re-branding abortion rights

i've tried a number of times to get this op-ed published, but since that's looking less and less likely, i'm finally going to post it on the interwebs. i still think it's timely. please share if so moved.

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In the wake of Dr. George Tiller’s murder, abortion rights are back in the public eye. Though his death saddens me, I hope reproductive rights groups will seize upon this opportunity to reinvigorate the movement. Because as an advertising professional, and perhaps even more as a 29-year-old woman, I can see nothing in more desperate need of a branding overhaul than the pro-choice cause. It’s dated. Off the radar. And out of touch with young people.

Like so many consumer products, reproductive rights groups must re-package and re-present themselves to stay relevant to that ever-elusive young target. That’s not to say they aren’t trying. Every major abortion rights group has online presence on Facebook, Myspace, and YouTube. They still have pockets of young activists, as seen recently on the campus of Notre Dame. Pro-choice groups are even getting provocative by sponsoring college events like the Vagina Monologues. And by piggybacking onto less controversial issues such as affordable birth control and comprehensive sex education, they’re aiming to broaden their support base.

But these efforts have done little to evoke the same passion in protecting reproductive rights that opposition groups have evoked in shutting them down. Anti-choicers have figured out how to connect on a deeply visceral level to galvanize young people towards restricting and eventually outlawing abortion. Through activist summer camps, political internships, and organized youth groups, a growing number of minds are being won over. In 2008, a Pew survey found that 22% of young adults support a total ban on abortion, compared with only 15% of their parents’ generation.

Unlike their parents’ generation, who remember the struggles surrounding Roe v. Wade, these so-called “millenials” have never lived in a time when abortion was illegal. So even if support for legal abortion in some or all circumstances still sits in the majority, the sentiment is latent at best.

On the other hand, anti-choicers see themselves as heroic crusaders, saving lives against the bastion of an immoral practice. George Tiller “was a mass murderer” who “reaped what he sowed,” said Randall Terry, founder of anti-choice Operation Rescue. "The thought of him leaving this life with blood on his hands for having killed so many thousands of children and not having been prepared to meet his maker is a dreadful, terrifying thought."

Yikes. How do you compete with a damning sentiment like that? You don’t.

Every movement needs a villain. The pro-lifers have theirs, and they’re well-funded and mobilized to fight it. Where’s the pro-choice villain? Something young women like me can rally against? Something to get us mad, and get us moving?

It may not be as obvious, but it’s just as potent. Our villain is hypocrisy. My generation can’t stand bullshit. In our young lives, we’ve seen an election stolen, a war started under false pretenses, and ridiculous cases of corporate greed. It’s hardened us. We like calling people’s bluffs. We take nothing at face value. And understanding how we think is the key to winning us over.

One of the most successful public service efforts of our lifetime is the anti-smoking truth® campaign. Its genius was not in getting moralistic about whether smoking was or wasn’t bad, but in bringing the tobacco industry and its underhanded lobbying, marketing, and pseudo-scientific research practices to light.

Reproductive rights groups have an even bigger opportunity to expose ugly truths about their supposedly morally-driven opposition. Pro-life organizations habitually spread unfounded or over-exaggerated health myths, claiming abortions contribute to breast cancer, psychological damage, and infertility. They set up “crisis pregnancy centers,” which use misleading and intimidating tactics, including agenda-driven movies, slideshows, and lectures, under the guise of legitimate health information. Worse yet, these pregnancy centers often receive state and federal funding.

NARAL Pro-Choice America reports that some of these crisis pregnancy centers do not have any medically trained or medically supervised personnel at all. And even in cases where centers are overseen by medical professionals, there are no regulations to ensure women receive complete and medically accurate information. According to the Pearson Foundation’s How to Start and Operate Your Own Pro-Life Outreach Crisis Pregnancy Center manual, staffers should “[b]e put off by nothing… Let nothing stop you. The stakes are life or death.” Said its author, Robert Pearson, in 1994, “[o]bviously, we’re fighting Satan… A killer, who in this case is the girl who wants to kill her baby, has no right to information that will help kill her baby.”

