đź‘Ź đź‘Ź đź‘Ź
More of this-
Women’s rights
Help each other grow instead of destroying each other
This is one of my favorite images of all time
In the midst of this Texas situation, here are ways to help fight for reproductive justice. One major way: Urge our Reps to pass the Women’s Health Protection Act (WHPA) and donate to those fighting for it
Here is a LINK to donate to NARAL Pro-Choice America.
A major part of fighting against these forced-birther bills like those in Texas and Alabama is to not just fight against something, but to fight for something: Fighting for the Women’s Health Protection Act (WHPA) is a great offensive move to try to enact legislation that actively prohibits such restrictive legislation against abortion, and would work to protect Roe v Wade, the constitutional right which makes abortion legal. As CBS points out, the WHPA, “…would guarantee the right of all Americans to access abortion care regardless of where they live.” CBS Denver
Let’s face it: The issue here isn’t just this insane bill in Texas that just passed. It is the floodgates of absurd legislative acts that potentially await us, in which states try to control a women’s right to her own body. In-fact, anti-choice legislation is already in the works across the country. That is why it is so vital to pass legislation that prohibits bills which restrict abortion. So who is working to pass this legislation?
Texans protest the 6 week abortion ban in their state.
Source: Sergio Flores/Getty Images
Members of Congress, (such as Colorado Congresswoman Diana DeGette) are fighting for our basic and vital rights. Find out where your representatives stand. Urge them to pass the WHPA. Also, let’s not just urge our reps or reprimand the bad politicians, (though let’s definitely do that too) but let’s tell the good ones we support them and appreciate them. Lets let them know we need and thank them.
And who can you donate to? One organization is NARAL Pro-Choice America. (NARAL, in case your curious, stands for National Abortion Rights Action League. Yes, odd name, but GREAT organization.) NARAL Pro-Choice America has been a trustworthy and reliable pro-choice organization for over 50 years. They work to elect candidates who are dedicated to reproductive rights.
I have frequently donated and volunteered for NARAL because they get to the heart of issues and fight fiercely for pro-choice rights. At one point, I volunteered for NARAL when they were exposing harmful practices of anti-choice, fake clinics. I went undercover for NARAL to expose what these anti-choice people were doing to women at these fake clinics. But that is a different story, one which I will perhaps tell at a later date. (If you’d like more info on the fake clinic issue which is still plaguing our country still, check out this article by the AMA Journal of Ethics, titled “Why Crisis Pregnancy Centers are Legal but Unethical.) The point is, I support NARAL Pro-Choice America and I believe in the incredible and important work they do. And I encourage you to research them as well and donate to them if you so choose. They are fighting for the Women’s Health Protection Act to get passed and are fighting for women to have access to reproductive healthcare.
Here is a link to donate to NARAL Pro-Choice America. Donate what you can. My pocket book is a bit slim these days, so I made mine a monthly contribution of 5 dollars, which adds up to 60 bucks over the year. You can do that if you’d like, or, frankly, a one time big contribution may be even better, since there is little time to waste.
No matter how you do it, make some sort of difference in whatever way you can:
-Talk to your friends and family about abortion issues.
-Tell your own story about your abortion if you feel comfortable.
-Talk to your brothers, male-friends, fathers, uncles etc.. Dudes need to know about these issues too! And they need to hear it from the women and trans men they care about.
-Approximately 1-4 women get abortions, (according to the Guttmacher Institute.) Abortions happen and they are necessary for many women, people and families.
-Donate.
-Turn out for protests. Protests across the country are taking place October 2nd, organized by the Women’s March organization.
-Speak up on social media. Follow Instagram accounts like ShoutYourAbortion AbortionisNormal and one of my faves, SisterSong, the National Women of Color Reproductive Justice Collective. (Follow them for updates on events & news at http://www.sistersong.net.)
Together, we can fight for our basic rights! Let’s do this!
Canada’s Prime Minister is an Outspoken Feminist
Justin Trudeau, Canada’s Feminist Prime Minister, is a wonderful leader to have in the world. He actively encourages other men to be outspoken proponents of women’s equality too. This is one of my favorite clips and it’s been making waves on the internet for over a year. Perhaps you’ve already seen it?
