Women's Right to Privacy

Birth Control

The Comstock Act (1873) was passed in the US which made the advertisement, information and distribution of birth control illegal. It also allowed the postal service to confiscate birth control sold through the post.

In 1916, a woman named Margaret Sanger opened the first birth control clinic in the US. The following year she was found guilty of maintaining a public nuisance and was sentenced to prison for 30 days. When she was released, she re-opened her clinic and continued to provide the service through more arrests and prosecutions. Because of Margaret Sanger, the federal ban on birth control was lifted, this was due to a case involving her in 1938. This ended the Comstock era. Sanger was a very important influence in regards to the progression of birth control. While she was in her 80s in 1950, she underwrote the research necessary to create the first human birth control pill. She raised $150,000 for the project. Her work led to the first oral contraceptive, Enovid, being approved by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) as contraception in 1960.

In 1965 the Supreme Court (in Griswold v. Connecticut) allowed married couples the right to use birth control, it ruled that this right was protected in the Constitution as a right to privacy. Despite this progression, unmarried women in 26 states were still denied the right to birth control. Finally in 1972, the Supreme Court, as a result of Baird v. Eisenstadt) legalised birth control for all citizens of the country, regardless of their marital status. In 2013, after many legal battles, a brand of emergency contraceptive pill (Plan B One-Step) became available without a prescription on pharmacy shelves, marking a huge step forward for women to have the right to do whatever they wish to their own bodies.

Roe v. Wade 1973 – The right to abortion

In 1971, Norma McCorvey (known as Jane Roe) was a resident of Texas who sought an abortion. However, Henry Wade (the district attorney of Dallas County) enforced a law that prevented women from having an abortion unless it was to save their life. 

McCorvey filed the case suing Wade, asking the Constitutional question of “Does the Constitution embrace the right of a woman to obtain an abortion, nullifying the Texas prohibition?” The ruling allows for legal abortions throughout the pregnancy but simultaneously allows for individual states to decide on the regulation of abortion during the second and third trimesters.

The Supreme Court decided that a woman’s right to abortion was within the bounds of the right to privacy (recognised in Griswold v. Connecticut) which was protected by the Fourteenth Amendment. By making this decision, the Court allowed women to have the right to an abortion throughout the entire pregnancy and introduced levels of state interest for the regulation of the abortion in the second and third trimesters. This ruling affected the laws of 46 states.

Norma McCorvey gave her baby up for adoption. By bringing this issue to the Supreme Court, McCorvey raised the issue at a constitutional level, and by winning, allowed many women to have safe and legal abortions without risking their lives or the careers of the doctors who performed them. 

Women's History: A Fight for Equality

Since the colonial period, women have played a significant role that had been unappreciated until a later period of time. Throughout America, the patriarchal system led to women being viewed as insignificant within society and therefore they were dependent on their husbands. However, throughout the 1800s and to the present day, women began fighting for their rights through various forms, such as protests, campaigns and literature. 

Margaret Fuller had a great influence on pushing women’s rights forward after she published ‘The Great Lawsuit: Man versus Men, Woman versus Women.’ in 1843, discussing her vision of women’s rights and how to achieve this. Fuller challenged the patriarchal system while working for the New York Tribune, publishing articles on subjects and ideas considered unnatural and inappropriate for a women to write and discuss.  Although Fuller was an independent journalist and unaccepted by many within society, she created a pathway for women to be accepted within society. For many women prior to Fuller's influence in journalism, they had to undertake a pseudonym in order to ensure their work was published. This was mainly done not only by white middle class women but also African-Americans and those who were bi-racial (such as the Eaton Sisters).   

World War Two

Challenging women’s rights to vote, equality and freedom continued throughout the 19th and 20th Century, and the significant role that women played in World War Two led to a significant change in stereotypical gender roles. Women, who were once viewed as weak and emotional, were now fighting to ‘remove the social stigma to the idea of women working’ male-dominated roles such as agriculture, business and journalism. Propaganda campaigns through radio, posters and billboards encouraged women to not only help with war effort but to ensure that society deemed women equal to a man while doing the same job as them during and after the war. Many women earned $31.21 a week from their jobs within factories whereas men would earn $54.65 in comparison. 

Efforts in the late 1940s to maintain and confine women to pre-war lifestyle proved fruitless, women had found the re-birth of women’s independence from men and engaged in enforcing gender equality. Academic studies and published literature by women, argued and analysed the social and political impact of post-war America had on women as seen in Susan Hartmann’s The Home Front and Beyond: American Women in the 1940s and Twayne’s American Women in the Twentieth Century series. It is clear that women within America were fighting a war within their own country to extend their opportunities instead of maintaining a lifestyle surround the home and her children. 

