I bought my copy of the most recent issue of off our backs this week, and it turned out to be an entire issue dedicated to “reproductive justice.” The concept of reproductive justice, it turns out, is a way to re-vision the depth and breadth of what we have conventionally thought of as “reproductive rights” or even more narrowly, “pro-choice” advocacy. It focuses not only on or legal access to reproductive choice, but also on the social and economic inequalities that make those “rights” the privilege of those with power and resources.

Loretta Ross, one of the guest editors of the issue, and a member of the SisterSong Women of Color Reproductive Health Collective, defines reproductive justice this way:

• the right to have a child;
• the right not to have a child;
• the right to parent the children we have
  
• the right to control our own birthing options

Her article does a beautiful job of broadening the conversation surrounding reproductive and sexual rights, calling on us to articulate the overarching values that lead us to a pro-choice position. “Reproductive justice,” she writes, “focuses on the ends [rather than the means]: better lives for women, healthier families, and sustainable communities.” Thinking in terms of reproductive justice “draws attention to cultural and socio-economic inequalities because everyone does not have equal opportunity to participate in society’s cultural discourses or public policy and economic values, such as abortion, midwifery, or mothering.”

I read Ross’ article, “Understanding Reproductive Justice: Transforming the Pro-Choice Movement,” just a few days after reading a lovely essay, “Being a Radical Doula,” by a Maria Perez, a young woman who works as a doula supporting women during pregnancy, childbirth, and early motherhood. In “Being a Radical Doula,” Perez articulates the fundamental connection between her pro-choice politics and her passion for working with pregnant and birthing women.

Both of these articles came across my desk just when I needed them, after several long weeks of going back and forth with anti-abortion folks about the abortion ban. It’s wonderful to know there are other people out there working hard to create a world in which reproductive justice is a basic human right for all.

And I keep thinking . . . perhaps in my grannyhood, I’ll become a radical, activist midwife myself!

It’s been an intense couple of weeks, from the feminist-activist perspective. Since the April 18th Supreme Court ruling (Gonzalez v. Carhart) upholding–with a 5-4 majority–the 2003 “partial birth” abortion ban, I’ve been giving myself a crash refresher course in the theory and politics of women’s right to reproductive choice–including the “basic human right to decide what to do about a pregnancy” (see “Is There Life After Roe?” by Frances Kissling).

The ruling, while not unexpected, still felt like a punch in the gut when it came down. It is dismissive of scientific evidence, medical consensus, women’s right to bodily integrity, and the centrality of family planning in women’s equal participation in society. It upholds a shoddy law that is constitutionally vague (there is no medical procedure known as “partial birth abortion”) and based on congressional “findings” with which the majority of the governments own expert witnessess disagreed. The anti-feminism, implicit and explicit, in the majority opinion made me (and many of my friends) feel almost personally physically violated.

The one bright spot, legally and morally speaking, was Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg’s powerful dissent, which rooted its argument in a feminist ethic of women’s right to participate in the right “to participate equally in the economic and social life of the Nation.” Check out this awesome article describing how it could become the basis for future pro-choice law.

Serendipitously, a couple of weeks before the ruling was handed down, I got involved in the on-line community around feministing, a feminist blog. It’s been my first experience actively participating in on-line discussions (and at times the learning curve has been a little steep!), and it was incredibly helpful for my continued sanity that I was connected to the people who read and wrote on Feministing as the news was breaking. They have helped me to channel my rage into small, daily acts of useful protest. They even convinced me to phone my congressional representatives and ask them to support the Freedom of Choice Act (FOCA), now pending in both houses, which would protect women’s legal right to abortion. Those of you who know how much I hate/am terrified by the telephone will understand what a step that was!

All this political activity and feminist discussion has been a good reminder that, as I am sorting through career possibilities in the next few years, I need to be conscious about integrating my love of books and scholarship with my passion for feminist activism. Political involvement, and the community of (at least partially) like-minded individuals I become closer to as a result of being politically engaged, are necessary for my sanity and help me stay excited and hopeful about the future.

*and many thanks to all the Feministing bloggers and readers for pointing me toward most of the articles linked to this post.