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Posted In: Decolonization and RJ, Religion and RJ

Diya’s Story (english)

Diya’s Reproductive Justice Story

My RJ story begins at the gate of a temple in the eastern province of Bengal, in India in 1944. My grandmother, Bela, who was twelve years old at the time, was told by her mother that she could not accompany her into the temple as she had just begun menstruating. This threw Bela into a fit of rage. How could a body that is primed to create life pollute the goddess’s home? If anything, her presence should add to the sanctity of the place. None of the moral justifications by priests and older women made any sense to her. So, standing in front of that temple gate, young Bela came to the conclusion that religion was an elaborate conspiracy designed by men. Out of their jealousy towards the power and beauty of women’s bodies, they had decided to shame women and keep them locked out of important places. That was the day, as the family lore goes, that my grandmother became the first in the long line of naribadis (feminists) in our family.

This incident occurred a few years before India’s independence. In the coming years, Bela would witness tremendous changes sweep the country. She would see her country first gain Independence from the British, only to be broken into pieces in the next instant. She would witness an unprecedented level of death and suffering—first, due to a man-made famine that claimed three million lives and then, due to Partition, when another fifteen million people were turned into refugees on their own land. My grandmother told me stories of stepping over bodies on her way to school and trying to listen to the teacher’s instruction over the cries of hungry people wandering the streets.

When she turned fifteen, Bela was abandoned by her parents, who could no longer afford to keep her at home. A distant relative took her in to live with him in a Communist commune. Here she gained a new religion that would replace the one she had lost. In the Party, she finally found an intellectual home, even with all its imperfections. Here was an ideology that preached that no one’s life, body or work is more or less sacred than another’s. Such a simple and elegant message resonated with her and gave all her rage direction. She threw herself whole-heartedly in the Communist movement—organizing refugees, leading marches and, eventually, ending up in prison for her beliefs.

While Bela was fully committed to the Communist cause, she was always wary of the ways in which patriarchy threatened to poison the collective dreams of revolution. Her male comrades, including the man who would eventually be my grandfather, were, at best blind to their privilege and, at worst, actively sought to marginalize women’s voices. In spite of the hypocrisy of the men, Bela remained in the Party, in part, to prove to the men that she would not pushed aside so easily. Besides, she later confessed to me that she had the courage to stay on because had reasoned that many of the men she distrusted were not true Communists anyway—they were weak men who were unlikely to survive the worldwide revolution when it came.

Alas, the revolution never came, but my grandmother never stopped fighting. All her life she continued to fight for the dignity of women’s lives and bodies. Wherever she heard news of women facing exploitation, she rushed to be at their side—if for no other reason but to serve as witness and to stand in solidarity. She had a passion for seeking out women in places where they worked and collecting narratives of their laboring lives—be it in the mangrove swamps where women harvest shrimp while knee-deep in muddy waters or on the streets of Sonagachhi where women sell sex for a living. My grandmother’s passion for the working lives of women taught me that reproductive justice means more than the right to bear children under conditions of one’s own choosing. It means having the right feed them, educate them and see them thrive.

Moreover, her obsession with collecting women’s stories taught me that a reproductive justice framework must not only consider whose body counts, but also evaluate whose knowledge counts. Many of my grandmother’s writings made it into daily newspapers or were presented in activist circles. However, many more have been lost or ignored simply because they were written in Bengali and because my grandmother did not have the formal education that is prerequisite to be published.  She often sardonically observed that the further you are in terms of your linguistic, class, and even geographic location from the lives of Indian women workers, the more legitimacy you will have to speak on their behalf in academic and policy-making spaces. Reproductive justice, then, is also a matter of whose stories get to survive and inform how we imagine our present world and forge our collective futures.

 

- Diya
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Today on Indigenous Peoples Day we call on non-Bla Today on Indigenous Peoples Day we call on non-Black and non-Indigenous Latinos/es to commit to actively dismantling deep rooted colonial legacies of anti-Black and anti-Indigenous racism and oppression. We call for all non-Black and non-Indigenous Latino/e policymakers to end complicity in upholding white supremacy and inciting hatred towards Black and Indigenous communities. It is time for Latino/e policymakers to be held accountable, take responsibility, and to actively work to dismantle systems of oppression.

As a Latina/e led Reproductive Justice organization based in Los Angeles we are enraged and disgusted by the racist conversation between Los Angeles Latino City Council members Nury Martínez, Gil Cedillo, Kevin de León and Los Angeles County Federation of Labor President Ron Herrera. Their words clearly show their anti-Indigeneous and anti-Black racism and disdain for working class and poor people. As a Latina/e led Reproductive Justice organization based in Los Angeles we call for the immediate resignation of all the aforementioned Latino leaders. This is not the kind of leadership our city nor our communities want, need, or deserve.

As a Reproductive Justice organization committed to centering the experiences of those most impacted by structural oppression, we re-commit to addressing, centering, and fighting anti-Black and anti-Indigenous racism in our communities and to reckon with our own complicity in the continued harm and erasure of Black and Indigenous communities. We must do better.

