In Memorial of Dr. Tiller: Looking Ahead
I apologize for my neglect of The Paperbag Writer. It was one crazy semester that has come to a bittersweet close. But to get kick started again, I would like to post something I wrote for a blog that I regularly contribute to, abortion gang. It will probably go live there tomorrow or the next day. I decided I had to join the gang after I read their About page:
Too many articles have proclaimed, exasperated: Where are young women in the feminist/reproductive justice movement?
Look no further.
We are unapologetic activists for reproductive justice.
We are Jewish, Christian, atheist, Muslim, Wiccan, secular. We are mixed race, African-American, Latina, White, bi-racial. We are completing a graduate degree, we didn’t finish high school. We have had abortions, children, miscarriages. We have IUDs and we use rhythm beads. We work in reproductive health and we twitter about being #prochoice. We call ourselves feminists, womanists, womyn, wimmin, grrls, women. We are cis gender, we are trans women, we’re gender queer. We have sex with anything that moves, we are abstinent, we are poly amorous.
And we stand for choice.
This is our space to talk about what drives, inspires, and challenges us, what renews our passion for reproductive justice, what makes us outraged, and our ideas to keep the movement going forward.
I found it beautifully written, uplifting and, for me, nail-on-the-head-hitting. Here is my memorial for the one year anniversary of Dr. Tiller’s death:
It is with great sadness that I sit down to write this post–sadness for two reasons. The first, obviously, being for the one year anniversary of Dr. George Tiller’s death. The second, though, is for not being aware of Dr. Tiller before that tragic time.
Maybe I had read his name in passing or heard it mentioned briefly at some point in my earlier times as an abortion rights activist. I knew, certainly, that there were few doctors in the country who provided late-term abortions, but I wish I had known about Dr. Tiller’s career and trust in women before he taken from us. As I read about him, I was touched by what he had done with his life and saddened that it was cut much too short.
It amazes me the lengths some people will go to to strip women of their human rights. It also amazes me (though, perhaps, shouldn’t) that the only way some people feel to stop what they consider murder is with murder.
But we shouldn’t we dwelling on the tragedy. We should be thankful for the time we had with Dr. Tiller and his invaluable and valiant fight for women everywhere. This May 31, I will be thinking of him and will feel renewed, once again, to keep the peace and continue the fight for reproductive justice.
Thank you, Dr. Tiller, for Trusting Women, and also thanks to Steph [creator of abortion gang] for keeping his legacy alive through I am Dr. Tiller.
The Paperbag Writer will be back soon with a post on a less somber subject–the second part of Libba Bray’s exclusive interview with us!
