< the past few months, women’s reproductive health has been a hot topic in the nation, from politicians’ varying views on the subject to Planned Parenthood’s lack of support from fellow female health conglomerate, the Susan G. Komen Foundation.
Carleton’s Reproductive Justice Collective club, formerly known as Carls for Choice, will be inviting students to join the conversation about women’s reproductive rights by hosting a Reproductive Justice Conference.
“That Carleton is hosting our first Reproductive Justice Conference is really exciting,” explained Hannah Lucal ‘12, a member of the Reproductive Justice Collective. “This is the first event of its kind to happen on campus, [and] reproductive justice is an extremely timely and pertinent topic right now.”
The conference, titled “Sex Lies and Things Our Mothers Never Told Us: How Reproductive Justice Fits into Every Aspect of Our Society”, will feature several workshops and a variety of talks.
Students from Carleton, St. Olaf, Macalester, and other colleges from the area are invited to attend. Other workshop leaders include Carleton and St. Olaf professors, who will give talks and lead group discussions.
“Reproductive rights often get overwhelmed by the issue of abortion alone, and there is so much more than that,” said Sophie Siegel-Warren ’13, another club member. “This conference will be featuring workshops on a number of topics, including art as an educational tool to inspire action, decolonizing sexualities, religion and reproductive justice.”
In addition to opening up the conversation about reproductive health, there will be an extensive focus on women of different ethnicity’s health as well. “One of the workshops is led by a Native American woman because for so long, Native American health issues has been controlled by the government,” explained the club’s president Shantrice King ‘13. “The conference allows for a diverse group of people to engage within these topics.”
The keynote speaker Loretta Ross, is the National Coordinator of the SisterSong Women of Color Reproductive Health Collective and will be addressing the basics of reproductive health in her talk. “[Ross] is really at the forefront of women’s access to contraceptives and has a long experience overseeing Rape Clinics,” King said.
The club hopes that the conference will promote a healthy, constructive, and diverse variety of discussion for students and professors alike.