What I'm Reading (and thinking)

I'll let you in on a little secret: I'm a tab-opener, who desires to be a tab-closer. Truth be told, on my cell phone, I have 100 (even more truthfully, more like 150) tabs open between Safari and Chrome. I know, I know, this is out of control. Part of my issue is I want to remember all the things I desire to read, but then don't take the time to do so. Here, I share with you what I am reading right now, and, thusly, may close the tabs and feel both fulfilled and accomplished. Join me in reading, and thinking :)Regarding the links below...I was so, so moved by the piece by Sara Zia Ibrahimi on the "burden" of children, or at least her experience as a mother entering spaces of those without children and being made to feel like inclusion of those future "revolutionaries" was an insult rather than an invite. As someone who does not desire children, I adore those who are considerate in their work to raise strong people and am thrilled to bring them into radical spaces and introduce them to ideas of family and community and progress and dialogue, at whatever age. To think about having children in a space where, perhaps, we read aloud the piece by Alice Walker and think about it as a group, consider the collective work of reproductive justice and all of our contributions to it, discuss intentionality and cross-sectionality in career paths like in the piece by Robin Marty, and consider international birth issues like access to water in the video curated by Upworthy... what an opportunity to hear the voices of the young, to allow community to mean not just the now but the future, to have our thoughts challenged by those with minds wide open, and to grow within and throughout... Also, kudos to WHO on their latest publication, particularly for reinforcing the need for a consistent classification system as we move forward with interpretation of cesarean section data on population levels. Time: C-Sections Should Only Be Done When Medically Necessary, group says. "...For the sake of women and infants health, the WHO said physicians should focus on providing the surgery at a case by case basis. “Every effort should be made to provide caesarean sections to women in need, rather than striving to achieve a specific rate,” the report said..." To reach the World Health Organization Executive Summary, read here. Mutha Magazine: Whose burden?  Sara Zia Ibrahimi"...When did children stop being seen as a part of all of our existence and survival? Even if you are a dedicated self-identified radical, don’t you need more children to continue to carry out the revolution? And, we were all children once. Why isn’t it in everyone’s interest to want to provide more intergenerational spaces where children get to witness more of the world and connect with more people?As someone who never wanted kids originally, I understand the resistance to “taking on the burden” of other peoples’ children. Culturally, most communities don’t respect peoples’ choices to not have children. People who choose to be child-free often feel marginalized. It’s further compounded with the weight of heteronormativity, patriarchy, and all the feelings of being devalued that come with them......If I work toward creating a world where you aren’t burdened with the expectations of having children, can you work toward one that allows me, and my child, to be included?..." Upworthy: Most pregnant women know what they need to bring to the hospital. Doris' list had something extra. "Doris, who lives Morogoro, Tanzania, had to bring her own water to the health center where she was giving birth in 2014. The water she brought was used to clean the nurse's hands, clean the delivery area, and wash the babies (she had twins!). Unfortunately, the water Doris brought ran out before she was able to wash herself or her clothes, so she had to wait 24 hours before cleaning herself..." See the video at the original website above. The Nation: What Can the White Man Say to the Black Woman? Alice Walker"...Abortion, for many women, is more than an experience of suffering beyond anything most men will ever know; it is an act of mercy, and an act of self-defense.To make abortion illegal again is to sentence millions of women and children to miserable lives and even more miserable deaths.Given his history, in relation to us, I think the white man should be ashamed to attempt to speak for the unborn children of the black woman. To force us to have children for him to ridicule, drug and turn into killers and homeless wanderers is a testament to his hypocrisy..." Cosmopolitan: 5 Women Explain Why They Became Abortion Providers. Robin Marty"...I have never had a point where I didn't think this was the right thing to do. I didn't know how being a family physician was going to be — I just simply liked helping women, and I thought it was a simple, safe procedure that could change their lives. I had a mentor here in Phoenix that took me under his wing and taught me after-hours. Once I started doing it more and more, and I started offering it in my private practice, the need became so great. Other doctors have told me that as well. Of course, doctors don't usually offer it in their family practices anymore, but 10 or 20 years ago, it was more common, back when I started.Obviously, 95 percent of gynecologists in 1973 were male and they would see the ravages of illegal abortion and knew the damage done to women and see the effects it had on women, and it was compelling to them. But now I think I certainly see it from a woman's perspective. Having gone through pregnancies, childbirth, miscarriages, I can see how important it is to control your fertility. It becomes personal. I can feel for my patients. I can relate to their concerns..."