See link in our bio for full statement on “LA CITY COUNCIL: ANTI-BLACK & ANTI-INDIGENOUS RACISM IN THE LATINO/E COMMUNITY”

#ReproJustice #ThisIsRJ #indigenouspeoplesday
This week is #MentalHealthAwarenessWeek 🦋 Our This week is #MentalHealthAwarenessWeek 🦋 

Our ability to access quality healthcare, stable housing, food security, and safe, non-carceral mental and physical healthcare services all directly impact the mental health and wellbeing of our communities. Our collective freedom and survival rests not only on our ability to practice care for ourselves and each other, but also on our willingness to fight for a future where everyone can easily access all of the resources they need to live full and dignified lives.
 
Reproductive Justice means working to end the stigma around mental health and breaking down barriers to access to the care we need. 🌻
 
🎨: @Nerdybrownkid 

#ThisIsRJ #ReproJustice #MentalHealthAwareness #MentalHealthMatters

[ID: on an off-white background, there is an illustration of a large butterfly made up of community members embracing one another and green text surrounding the butterfly that says, "We are each other's wings"]
Help protect the #LGBTQIA+ community from discrimi Help protect the #LGBTQIA+ community from discrimination in healthcare by telling the Biden Administration why section 1557 is important to you.

The Biden-Harris Administration recently proposed a new rule to implement section 1557 of the Affordable Care Act – draft regulations that will protect all #LGBTQIA+ people from discrimination in healthcare. Now we need YOUR HELP to get these important changes implemented. 

Visit www.nclrights.org/1557 to find out more about how you can support LGBTQIA+ access to safe, quality healthcare free from discrimination and submit your comment in support of strengthening protections for the LGBTQIA+ community TODAY!
 
Ensuring that everyone has access to quality healthcare free from barriers, stigma, and discrimination is Reproductive Justice! 

#ThisisRJ #ReproJustice #1557 #CALeg #ProtectLGBTQHealth 

[ID: On a gray background, bold white text with pink borders says, "Share your story & Tell the Biden Admin why we need Healthcare free from discrimination. visit www.nclrights.org/1557]
California is accepting applications to compensate California is accepting applications to compensate survivors of state-sanctioned forced sterilizations! 📣

Eligibility WILL NOT impact your Medi-Cal, Social Security, Food Assistance, or other state or federal benefits. Compensation will NOT be considered community property, child support, restitution, or judgment money. Applying for compensation is completely confidential.

Visit victims.ca.gov/fiscp or the link in our bio for more information. #ReproJustice #EndEugenicsLegacy

This program is an important step for California in confronting its shameful history and taking a bold stand against the racist, sexist, and ableist practices that perpetuate health inequities to this day. The CA FISCP was co-sponsored by Back to the Basics Community Empowerment (B2B), California Coalition for Women Prisoners (CCWP), California Latinas for Reproductive Justice (CLRJ), and the Disability Rights Education and Defense Fund (DREDF) in collaboration with the Belly of the Beast filmmakers and team.
Today, September 28 is #InternationalSafeAbortionD Today, September 28 is #InternationalSafeAbortionDay! ✨ 

This Day of Action for Access to Safe and Legal Abortion has its origin in Latin America and the Caribbean where organizers have been mobilizing around September 28 since the 1990s to demand their governments to decriminalize abortion, to provide access to safe and affordable abortion services, and to end stigma and discrimination towards people who choose to have an abortion. 

Removing unnecessary policy and societal barriers to safe abortion protects people’s lives, health, and human rights by allowing people to access timely, life-saving care. Abortion is essential, normal, and common healthcare and access to safe, legal, and stigma-free abortion care should be available for all who need it! 

Today and everyday, we stand in solidarity and acompañamiento with people across the globe fighting for our right to bodily autonomy. Take action this #SafeAbortionDay and speak out for access to safe and legal abortions by:
💚 Share accurate resources for those seeking abortion care. If you need an abortion visit @ineedanacom. For confidential, free legal advice, check out @reprolegaldefensefund @ifwhenhow. 
💚 Identify, question, confront and reject the multiple stigmatizing ideas and messages about abortion that we learned growing up in repressive anti-choice societies. 
💚  Protect your digital privacy and combat the spread of misinformation! Check out https://digitaldefensefund.org/ddf-guides/abortion-privacy to learn more about  digital security surrounding abortion.

Dismantling negative stigmas and misinformation surrounding abortion and demanding safe, accessible, and legal abortion access worldwide IS Reproductive Justice!

