‘Berg GSA Hosts Film Event in Honor of the 35th Anniversary of Roe v. Wade
On January 22, 2008 at 7:00 pm, community members, students, and activists will gather to honor the 35th Anniversary of Roe v. Wade at Miller Forum in Moyer Hall, Muhlenberg College.Friday, January 11, 2008 01:59 PM
Award-winning filmmakers Barbara Attie & Janet Goldwater will host a screening of their documentary, Motherless: A Legacy of Loss from Illegal Abortion. Other speakers will represent organizations in the Lehigh Coalition for Choice: the Muhlenberg College Gay Straight Alliance, the Allentown Women’s Center, Planned Parenthood of North East Pennsylvania, and the Clara Bell Duvall Reproductive Freedom Project – ACLU of Pennsylvania.
Motherless is the story of four individuals whose mothers died following illegal abortions in the years before Roe v Wade, including Clara Bell Duvall who died in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, in 1929. A doctor who treated women during the era is featured as well as an historian. The film has won several awards and is widely used in medical school curricula, at law schools, and in women's studies programs nationwide.
In the wake of the national, state, and local challenges to reproductive freedom – increased federal funding of abstinence-only-until-marriage education, the postponement of a bill guaranteeing access to emergency contraception for victims of sexual assault by the Pennsylvania legislature, and harassment of patients at local abortion clinics – a coalition has come together in the Lehigh Valley to raise awareness and spark activism.
“We at the ACLU’s Clara Bell Duvall Reproductive Freedom Project believe that each person can make a difference. By coming together in honor of Roe v. Wade, we hope to empower many to strengthen their commitment to the rights guaranteed by the Constitution including the right to privacy,” said Carol Petraitis, Director.
Those who did not live through the fight to legalize abortion may not fully comprehend the devastating effect abortion bans or overturning Roe v. Wade could have on women’s health and well-being. “At the Allentown Women’s Center we see women everyday facing complex feelings about their pregnancies. Roe has given women the ability to make these decisions with dignity and honor,” according to Jen Boulanger, Executive Director.
"Thirty-five years after the landmark U.S. Supreme Court ruling, Roe v. Wade remains a salient reminder that the battle to protect women's health and safety continues to this day," said Kim Custer, President and CEO of Planned Parenthood of North East Pennsylvania. "Despite the fact that the majority of Americans support access to safe, legal abortions, anti-choice extremists continue to attempt to chip away at this life-saving decision. Deciding whether and when to become a parent is one of the most personal choices we make. Women have the capacity, and the right, to make decisions about whether abortion is justified in their circumstance. Respecting this capacity is essential to affirming women's humanity."
While Motherless explores what it was like before abortion was legal, young women today confront other barriers. "As a friend, peer, and relative of those who have taken alternative paths with their pregnancies, such as abortion, I have seen the difficulty that women face as a result of the pressure society places upon this issue," said Alex Breiding, Co-President of the Muhlenberg College Gay Straight Alliance. Co-president Adrian Shanker added, "Roe v. Wade is extremely important to the queer community, and the Muhlenberg Gay Straight Alliance is proud to host this important 35th anniversary event. Reproductive choice is about the privacy for women to make their own decisions about their bodies, not much different than the fight for queer equality. This anniversary is both for the pro-choice community and the queer community. It is one fight."
The event will also launch a pro-choice film competition, and details will be announced that night. Free and open to the public, RSVPs are recommended but not required. For questions or to RSVP, please contact the Allentown Women’s Center at [email protected] or Planned Parenthood of North East Pennsylvania at 610.481.0481, ext. 22.
