{"id":1117,"date":"2016-03-30T19:24:51","date_gmt":"2016-03-31T02:24:51","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/community.scrippscollege.edu\/invisible\/?p=1117"},"modified":"2016-04-14T20:38:56","modified_gmt":"2016-04-15T03:38:56","slug":"a-war-on-just-women-shifting-political-dialogue-regarding-reproductive-rights","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/community.scrippscollege.edu\/invisible\/2016\/03\/30\/a-war-on-just-women-shifting-political-dialogue-regarding-reproductive-rights\/","title":{"rendered":"A \u201cWar\u201d on Just \u201cWomen\u201d? : Shifting Political Dialogue Regarding Reproductive Rights"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"4482277916_a00ebfed6e_b\"<\/a>With Nancy Pelosi having recently visited Scripps campus to speak about her experiences as a woman in politics, I cannot help but recall the congresswoman\u2019s remarks<\/a> regarding abortion. As an adamant supporter of Planned Parenthood and \u201cwomen\u2019s rights,\u201d Pelosi appears to have my best interests in mind as a cisgendered young woman. However, her advocacy is exclusionary of numerous people affected by abortion legislation and marginalized within this important discussion.<\/p>\n

She, along with other outspoken feminist leaders, is guilty of silencing an entire community that does not necessarily conform to the traditional definition of \u201cwoman\u201d or a gender binary. The fierce Republican dialogue attempting to restrict reproductive rights has been coined the \u201cWar on Women\u201d by many Democratic leaders, mainstream media figureheads, and feminist icons, including Barbara Boxer<\/a> and Pelosi herself. This expression, indicating a direct attack on fundamental reproductive rights for cis-women, is a problematic one.<\/p>\n

Of course, cisgendered women are not the only group affected by the defunding of Planned Parenthood nationwide. The phrase discounts and ignores the medical needs of other gender identities. We know that gender and genitalia are not dependent on one another. There are non-binary people, trans men, intersex, and masculine presenting individuals that also greatly depend on the accessibility of services and education offered by the health organization. Trans people also deserve the ability to access hormone replacement therapy, contraception, and abortions.<\/p>\n

While most of us Scripps students outspokenly pride ourselves on being intersectional and inclusive feminists, our language may not reflect this. Now is the time to abandon cissexist expressions and transphobic assumptions that fail to include and acknowledge our peers with other gender identities. Although Scripps is historically a women\u2019s college, not all students identify as cis-women. Shifting our dialogue, with the following simple changes in rhetoric, can help make the 5C\u2019s a more progressive community. Let\u2019s be role models and spread our efforts across the consortium.<\/p>\n

A COMPREHENSIVE LIST OF DO\u2019S AND DON\u2019TS:<\/p>\n