The Women’s March on Montana: The Experience. From Crowds to a Rural Montana Bar
With estimates between 2.6 and 2.9 million women and men in attendance across the nation, the march is regarded as the largest protest in U.S  history. And, as NBC News points out, not a single arrest was needed. Peaceful is productive. Additionally, there were hundreds and hundreds of rallies worldwide. (Click here to see the amazing NYTimes gallery of global marches photos.) Millions of women and men are finally on board with the importance of feminism.
The March in Montana was a profound experience. When we arrived at the Women’s March in Helena, the crowd of women and men was so massive it curved around up ahead beyond our sight. I got more of a sense of just how huge the protest was when a wave of momentous cheering came from somewhere far, far ahead and rippled through the crowed to where we stood. I couldn’t help but turning to my friends and saying “This is the positive revolution right here.” And it truly is, especially if we keep this momentum up.
The sun hadn’t made it’s way out of the clouds for weeks and here it was warming up us protesters in the below freezing temperatures. The energy was amazing. The march began to move with signs bobbing up and down and people joyously coming together to celebrate ‘love trumping hate” and to stand up fiercely for ALL women’s rights. As the march turned the corner, my friends and I took to climbing the snow covered hill, our boots sinking into feet of snow, along with other marchers, to get a glimpse of the speakers with the magnificent Helena capitol building in the background. The speakers began with first acknowledging that we were standing on native ground. Speakers talked about women’s rights including bodily rights, freedom from rape, native rights, economic justice, black lives matter, LGBTQ, water protectors, access to good education, muslim rights and uniting all women and men. I looked around at the crowd of fierce women of all ages taking a stand, and at my amazing friends who had come with me. I especially appreciated that three of my best guy friends had been so excited to come out and show support with us. They were one of the thousands of men who marched in partnership.
After the march, the town of Helena was packed and it was impossible to find a place to eat so we stopped into a bar and grill in the middle of nowhere in between Helena and Missoula. We walked into the bar filled with very nice, yet thrown-off at seeing us, cowboys and men in snow work-pants and camouflage. I took my jacket off and sported my “this is what a feminist looks like” shirt and my Rosie the Riveter earrings without thinking about how funny it was I was rocking my feminism so proudly in such a bar: A rural area in the thick of Montana where, according to most voting trends, had most likely voted for Trump and might never have taken a second thought to think about why feminism might be important. More marchers ended up coming into the place, throwing off the original rural, isolated vibe.
Driving home with my friends sleeping in the backseat as I peered out at the snowy landscape with the sun peaking through the clouds in shades of tangerine, Â I thought about how influential the moment was: Finally, women’s voices were being heard in massive protest. (One only has to look at the absence of women’s participation in history to gather the momentousness of the day.) Nearly 10,000 women and men turned out for the march in Helena, (6,000 more than projected) and nearly 500,000 women and men turned up in Washington D.C, and 2.6 million across the nation, to say: It is high time we have bodily rights, equal pay, freedom from rape and other violence, and the ability and right to participate fully and loudly in our own society. To say all people, women and men of all color, of all backgrounds, religious (and non-religious) affiliations, sexualities and gender identities, all have inalienable rights that need respect. To paraphrase one of the speakers at the rally “We need to look at our neighbors and say, ‘I see you and I honor you.'”
We are a community of humans: The experience made my heart feel full to the brim with, you guessed it, LOVE. Love is such a fundamental driving factor in humans which creates such immeasurable beauty we should not be afraid of being “cheesy” and instead say “Yes. I’ve got a lot of love for y’all fellow humans, ALL of you, and we’re all in this together. So I’m going to act with love.” Throughout the march, I thought especially of my loving mother and my grandmothers.
Angela Davis’ Words of Wisdom
In these trying times I am reminded of a quote by the amazing Angela Davis:
So let’s change the things that are unacceptable.
Standing Rock Water Protectors: Thank You
Water protectors are still standing strong in Standing Rock, despite the horrific violence they have faced from the beginning. They have been protecting the water source in North Dakota which is at risk of being contaminated by a pipeline that would run through the Missouri river. The water protectors have been peacefully protesting, praying, and taking a stand, for the sake of ALL of us and the future of our water and planet.
