Reproductive Rights During Three Different Periods

“I almost gasp: he's said a forbidden word. Sterile. There is no such thing as a sterile man anymore, not officially. There are only women who are fruitful and women who are barren, that's the law” (Margaret Atwood, The Handmaid’s Tale). This piece focuses on the topic of reproductive rights/reproductive justice and how it has affected folks in three distinct parts of the world, during different time eras. This focuses on the events that occurred in the United States during the 1980s and how the conservative ideologies behind those events are seen in present-day America, the Lebensborn organization in Germany during World War II, and the recent abortion legislation decision made in Argentina this year

Reproductive Justice

The Handmaid’s Tale depicts a society where white women are stripped of the ability to have and care for their own children without government interference or obstacles created by white supremacy and systemic oppression. While the novel is labeled as a dystopian tale, where this extreme form of reproductive restriction would “never happen”, the reality of the novel is that restrictions around reproduction have been a historically been a reality for women worldwide, and especially for women of color. This refers to white feminism’s failure to address the issues that disproportionately impact people of color, including but not limited to, the racial gap in infant mortality rates to socioeconomic injustices, forced sterilization, limited access to sex education and contraceptives, and state violence. The term reproductive justice was in fact coined by a group of Black women in 1994 to address the needs of folks of color who have been historically excluded from conversations on reproductive rights.

Margaret Atwood based her novel on the events in the United States during the 1980s. She included the United States’ increasing conservatism that was seen after the election of President Ronald Reagan, the increasing power of the Christian right, conservative family values, and the attacks on women’s reproductive rights. The latter refers to the massive backlash against abortion in the 1980’s, which was seen through the distribution of the 1984 anti-abortion film, “The Silent Scream, ” abortion clinic bombings and attacks, and the Reagan administration’s declaration that the United States government would only fund international women’s health groups that promoted “natural family planning” in underdeveloped countries. Margaret Atwood created The Handmaid’s Tale as a fictional work that imagines a conceivable future, and the reality is that limitations on reproductive justice have always been part of the United States’ history and have found their way into our present.

Lebensborn

White supremacy and reproductive rights have been historically connected, as was evident in early twentieth century Germany. The Lebensborn, or “fount of life, ” was a registered association founded in December 1935 to counteract falling birth rates in Germany, and to ultimately promote eugenics. Through this program, unmarried women who were classified as “racially pure and healthy” were provided with welfare to have anonymous births so their children could be adopted by “equally racially pure and healthy” parents, most of which were SS members and their spouses. During the organization’s existence, 8, 000 children were born in Germany, and between 8, 000 and 12, 000 children were born in Norway, with many other births occurring in Lebensborn homes throughout Europe during World War II.

Abortion Legislation

This year, there was a proposed bill in Argentina to legalize abortion for pregnancies up to 14 weeks that showed the intersections between reproductive rights, law, and religion. Supporters of the legislation used hashtags on Twitter, such as #EsHoy, to show support for the bill. Supporters donned green bandanas and outfits that alluded to red robes from The Handmaid’s Tale. Even author Margaret Atwood took to Twitter to voice support for the bill. However there was strong pushback in the predominantly Catholic country with local media saying Pope Francis privately pressed lawmakers to reject legalization. The senate ended up rejecting the bill, but supporters of legalization expressed they plan to present this legislation again next year. The decision to reject the bill that legalized elective abortions has proven a setback to Latin American activists who hoped to loosen Argentina’s strict anti-abortion laws, and ultimately decriminalize abortion.