This led to events such as the Second Wave Feminism within the 1960s to the 1980s, women participating and associating themselves  in Civil Rights Movements, LGBTQ+ protests to ensure equality was not only for women but for all Americans in society. However, we can see that in America today that although women are now accepted in all fields of work they still face inequality pay and therefore continue to campaign for equal pay.

Sources: 

McEuen, Melissa A. "Women, Gender, and World War II." Oxford Research Encyclopedia of American History. 27 Mar. 2017. http://americanhistory.oxfordre.com/view/10.1093/acrefore/9780199329175.001.0001/acrefore-9780199329175-e-55.

"National Women's History Museum: Women With A Deadline". 2017. Nwhm.Org. https://www.nwhm.org/online-exhibits/womenwithdeadlines/wwd13.htm.

Roe V Wade and the 19th Amendment

Roe V Wade

The Supreme Court case of Roe V Wade was one of the most contentious in American history. The case took place in the year 1973 and tackled the issue of abortion. The case was so controversial and divisive that even today there are fears that it will be overturned by Trumps government who are taking a clear anti-abortion pro-life stance. Trump himself has said “That'll happen automatically, in my opinion, because I am putting pro-life justices on the court. I will say this: It will go back to the states, and the states will then make a determination.” when quizzed on whether or not he would overturn the landmark case.

The case came about when plaintiff Norma McCorvey, known as Jane Roe in the case, was denied an abortion in Texas. She took her case through the court system and eventually it went up to the Supreme Court as it was a constitutional issue. The Supreme Court voted hugely in favour of McCorveys case with a 7-2 vote. The case led to an extension of the 14^th Amendment to include abortion.

Whilst the case won, there have been attempts to overturn it. These include the the 1992 Supreme Court decision, Planned Parenthood of Southeastern Pa. v. Casey. In this case the constitutional right to abortion was challenged, with the aim to make a woman’s choice to have an abortion more thoughtful and informed.

According to a poll by Gallup, in 2014 21% of Americans surveyed believed that abortion should be illegal in all circumstances. Whilst this figure is in the minority by far it is still troubling to those who advocate women’s right to abortion in the United States.

Because of these challenges to abortion there is fear that should abortion be left to the states many would bring out harsh regulations on it. A trend can be noticed in states likely to do so that is regulations on banning abortion post 20 weeks. 19 states have done this and campaigners argue that this is violating Roe v Wade.

This case is extremely important to Women in the United States and has improved their status as American citizens.

19^th Amendment

The 19^th Amendment was passed on the 18^th of August 1920 and in my opinion is one of the most fundamental parts of improving the status of Women in America. The Amendment gave the vote to women in every state in America, regardless of their marriage status.

The battle for suffrage in the United States was hard fought by women and making an amendment to the Constitution is no easy task. There needs to be majority vote of two thirds in both houses of congress and then three quarters of all states need to agree on the decision. The amendment very nearly didn’t go through and one state congressman from Tennessee, Harry Burn, who had previously opposed women’s right to vote changed his mind and voted in Nashville’s house of representatives in favour of the vote. This single vote was enough to mean that Tennessee backed the 19th Amendment and this meant that enough states were in favour of the change.

Although there were efforts before the Amendment at women’s suffrage, such as unmarried women in New Jersey being temporarily granted the vote in 1797, there was not universal consensus allowing for the constitutional right to women’s suffrage.

The Amendment was first attempted to be put through in 1878 but defeated. This is almost ten years after 1869 when women in Wyoming over 21 were granted the vote by their state congress. The right to vote in Wyoming became so important that they are known colloquially as the equality state. This totally opposes the likes of Mississippi who did not ratify the 19^th Amendment until the 22^nd of March 1984.

The 19^th Amendment is in my opinion the most important Amendment for women’s rights as the right to a fair democratic system is crucial in an equal society and is one of the most empowering things a person can have.

Sources:

http://www.gallup.com/poll/170249/split-abortion-pro-choice-pro-life.aspx

The legacy of Black Power Visual Culture in 1990s Hip Hop

The article which I chose from US Studies Online was “The legacy of Black Power Visual Culture in 1990s Hip Hop”. I chose this article because, following last week’s lecture and blog task I became more interested in the representation of the Black Power movement through different forms of music and film.

