Health, Reproductive Rights and Justice Women History
Introduction
Minority groups in the US have consequently been faced with a lot of challenges, due to the types of rights which they were subjected to. Women of color, were not also subjected to the same rights as white women were subjected to, and this therefore meant that the government had total authority over their health, particularly if they made mistakes which were very serious. For instance, African American women were prohibited from drink alcohol or even smoking while pregnant. On the other hand, their counterparts the white women, were allowed to do each and everything they wanted to do. This therefore led to a separation of rights, whereby African Americans, Latins, indigenous Americans, and women of Asian descent, were not treated equally as white women in the country.
In the past women’s rights were being abused in order to limit them from taking up certain positions. For example, the minority groups of women could not be allowed to take up elective positions in the US. This therefore meant that they were not being treated equally as white women in the country, who were able to take up elective posts (Silliman, et al, 23). In addition, minority groups of women were not also allowed to conduct abortions based on their will. African American women in particular, were not allowed to take birth control pills, as this was perceived to be against the law. Moreover, the birth control pills which they were able to access, were not good for their health. This therefore means that the pills which they could be able to easily access, could either lead to certain complications immediately after they took the drugs.
Abortion was something which was not considered legal among the minority groups, and so anyone who undertook an abortion would face the full force of the law (Solinger, 40). Abortions were only done particularly when women had made a very big mistake or otherwise violated the law. If an African American had gone against the rule of the law, then this meant that the punishment would be a forced abortion particularly if they were pregnant, by the relevant authorities. Currently the status of women have changed in the US, they are still being sidelined from accessing certain public services and resources. Minority groups have not been able to access public health services and information about healthcare. This is consequently due to the uneven poverty rates, they therefore lack insurance covers, and they also have limited contraceptive services, which hinders them from being able to control their reproduction levels. According to a recent research, it was discovered that 42% of Latin women, 23% of African American women, 25% women of Asian descent, do not have health insurances, as opposed to 13% of white women who lack health insurance (Silliman, et al, 25).
Reproductive rights in the country are therefore influenced by class, gender, race and immigration proficiencies of each and every groups (Nelson, 60). On the other hand, the health care providers do not consider the culture of the minority groups, while offering medical services to them. This therefore limits the types of services offered to the minority groups of women in the country. Furthermore, it is required of the health care providers to respect the traditions, practices and culture of each and every community while offering health services. Due to stereotyping, it is very hard for the health providers to have the required knowledge about different communities, making it a barrier to the interpretation of women’s needs. On the other hand, this also makes it very hard for those women who need health care and information from accessing it (Solinger, 45).
Population growth has been one of the major issues which the US government has been trying to manage. This has therefore seen the country coming up with different strategies and approaches in order to make sure that they totally control population growth (Solinger, 47). The government has been over the years trying to control fertility a thing which has since been directed to both men and women of color. In addition, the government has been in some occasions trying to increase the fertility of the people of color, but mostly it has been reducing their fertility, in order to control their number of the people of color in the country. For instance, during the colonization period of the US, Native American women were usually given blankets infected with small pox intentionally, in order to control their number (Solinger, 45). After using the blankets, the women would get infected with small pox, and in the end they would lose their lives. This was therefore one of the ways of controlling the growth of the population in the country. On the other hand, the productivity of the slaves, was being increased, whereby the masters were asked to rape their slaves in order to increase the number of the slaves in the country. These slaves would therefore be used by their masters in providing labor, hence their numbers needed to be increased (Nelson, 60).
After the colonization period, the government has been working on preventing the women of color from getting children. Different laws have therefore been implemented in order to bar women of color from being able to get children. This therefore includes the following, the implementation of the eugenics laws, sterilization abuses, immigration limits, directed family planning and welfare reforms. The government has therefore come up with these laws in order to make sure that the number of births of women of color is effectively limited in the country. For instance, the types of contraceptives given to the women of color is not similar to the ones given to the whites. This is so because, the government aims at gradually increasing the number of whites in the country, while at the same time, reducing the number of the people of color in the country (Silliman, et al, 28). This cannot be easily achieved, if the government does not come up with techniques of making sure that this move will not be easily noticed. On the other hand, sterilization abuses have really impacted most women of color negatively, since some of their cells cannot be able to perform normally. This may therefore lead to death of some cells hence making them unable to conceive or even give birth to mature children. The US government has therefore been able to use such tricks in order to make sure that the women of color continue to be oppressed, a move which may also seek to clearly wipe out all people of color from the country.
Women have since the colonial period formed movements, in order to advocate for their reproductive rights (Solinger, 47). This has however not been taken seriously over the past, whereby some of their grievances were looked at, while others were not taken care of. The colonial government only considered some of women’s grievances, in order to silence them. They have never been granted the full freedom and rights which they advocated for. This has up to date, made the women of color vulnerable to different laws which require them to do things without their will. The women of color have therefore been limited from being able to enjoy their reproductive lives, since such authorities are not granted to them by the government. Furthermore, the government has been very bias when it comes to the allocation of resources to areas which have been dominated by the people of color, as compared to the areas dominated by the whites. This is consequently a move which is aimed at further discriminating the people of color in the US, thus making it hard for them to be able to lead peacefully lives according to their will (Silliman, et al, 28).
According to the national human rights commission, all people need be treated equally as others, since all human beings are equal to each other. Regardless of the race, color, age or gender, all citizens should be given the same rights, thus being able to lead equal lives as compared to others (Nelson, 62). No one should therefore limit the type of life that other people should lead, even though they might be of a different color from that of the natives. Furthermore, conferring to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR), all persons have equal rights regardless of their social statuses. On the other hand, UHDR clearly states that some human rights tend to favor certain groups of people, and thus limiting the rights of other persons, particularly the minority. Therefore, in some countries, human rights may be viewed as justifiable, even though there are those who seem to be oppressed. This is consequently because, most countries look forward to favoring the majority, who have the say in the country, hence forgetting about the minority. The whites have dominated the political positions in the country, and so when it comes to the amendment and the passing of laws concerning the minorities, it becomes very hard for the whites to pass such laws. This is consequently because of the tranny of numbers in the congress a thing which tends to limit the rights of the people of color in the country (Silliman, et al, 31).
Conclusion
Health, reproductive rights and justice for women in history, have been associated with very evil vices, which seek to control the growth of the population of the people of color. Women of color have really been sidelined when it comes to the access of health care services, since the colonial period, where they were not allowed to seek medical health. In addition, as compared to the whites, the women of color have not been allowed to their rights to give births, and to also control their birth. This is so because the government has employed different means of making sure that they do procreate, thus making it hard for them to be able to get children. The government has since limited the rights of the women of color to the point of affecting their health in order to discourage them from giving birth.
Work Cited
Silliman, Jael Miriam, Marlene Gerber Fried, Loretta Ross, and Elena R. GutieÌrrez. Undivided Rights: Women of Color Organize for Reproductive Justice. Chicago, IL: Haymarket, 2016. Print.
Solinger, Rickie. Reproductive Politics: What Everyone Needs to Know. New York: Oxford UP, 2013. Print.
Nelson, Jennifer. More than Medicine: A History of the Feminist Women's Health Movement. New York: New York UP, 2015. Print.