Tribes across the country, many that used to be enemies, have banded together and we need to make sure we continue to show our support, especially on a day like Thanksgiving, which has controversial beginnings to say the least. On Sunday night, the violence against water protectors escalated to an even worse level where law enforcement launched water canons onto the people in frigid temperatures and many were severely hurt.
We need to move away from fossil fuels. We need a carbon tax. And we need to stand with Standing Rock. The water protectors there are leading the way for a better future and we need to follow suite. This is not just about North Dakota. This is far bigger than one place.
The Water Protectors are fighting for our human rights to basic access to clean water and I hope to join them over there soon because I am truly and immensely grateful for them.Â
(You can donate to the cause following this link if you feel so inclined. http://standingrock.org/)
The Worst has Happened: Trump is Here. Let’s Take a Stand in Whatever Way We Can
Shots were fired outside my house in my Montana neighborhood late Tuesday night and that’s when I knew Trump was officially the President of the United States…Celebratory bullets into the air. My friend, in another part of town heard some guns being fired there too.
This is a sad, sad day in world history. We have come so far in human rights and environmental protection and we must continue to fight for the greater good, even in the face of a Trump take-over. I really want to be hopeful that it won’t be too bad, and there certainly IS hope, especially if we continue to unite and stand together.
As we know, Hillary Clinton won by popular vote. Donald Trump only won due to the electoral college. (Perhaps we should look at changing the system in that regard…That’s how George W. Bush got into the presidency too.) But yes, Hillary Clinton did win by popular vote and not all hope is lost YET. There is a change.org petition going around directed to the electoral college saying, “You don’t have to cast your vote for Trump!” Already, one state has said they’re doing just that: Maryland officially became the first state to approve a plan to put their votes towards the candidate who won by popular vote and not Trump.
Remember, electors in the electoral college are not actually obligated to vote how their state did and can be urged by the people to vote for Hillary. Almost a million have already signed the petition. It’s a long shot, but if we spread this petition like wildfire, maybe we truly could prevent Trump from taking the presidential seat. Let’s rise to action! But we only have until December 19th, because that is when the college officially votes. Click here to access the petition. We must rally and protest. And remember, elections for other political positions are coming up again in two years: VOTE! Do not take your right to vote lightly.
One reason I think this Trump take-over has happened is because I heard a lot of this: “Oh, he’ll never actually run for president…Oh but he’ll never get the republican nomination…Oh but there’s no way he’ll actually win.” And here we are. People largely underestimated the monster and so did not feel compelled to get out and rally for Hillary. Coming up in this presidency, (if the electoral college does indeed vote him in) we have to be aware when people say, “Oh he’ll never actually pass that bill…” or “Oh he’ll never actually deport people.” Etc.
Let’s not be naive because Trump is not to be underestimated. Also, let’s face it, sexism, whether overt or subconscious, did play a major roll this election. Just an idea: If Trump were a female, there’s no way she would have been allowed to say the things that were said and to get where things are now; do you agree?Â
Red president, red house, red senate. Certainly, it is true that not all republicans are so bad, (thankfully) but look at the news and see how this has already effected the people: You will see there has been a jump in violence against specific groups of people in the past 48 hours. And the KKK was spotted on a bridge in North Carolina just after a Trump victory was announced:
Trump has posted what he will do in his first 100 days and it does not look good. Some of it may not even seem that bad to some people, but I would caution those who see it that way to be cautious of the rhetoric: Sometimes things that are horribly bad, are made to sound not so bad in rhetoric.
We must UNITE. We must continue to take a stand against misogyny, racism, and xenophobia of all types.
Start a rally in your community!! Show the world that this is not OK. Write a letter to the editor in your newspaper. Or just speak your mind between friends. Every little bit is powerful. Speak up, protest and stay safe. Because people like the KKK are coming out of the wood-works. And people like this too, are feeling free to spout their vile words:
Here in Montana, we had a gathering of people last night. It was empowering and hopeful to see the compassionate people of my community come out and take a stand promoting acceptance and equal rights, and denouncing that which Trump stands for. Be strong fellow Americans, and fellow world-citizens, we will get through this.
Election Day is Tomorrow: Let’s Do This
Let’s do this! Here’s the journey in a little video
Julia View 