structures that try to control us. We also recognize that the issues we fight for intersect with a range of social justice issues such as environmental justice, immigrant rights, LBGTQ liberation, worker’s rights, and educational justice, and that it is essential to build alliances across social justice movements.


Organizing and cross-sector alliance building are some of the key strategies to building a strong and vibrant Reproductive Justice Movement. At ACRJ, we are working on an exciting new movement building initiative, Expanding the Movement for Empowerment and Reproductive Justice (EMERJ), that will build strategic alliances and increase the power, leadership and capacity of grassroots organizations and communities. The goals of EMERJ are to build a base of grassroots organization and communities that take action for reproductive justice; provide tools, models, and resources for organizations and activists to use in their reproductive justice work; continue to expand and evolve the RJ analysis; and provide leadership that is forward thinking and action oriented.
What is so exciting to me about EMERJ is that I’ve never been a part of something like this – a visionary, strategic, and coordinated effort to build a social movement from the ground up. It brings life and innovation into our work, and has the potential to fuel our movement to have the direction and vitality we need to see long-term change in our communities. The best part about EMERJ is that there is a place for everyone who is involved in the struggle for reproductive justice – so come join us! We can’t build a movement without collective action, which means we can’t do this without you.
As our movement continues to strengthen and grow, we will work to activate and mobilize larger constituencies by integrating the reproductive justice needs of our communities at local, state, national, and international levels. We will affect concrete change among individuals, families, communities and societies by challenging the structural and societal conditions that aim to control our bodies, sexuality, and reproduction.
This is our vision of reproductive justice. We believe it is one that can be achieved by working together and building alliances across issue areas, identities and communities to create a world where all people can thrive. As we head to the US Social Forum in a couple of days, many of us are asking ourselves if another world is truly possible. For me, I know that it is, and I believe our fight for reproductive justice will get us there.
Maria is a first generation Japanese American with experience in community-based research, outreach, and program development in low-income communities of color and immigrant communities. Her work has focused around domestic violence prevention, parenting and child development, and housing stability among the mentally ill homeless.

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