Here’s What You Need To Know About The Abortion Decision, And How To Fight Back
Updated: Friday, June 24, 2022: The Supreme Court has officially overturnedRoe v. Wade. And I'm tired.
Like so many of us, I'm sad, I'm heartbroken, I'm angry. When news like this is delivered, I see people on my timeline immediately propelled into righteous action, as if acting off instinct. And I’ve been the same way many times when a tragic reminder of just how little control we have over our bodies is delivered to us. But right now I just feel numb with anxiety.
Restricting access to abortion has just been one of the numerous ways in which this country has told us our bodies are not ours to control. From forced sterilizations of poor Black and brown women to forced breedings during slavery to rape and incarceration, our bodies are battlegrounds for policymakers to keep us under their rule.
Fortunately, there are Black and brown reproductive justice activists and radical organizations like the National Network of Abortion Funds and the National Black Women’s Reproductive Justice Agenda who have been doing this work for years and have been preparing for this outcome. What they have long since understood is what Justice Alito has made plain in his draft opinion attacking the legal precedents for marriage equality and the right to your sexuality along with abortion: everything is connected. It’s what legal scholar and founding practitioner of Critical Race Theory Mari Matsuda means when she implores us to “Ask the other question”:
“When I see something that looks racist, I ask ‘Where is the patriarchy in this?’ When I see something that looks sexist, I ask ‘Where is the heterosexism in this?” Matsuda challenges us to explore.
Likewise, fighting for abortion rights involves us contending with a number of things. Fighting for abortion also means fighting for a world in which prisons and police no longer exist. When even so much as having a miscarriage can lead to your incarceration especially if you are Black or brown, we need to collectively grapple with the true functions of prison as not a means for safety but one for subjugation. Fighting for abortion means fighting for transgender people. It’s fighting for the trans men and the nonbinary people who can also get pregnant.
Fighting for abortion means fighting for free access to healthcare. Abortion is healthcare, but something being healthcare in this country is not enough when our healthcare system is not accessible to everyone and can leave people in crushing debt. It's fighting for immigrants and for the disabled and the poor. When we understand the interconnectedness of our struggles, we can be more equipped to fight back and win.
I’m not pro choice, I’m pro abortion. There’s nothing morally wrong with wanting one or getting one. There doesn’t need to be any other reason to terminate a pregnancy other than a pregnancy not being wanted. Abortion access is just one of the ways we remove the chains this world has on our bodies. For today, I’m sad. I have no hope in the cowardice and cruelty of our elected officials. It’s the radical organizers, the ones who have compiled lists of abortion funds in every state if you need one or know someone who does– that’ll lead us into the direction of freedom. As abolitionist Mariame Kaba always says, “Hope is a discipline.” A new world where we are free is possible.
ItGirl 100 Honors Black Women Who Create Culture & Put On For Their Cities
As they say, create the change you want to see in this world, besties. That’s why xoNecole linked up with Hyundai for the inaugural ItGirl 100 List, a celebration of 100 Genzennial women who aren’t afraid to pull up their own seats to the table. Across regions and industries, these women embody the essence of discovering self-value through purpose, honey! They're fierce, they’re ultra-creative, and we know they make their cities proud.
VIEW THE FULL ITGIRL 100 LIST HERE.
Don’t forget to also check out the ItGirl Directory, featuring 50 Black-woman-owned marketing and branding agencies, photographers and videographers, publicists, and more.
THE ITGIRL MEMO
I. An ItGirl puts on for her city and masters her self-worth through purpose.
II. An ItGirl celebrates all the things that make her unique.
III. An ItGirl empowers others to become the best versions of themselves.
IV. An ItGirl leads by example, inspiring others through her actions and integrity.
V. An ItGirl paves the way for authenticity and diversity in all aspects of life.
VI. An ItGirl uses the power of her voice to advocate for positive change in the world.
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You've Never Seen Luke James In A Role Quite Like This
Over the years, we've watched Luke James play countless characters we'd deem sex symbols, movie stars, and even his complicated character in Lena Waithe's The Chi. For the first time in his career, the New Orleans-born actor has taken on a role where his signature good looks take a backseat as he transforms into Edmund in Them: The Scare—a mentally deranged character in the second installment of the horror anthology series that you won't be able to take your eyes off.
Trust us, Edmund will literally make you do a double take.
xoNecole sat down with Luke James to talk about his latest series and all the complexity surrounding it—from the challenges taking on this out-of-the-box role to the show's depiction of the perplexing history of the relationship between Black Americans and police. When describing the opportunity to bring Edmund's character to life, Luke was overjoyed to show the audience yet another level of his masterful acting talents.
"It was like bathing in the sun," he said. "I was like, thank you! Another opportunity for me to be great—for me to expand my territory. I'm just elated to be a part of it and to see myself in a different light, something I didn't think I could do." He continued, "There are parts of you that says, 'Go for it because this is what you do.' But then also that's why it's a challenge because you're like, 'um, I don't know if I'm as free as I need to be to be able to do this.' Little Marvin just created such a safe space for me to be able to do this, and I'm grateful for everything I've been able to do to lead to this."
Courtesy
Them: The Scare, like the first season, shines a light on the plight of Black Americans in the United States. This time, the story is taking place in the 1990s, at the height of the Rodney King riots in Los Angeles. While the series presents many underlying themes, one that stands out is Black people and the complicated relationship with the police. "For the audience, I think it sets the tone for the era that we're in and the amount of chaos that's in the air in Los Angeles and around the country from this heinous incident. And I say it just sets the tone of the anxiety and anxiousness that everybody is feeling in their own households."
James has been a longtime advocate against police brutality himself. He has even featured Elijah McClain, the 23-year-old Colorado man who died after being forcibly detained by officers, as his Instagram avatar for the past five years. So, as you can imagine, this script was close to his heart. "Elijah was a soft-loving oddball. Different than anyone but loving and a musical genius. He was just open and wanted to be loved and seen."
Getty Images
Luke continued, "His life was taken from him. I resonate with his spirit and his words...through all the struggle and the pain he still found it in him to say, 'I love you and I forgive you.' And that's who we are as people—to our own detriment sometimes. He's someone I don't want people to forget. I have yet to remove his face from my world because I have yet to let go of his voice, let go of that being [because] there's so many people we have lost in our history that so often get forgotten."
He concluded, "I think that's the importance of such artwork that moves us to think and talk about it. Yes, it's entertaining. We get to come together and be spooked together. But then we come together and we think, 'Damn, Edmund needed someone to talk to. Edmund needed help... a lot [of] things could have been different. Edmund could have been saved.'
Check out the full interview below.
Luke James Talks Ditching Sex Symbol Status For "Them: The Scare", Elijah McClain, & Morewww.youtube.com
Featured image by Getty Images