The article I chose focuses specifically on Hip Hop in the 1990’s which was politically charged and reflected on the treatment of African Americans at the time. Groups such as N.W.A were particularly controversial in this aspect, with Anti-Police songs and because of their lyrics, a heavy police presence at their concerts in order to stop public disorder.

The article goes into detail about the use of imagery by Hip Hop artists in the 1990’s, showing images from album covers and posters, depicting obvious black panther symbolism and images alluding to the separatist movement. One such image is the album cover of Boogie Down Productions’ (BDP) second album By All Means Necessary. The image portrays KRS-One standing with a gun in one hand peering out of a window, mirroring the famous picture of Malcom X from 1964. The album’s title itself is also a play on the line from the famous Malcom X speech where he calls for an end to the oppression of the black people by any means necessary. This remake of the old political poster shows a permeation of the old Black Power movement through the generations to the Hip Hop artists of the 1990’s. It also highlights the importance of the movement as it is being distributed nationally through the music of the popular Hip Hop artists.

I feel like this was the most interesting article I could find personally as, having just had a lecture on Black America and finding it very interesting I felt as though I wanted to pursue this further. The article also links the political side of the Black Power struggle with the more cultural side and I felt as though this was particularly interesting.

Bibliography:

http://www.baas.ac.uk/usso/the-legacy-of-black-power-visual-culture-in-1990s-hip-hop/

Muslim Archetypes in America

http://www.baas.ac.uk/usso/racializing-muslims-constructing-a-muslim-archetype/

Muslim Archetypes

This article by Bradley Zopf sets up to decode what the stereotypical Muslim is in the United States, how this came to be, and how it has changed since the 9/11 World Trade Centre attacks.

Zopf does this very well by attacking the issue from angles of politics, philosophy, sociology and psychology. The article is also very well researched and features strong arguments through Pew research statistics. The article features a slant that is clearly very pro-Islam in America and using strong statistics from a trusted source was refreshing to see; as someone who studies politics there seems to be a trend with pro-Islam articles often taking a more moral slant rather than one that is more factually based. Despite the ideology that is clear in this article Zopf takes a delicate yet concise argument making the case of decoding American Muslim archetypes and stereotypical connotations of radical Islamic terrorism that might coincide with these archetypes. He tries to break down the stereotype of what a typical Muslim might look like and whether they pose as a ‘threat’ or instill fear into Americans.

To give some criticism, I feel the article would be of improvement if the author were to extend the points made to the greater issue that runs through this article, which is assimilation of Muslims in the US and whether the cultures are compatible. Despite him breaking down stereotypes of identity and how we view Muslims, to not give any basis as to whether this fitted with American culture made the article feel lackluster at times, given the domain in which it was posted. Additionally, I see flaw with his description for what Islamophobia is, as it feels somewhat contradictory to suggest Islamophobia is always a prejudice and never a postjudice. It feel here as if he is saying that other cultures that have any conceptions about Islam have not done research, read the Qur’an or have any prior knowledge to their dissatisfaction. This is a complete assumption that stereotypes those who have opposing views on Islam.

Zopf’s concluding paragraph reads, “Despite a long history of Orientalist and Islamophobic prejudice towards Muslims, 9/11 was indeed a turning point in the racialization of Muslims (Naber 2008). Once racialized, Islam inscribes onto “brown” Arab, Middle Eastern, and South Asian bodies an essentialized and homogenized visible archetype of “Muslim” that simultaneously delegitimizes and racializes Islam. This racial construction of Muslims and “Muslim-looking people” (Elver 2012) makes them more vulnerable to state-based, media-based, and interpersonal violence (Chon and Artz 2005; Cainkar 2009). As the attack on Balbir Singh Sodhi, a 49 year old Sikh from India who was shot four days after 9/11, shows, being perceived as Muslim is often enough to make one a target, regardless of one’s actual religious affiliation. After September 11th, 2001, the United States “intensified its targeting of persons perceived to be” Muslim through programs such as NSEERS (Naber 2005:480). As a result, images of Muslims, especially in the media, have almost exclusively focused on terrorism related to Islamic extremism (see Shaheen 2008). Together “anti-Arab racism” (Salaita 2006) and “anti-Muslim prejudice” (Malik 2009) have increased in the United States merging prevailing forms of racism with Orientalism and Islamophobia that have resulted in the racialization of Muslims (Meer and Modood 2009; Garner and Selod 2015) and the social construction of a visible archetype of “Muslim” considered inimical to “American” culture and religion.”