More women need to know about the underhanded tactics that threaten their reproductive health. Do they need to know the full picture, the ethically complex, medically accurate, and unbiased health facts as well? Of course. But they’ll never seek that information without a much more pointed motivation.

Here’s one way to point them. Go into any Planned Parenthood. Sit by a phone, regardless if it’s the most senior doctor’s or the lowliest intern’s. As a former volunteer, I can almost guarantee that right above that phone is a protocol for when a bomb threat is called in. Run a picture of that protocol with the headline, “Still think women’s rights aren’t under attack?” Even before the Tiller murder, the Guttmacher Institute reported that 82% of large abortion providers experience some kind of harrassment, vandalism, or threats, sometimes at staff members’ homes.

This kind of simple but poignant messaging gives young people a reason to give a damn, not only to save reproductive rights, but to shine a light on the hypocrisy of a movement whose extremists will kill in the name of “saving life.” Because if there’s anything my generation hates, it’s bullshit. And in the anti-choice camp, there’s plenty of it.

spring cleaning

why is it that the second you're down, everyone around you seems to be up? i hate that i can't be happy for all my friends coupling up, because once again i've been dumped.

that wouldn't be the worst thing, except for what happened next. being dumped is merely stage 1. of course, there's pain involved with this preliminary step. for me, the pain comes when i hear something akin to, "you're great. i really, really like you." yeah. you like me so much you're dumping me. thanks. 

but i digress. stage 2 is what i like to call "the good luck chuck" step. because despite hearing "i just don't want a relationship right now" the next person who my dumper dates inevitably is someone he intends on being far more serious with. and that's what else happened this week. someone who dumped me last year is now sooooooooo fucking happy with someone else. so it's not so much "i just don't want a relationship," it's really, "i don't want a relationship with you."

blech. i hate being pissed off about this. i'm sure it only adds to my attractiveness factor. but it's 430 am, and i can't sleep, and i'm bitter and cynical, and i feel like i've been rejected all over again. this pisses me off. 

i don't know what it is about me that makes me so hard to be around, at least for the long haul (meaning one month+). everyone tries to make me feel better by saying "it isn't you," but when "you" is the only common denominator, eventually you have to figure... it's fucking you. i'm like a force field for love... it comes close and then is bounced off at lightning speed. it's hard not to feel sorry for myself. 

i want to take this entry and tie it up in a neat bow, come to some grand conclusion, or at least make a fucking point. but i don't know where this goes. i'm stuck on repeat. there is no point. the worst part is, someone else will eventually come along. and i'm going to convince myself this time it's gonna be different. and then, at 430 in the fucking morning, i'll probably lie awake stewing because it happened yet again...

the answer for hot, flat, and crowded? green.

yesterday i was at barnes & noble, enthusiastically picking up a copy of thomas friedman's new book, hot, flat, and crowded. i talked to the cashier about it briefly after he said a lot of people had come in to buy the book. that made me really happy. friedman is an extremely prescient man, and his columns in the new york times are always enlightening and forward-thinking. his 2005 book the world is flat is an amazing look at the current state of globalization, how we got there, and where it's going.

as he finished my transaction, the cashier began to put my book into a bag. 

"oh, i don't need a bag," i told him.

"following in line with the theme of the book!" he said, and bid me goodbye.

it reminded me of something i wrote in one of my ucla classes, and prompted me to post it here. while it is by no means an earth-shattering solution, it's a way to approach daily life and try to contribute less to the problems that will shape the future.

How to Decrease Waste Without Losing Much at All

I like to think of myself as conscientious. I care about my impact on the environment, but I’m by no means Captain Planet. I feel guilty drinking bottled water, but will reach for one if I’m thirsty. I bought a carbon offset for my car, but sometimes drive a quarter-mile to McDonald’s.

Even so, whenever I see the 65-gallon trash can my roommates and I fill to the brim every week (and the equally large recycle bin we only fill every couple), I marvel at how much we consume, and especially how much we throw away.

I challenged myself to do better. Finding miniscule changes that started to add up, I made reducing waste a game. And if we all started playing, it’s our landfills that would win.

The rules are simple. Give yourself points anytime you stop something from going in the garbage—either by diverting it, or never using it at all. Ready to play?