#28S #SeráLey #ReproJustice #AbortionJustice #28Sept

[ID: On a turquoise background, there is an illustration of a Black person with long wavy black hair wearing a purple long sleeve shirt and holding a lavender sign that says, "September 28 International Safe Abortion Day"]
🚨 BREAKING: POLICY UPDATE 🚨 We’re thrill 🚨 BREAKING: POLICY UPDATE 🚨 

We’re thrilled to announce that @CAGovernor just signed two of our co-sponsored bills AB2223 (Wicks) Decriminalization of Abortion and Pregnancy Loss and AB2586 (Garcia) Reproductive Justice and Freedom Fund into law! 🎉

AB2586 (Garcia /Rivas) Reproductive Justice and Freedom Fund bill, and companion $15 million budget request, seeks to address and eliminate reproductive and sexual health inequities by developing responsive policy recommendations centered in a Reproductive Justice Framework. BIPOC, LGBTQ+ and people with disabilities continue to face higher rates of sexual & reproductive health inequities across California, which #AB2586 addresses by employing long term & immediate strategies that center the needs of those most impacted in our communities. 

Investigation and prosecution for ending a pregnancy or experiencing pregnancy loss harms a person’s health and livelihood and disproportionately impacts those already targeted for surveillance & criminalization, including BIPOC; immigrants, LGTBQ+ ppl; young ppl; & low income folks. AB2223 (Wicks) Decriminalization of Abortion and Pregnancy Loss will ensure that no one in the State of California will be investigated for ending a pregnancy or experiencing pregnancy loss.

Thank you to our amazing partners, community members, supporters, and legislators who made this victory possible and continue to invest in building safe and healthy communities where people are all able to access the healthcare services that they need without fear or retribution! 

Say it with us: Deciding when, if, and how to start a family is Reproductive Justice! 
#RJpolicyAgenda #ReproJustice #AB2223 #AB2586 #EndEugenicsLegacy 

[ID: on a solid yellow background, white text says, “BREAKING: Our co-sponsored bills AB2223 & AB2586 have been signed into law!”]
This #WorldContraceptionDay, we’re calling atten This #WorldContraceptionDay, we’re calling attention to the barriers to accessing birth control pills and the need for over-the-counter options because ALL people should have the resources they need to plan their futures, including access to the birth control method of their choice, free from barriers or stigma! 💯 

Research shows that requiring a prescription makes it harder to obtain and consistently use birth control pills. It's a barrier no one should have to deal with. Over-the-counter birth control pills would give people greater access to the tools they need to take care of their own health. Birth control pills are an essential part of health care and health care is a human right. It’s time to make birth control pills over the counter in the US, fully covered by insurance, & accessible to people of all ages!

Expanding contraceptive options & improving equitable access to the full range of sexual & repro health is critical to the fight for Reproductive Justice! 🌟

#ReproJustice #ThisIsRJ #FreeThePill #WorldContraceptionDay #BirthControl
Happy Bi Visibility Day! 💜💗💙 To all of o Happy Bi Visibility Day! 💜💗💙

To all of our beautiful, radiant bisexual familia - you deserve to live and love freely, to have self-determination over your body, to create the family of your choosing, and to be surrounded by supportive and loving communities ALWAYS. Regardless of where you are on your journey or on the spectrum of visibility, you are valid, worthy, and so incredibly loved. May this #BiVisibilityDay be whatever you need it to be. 💗 

Queer liberation is Reproductive Justice! 🌈

🎨: @theunapologeticstreetseries

#ReproJustice #BisexualVisibilityDay #BiVisibilityDay #BisexualityAwarenessWeek #ThisIsRJ

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Join us for a free Oral History Workshop in collab Join us for a free Oral History Workshop in collaboration with @wild_tongue_archive and @avenue50studio! ⭐️ The workshop will be held on Tuesday, September 27th from 4-7pm at the Avenue 50 Studio in Los Angeles and will be the first in a series of Wild Tongue: A Latinx Oral History Archive events hosted by Virginia Espino, PhD, reproductive justice guerrerx and producer of "No Más Bébes."

Wild Tongue is an Oral History archive to recover, rescue, and record the experiences and rebellious ideas that inform the ordinary, yet beautiful lives of a community that is often invisibilized. In this first workshop, you will learn oral history methodology that focuses on a "do no harm" ethics in story collection, and will begin to build the question bank for the Wild Tongue interview.
 
To register for the workshop, visit http://bit.ly/3cLRi86 or click the link in our bio. 🌻

Sharing our stories helps to shatter negative societal stigmas and builds power in our communities and beyond. 📣

#ReproJustice #ThisIsRJ #SpeakingStory

[ID: On a solid sky blue background, there is black bold text that says, "WILD TONGUE: A Latinx Oral history Archive: Free community workshop for those interested in learning how to collect working class narratives from the QTBIPOC Latin American diaspora. Tuesday, September 27th, 2022 4-7pm Avenue 50 Studio 131 N Avenue 50, Los Angeles, CA 90042. Space is limited and priority will be given to Latinx/Chicanx Afro-Latinx and Indigenous women, trans and non-binary people who feel they have experienced gender oppression." In the bottom righthand corner is a picture of Wild Tongue archive founder, Virginia Espino]
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