Wednesday, April 6, 2016

Semester Project: Vanessa Spadotto


For my semester project I want to discuss women’s reproductive laws. The root for my idea to shed light on this topic comes from a debate I had in high school where my health teacher split the class into two groups, the “pro-lifers” and the pro-“choicers.”  I stood on the left side, where all of the students in favor of pro-choice were, and looked around to see that there were more people standing on the pro-life side then I had expected to see. That day in health class I felt embarrassed not only by the ignorance of some people in my generation but mostly by the other women in my class who stood on the right side of the classroom bashing women who have the right to decide what to do with their own bodies. I have since remembered this day on many occasions, especially now with the presidential debates and hearing presidential candidates, such as Donald Trump, and their views on reproductive laws for women. I want to make a tumblr and a zine for this project. I want my tumblr to show more factual articles and shed light on actual debates and discussions that are happening today about abortion. And on the other hand, I want my zine to show my audience the detrimental ways of banning abortions while still providing some sort of humor.
            My research so far includes the debates I have watched along with interviews with presidential candidates and their position towards reproductive laws. I’ve looked into modern artists such as Christina Lee, and Leah Hayes so far but there are still so many artists that have galleries dedicated to pro-choice activism. My audience is geared towards all people, whether it be pro-lifers or pro-choicers of any age that can comprehend the importance of these laws. I want to shed light on the importance of these laws and show people that you don’t have to agree with the morality of abortions, but we must agree that on the morality that all women on their bodies and have the right to do what they must in safe conditions. 

5 comments:

  1. I absolutely love this idea, I think the abortion debate has been going on for a very long time and it is ridiculous. There has been a lot of talk about Planned Parenthood which you can mention in your project some how. Here are some links that maybe able to help you out:
    http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2015/04/25/cecily-strong-womens-bodies_n_7144710.html

    http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/celebrities-support-planned-parenthood-top-816610

    http://www.salon.com/2016/04/07/camille_paglia_feminists_have_abortion_wrong_trump_and_hillary_miscues_highlight_a_frozen_national_debate/

    http://www.womenshealthmag.com/life/men-fighting-for-abortion-rights

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  2. This is a very interesting topic!I agree with Rajita, that this has been an ongoing topic. You could try asking your family/friends/or people around campus what they think about abortion. Are they pro-choice or pro-life and compare those results to the ones you had experienced in health class.

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  3. This is a excellent subject that needs to be addressed. I actually did a research paper on Planned Parenthood in Newark and discovered that four clinics in Essex County were closed down due to funds being taken away. I believe that women's reproductive rights isn't talked about enough. I suggest when you speak about pro-choice activism you also highlight issues such as affordable and accessible reproductive health care, sex-ed in public schools, and tax on sanitary products such as tampons and pads.

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  4. I really like this idea because of how relative it is to the the current events in our country. It's so interesting that abortion is still considered taboo. I'm starting to notice that anything linked to women is considered taboo or not recognized. I like the idea of you doing your project on tumbler because like you said you were amazed that people in your health class were pro-life, what better way to reach our generation than on a site like tumbler. One thing I would do is maybe provide also artists that are also pro life or share those views. I think it's interesting to hear both sides on this topic.

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