Zopf’s conclusion is good here as he collectively brings his arguments together in a format that is concise and clear. This article is particularly important to American Studies as it is a strong leftist argument for a growing topic of controversy and debate in the US and the rise in population of people of Islamic faith, which he notes is set to become America’s second largest religion by 2050. It interesting to lend focus on the mindset and misconceptions of Islamic identity within the US population and to make an argument as to why these may be correct or incorrect.  This is likely to be a growing political ‘hot potato’ in future debates of American culture.

‘Is It Because I’m Black?’: The Music Industry, Image, and Politics in the Careers of Syl and Syleena Johnson

Within this article by Glen Whitcroft, he explores the song lyrics originally sung by Syl Johnson in 1969:

'Looking back over my false dreams that I once knew,
Wondering why my dreams never came true,
Somebody tell me, what can I do?
Something is holding me back,
Is it because I'm Black?'

And how his daughter Syleena Johnson sang the song four decades later. Whitcroft identifies the undertone references such as racism, struggles of becoming successful within society and the prejudice surrounding the ideas that being Black potentially hinders someone within society due to these undertones.

Whitcroft gives a background on both singers, how successful they were with other audiences such as those in poverty within the states of the South and not just the mainstream audience of Black African-Americans.

The similarities of Syl and Syleena providing music with deep metaphorical meanings and provocative meanings are crucial to understanding the impact they had within society. Syl's music was stereotypically surrounding problems within the 60s and 70s such as racism, poor living standards and the ideals of the American Dream associated with individuals within society.
However, Syleena's music undertones surround racism, domestic violence and materialism and their impacts on people within society.

By Whitcroft providing evidence that both father and daughter were impacted by society's expectations upon them (music industries pursuing them to be silent due to provocative language within their music and Syleena being portrayed as unsuitable due to her body and size not being the 'stereotypical idea of beauty". Syleena states in an interview in June, 2016, "I finally looked how they wanted me to look... and they didn't even capitalise on that" further suggests that even when conforming to society expectations of her, she is still not idolised after conforming to the 'stereotypical small sized body beauty'. When recognising that her talent of singing and music writing outweighed those, she was still criticised for being who she was, an all-natural female not fazed by her own body shape and size with a powerful voice that could influence the people who listened to her music.

This article is important as it continues to show that although society changes throughout the decades, music still remains a powerful influence on society when addressing issues such as the racism encounter by African-Americans and asking people 'Is it because I'm black?'. It gives us insight to the platform that African-Americans use to their advantage to speak out about these issues within our society.

U.S. Online - The Lecturing Tours of Black Abolitionists

"A Scene of Tumult and Uproar": Mapping the Gruelling Lecturing Tours of Black Abolitionists

This article gathers together the lecturing information of Frederick Douglass, a “lecturing genius” on antislavery who was previously enslaved. The writer of the article, Hannah Rose-Murray, used an interactive map on a website called ZeeMaps to plot the information she had gathered from resources such as local newspapers. By doing this she has created a platform on which we can look at a glance and see patterns of how Douglass travelled the country. It is a visual embodiment of the lengths he put in to ensure the abolition movement was successful.

This is relevant knowledge as we can determine how Douglass used the growing industrialism in Britain to make his travelling easier. It demonstrates that industrialism was key to the growing abolition movement and network, ensuring the word of antislavery spread as efficiently as possible at the time.

Murray notes that, on the map, “each [pin] has a variety of detail ranging from who spoke, where, the time, ticket price and whether the meeting in question was on behalf of a specific society.” This gives us an indication as to how extensive the abolition network was, with many people giving lectures all over the country, as shown on the map. It also demonstrates the key role that these abolitionists played in getting to word out to people in quieter areas. Murray alludes to this when she states that Williams Wells Brown gave a lecture on the Isle of Wight, in “a tiny town where few people would have ever seen a person of African descent before.” By including these people in their antislavery audience, they recruit more supporters, whether they have seen a black person before or not, but they are still invaluable to the movement through word of mouth.

By using reports in newspapers as a resource for this project, Murray gains more than just dates and times. For example, a lecture that Douglass gave created a “scene of tumult and uproar”, this is indicative of how delving into the events, and looking past the basic facts, can paint an image of what it was like to be in the room and give a sense of the atmosphere. This then leads to a more vivid understanding of the times and the attitude towards antislavery.

The article is important as it raises awareness of how integral speaking to large audiences via lectures was, and how key it was to ensuring enough people condemned slavery, to cause a change, and to promote antislavery across the country. It gives us an understanding of the effort the black abolitionists put into this movement to end the suffering.