Reproductive Rights

Making history

by Kristen Lombardi

It doesn't take much to figure out that women's reproductive rights in this country are in serious jeopardy.

Just consider that Republican presidential hopeful George W. Bush, while failing to take a stand on abortion, has signed 18 certifiably anti-choice measures into law as Texas's governor. Or that Congress has refused Medicaid coverage for the procedure, even in cases of rape and incest -- thereby denying any reproductive choice to many poor women.

While abortion rights continue to erode, the voices of everyday women have remained lost in the highly charged debate -- until now. The Boston chapter of the National Organization for Women (NOW) has launched a unique oral-history project designed to get American women talking about their bodies and their rights.

So far, several dozen women of diverse ages, races, and religions have told their tales of abortion, sex, pregnancy, and adoption for the "My Voice/My Choice" project. Storytellers have been captured on audiotapes, which will be compiled into a collection this fall.

Oral histories have long given testament to the hidden, ignored, or silenced experiences of this country's disenfranchised people, such as Native Americans, African slaves, and laborers. Only the winners, after all, get to write the official version of history. And when it comes to reproductive rights, women have been marginalized and overlooked. Taboos around sex have discouraged them from sharing stories with their mothers or their peers. As project coordinator Catherine Bell says, "Issues of reproductive choice aren't at all considered appropriate for public discussion."

But the oral-history project is full of powerful, poignant stories that illustrate how women can make complicated decisions about reproductive choice. One woman reveals how she resorted to a "kitchen table" abortion in the 1960s after her parents disowned her and her boyfriend spurned her for becoming pregnant. Another recalls how a close friend died after acting on the myth that simple household products -- coat hangers, Coke bottles, or cleaning fluids -- could end an unwanted pregnancy.

Even younger women who have come of age since Roe v. Wade have interesting tales to tell. One twentysomething recounts the afternoon that she arrived at a Boston-area clinic for an abortion -- just as news broke that John Salvi had opened fire in Brookline, killing two clinic workers and injuring others.

NOW members hope that stories like these will inspire political activism among women -- in particular, younger women who may take safe, legal abortion for granted. Members also hope the project can persuade those on the fence in this debate that reproductive choice must be protected.

"After hearing these stories," Bell says, "I know that this project satisfies a real need. It benefits everyone when we're able to see people's views more clearly."

Greater Boston NOW has a call out to women of all ages, from all ethnic, socioeconomic, and racial groups, to share their stories. To get involved, contact Catherine Bell at (617) 232-1017, or visit the Boston NOW Web site at www.bostonnow.org.