Sunday, November 21, 2010

Midwifery is political

Becoming a midwife was not for me a process with any political intent. Giving birth naturally and becoming a mother were transformational. I wanted to facilitate that process for others and to be transformed again in the process. And so it is. But it turns out that midwifery is political. It can't help it.
Venezuela has passed a law against "Obstetric Violence" which it defines as:
"....the appropriation of the body and reproductive processes of women by health personnel, which is expressed as dehumanized treatment, an abuse of medication, and to convert the natural processes into pathological ones, bringing with it loss of autonomy and the ability to decide freely about their bodies and sexuality, negatively impacting the quality of life of women..."
I have no idea if law suits have been brought by women as a result of this law. I hear there "are no midwives in Venezuela" (excuse me, there are midwives everywhere).
Could we ever dream of passing such a law? Are we so disempowered that such a law concerning the basic rights of women would be laughed out of Congress before it was written? I challenge American women to write such a law. Who is up for it?