Books to kickstart your abortion activism
A must-read list of scholarship needed to understand pro-choice activism
I’m sure people expected a newsletter in the wake of Roe v. Wade being overturned. I try to not waste my readers’ time with content that they can get anywhere else. And since social media is now inundated with post-mortems of the decision, I thought I’d put together something useful like a reading list for young activists to complete in order to hit the ground running when they engage in grassroots organizing.
Here is a list of books to check out at the library or order on Amazon:
When Abortion was a Crime: Women, Medicine and Law in the United States, 1867-1973, by Leslie Reagan
This is the standard book on what the era of criminal abortion looked like before Roe v. Wade. It traces the issue up from the days of the founding fathers when the quickening, or the point of fetal movement, was the time when abortion could be considered criminal activity. Reagan was a trailblazing feminist and found this information long before much of the research technology currently available to writers and historians.
Abortion in America: The Origins and Evolution of National Policy, By James Mohr
Another major work of scholarship on the topic documents much of the same information, but also other aspects, that Reagan covered in her work.
Liberty and Sexuality: The Right to Privacy and the Making of Roe v. Wade, by David Garrow
Margaret Sanger’s story is often misunderstood as people in today’s world don’t understand the history of ableism, eugenics or the intersection between racism and sexism. Feminists sometimes have a difficult time providing an adequate rebuttal to what are usually misrepresentations of her from the anti-abortion side. Garrow’s work traces the social and legal evolution from the beginning of the birth control movement through the landmark decision in 1973 that established the right to an abortion.
Eternal Hostility: The Struggle Between Theocracy and Democracy, by Frederick Clarkson
As violence ramps up in the abortion debate, it’s important to study its history which peaked in the 1980s and 1990s. Clarkson is one of the authorities pertaining to antiabortion violence and its connection to Christian nationalism. This is a good starting point to familiarize yourself with theocratic tendencies on the right.
Reproductive Justice: An Introduction, by Loretta Ross and Rickie Solinger
Ross is one of the founders of reproductive justice philosophy, which emerged in the early 1990s as an effort to be more inclusive of women of color within feminism. The concept of intersectional feminism is explained well in this book that serves as a primer in the central tenets of reproductive justice.
Killing the Black Body: Race, Reproduction and the Meaning of Liberty, by Dorothy Roberts
Another seminal work within the field of intersectional feminism. It’s important to understand how race and reproductive politics converge to make any challenges compound for women of color.
The Abortionist: A Woman Against the Law, by Rickie Solinger
This is a great case study of one criminal abortionist, Ruth Barnett, who operated a massive enterprise that performed thousands of abortions from the early 20th century until the late 1960s.
I apologize for not writing more newsletters in the past two weeks. I had traveled to Mississippi to get material for the final chapter of my book, which is nearing its completion. I extended that trip to see the entirety of the American South. I will continue to cover the reproductive rights movement as new leaders emerge and important events unfold. It’s important to me to provide you with unreported information. That takes time to gather. But whatever hits your mailbox should be of use in building local grassroots movements.