AT HOME

• Use dryer balls. These nubby do-dads tumble around in your dryer, eliminating static cling and the need for dryer sheets. 2 pts per load
• Clean green. Use reusable sponges and cloths rather than disposable wipes or paper towels. Instead of buying a new spray bottle every time, look for concentrates and refills. Cleaning solutions like Oxiclean and Simple Green are biodegradable, too. 1 pt per wipe, 2 per bottle
• Give your postal worker a break. Opt out of junk mail, pay bills online, and request e-statements whenever possible. Reuse envelopes for shopping and to-do lists. 1 pt per bill

AT WORK

• Coffee like you care. If you can’t go a workday without coffee, you toss about 250 paper cups a year. Use a mug instead. And for a little extra brown-nosing, use one with your company’s logo on it. Purchase a mesh coffee filter to avoid using paper ones. Going out? Starbucks and Barnes & Noble give discounts to patrons who bring their own mug. 1 pt per filter or cup
• Print sparingly. Send directions to your phone. Use PowerPoint instead of handouts. Print double-sided when you can. Save copies for notepaper when you can’t. 1 pt per page

ON THE TOWN

• Eliminate receipts. Most ATMs and gas pumps have a no-receipt option. The Apple Store even offers to email your receipt. ½ pt per receipt
• Canvas the neighborhood. Most grocery stores and major chains offer incentives for using canvas bags. Even better, you’ll save huge amounts of closet clutter. Throw loose items like apples or tomatos in the tote, and save another bag in the produce section. And tell the clerk, “I don’t need a bag,” whenever you don’t. 2 pts per bag
• Pretend trash cans say, “No, thanks,” and not “Thank you.” Fast food creates a lot of waste with its wrappers, cups, and boxes. So when eating out, cut where you can. Do you need a lid on your cup? Can you use a tray rather than taking it to go? Do you really need 50 napkins? ½ pt per item

Make these tiny changes into habits, and you’ll never look at trash the same way again.

sex ed for kindergarteners

John McCain and Sarah Palin are pro-choice—at least when it comes to schools. They say that “parents should be able to decide the learning environment that is best for their child.”

But a recently released McCain ad lambasts Barack Obama’s achievements in comprehensive sex education, scoffing at the idea of “learning about sex before learning to read” and concluding that Obama is “wrong on education… wrong for your family.”

Excuse me, but shouldn’t parents be able to decide?

After all, every parent is a sexual being. But more than likely, their sexual activity didn’t begin with a marriage vow. Government data show that not only do 9 out of 10 people engage in premarital sex, but that the rate of premarital sex has been consistent for over 50 years. Even Sarah Palin can’t claim she saved herself for marriage; she gave birth to her eldest son only 8 months after eloping.

Parents understand that just as babies discover their fingers and toes, they also discover their genitals. They know that on every playground, toddlers are aware of the biological differences between boys and girls.

Age-appropriate sex ed helps shape healthy attitudes about gender roles, teach communication, and heighten capacity to build relationships. And as children progress into adolescence, they need complete, medically accurate information on the values of abstinence, the use of contraception, and the risks of pregnancy and sexually transmitted infections (STI).

But even though only 10% of the nation’s school districts teach comprehensive sex ed, McCain wants to rob parents of that choice completely. Since the 1980s, McCain and his cronies have forced abstinence-only-until-marriage (AOUM) programs on parents, students, and public schools, spending $1.5 billion in the process. Palin has echoed these sentiments, writing “The explicit sex-ed programs will not find my support.”

Of course, we all know how well that turned out. Bristol Palin’s pregnancy is national news, and her boyfriend Levi Johnston had to shut down his Myspace page because it stated “I don’t want kids.” No matter how the McCain camp spins it, if Alaska’s school system had encouraged safer sex practices, Bristol and Levi might not be expecting one.

But if Bristol Palin isn’t evidence enough that abstinence-only doesn’t work, try a 2007 Health and Human Services study that says just that. Of the more than 700 federally funded AOUM programs, the evaluation looked at only four. These four programs were handpicked to show positive results—and still failed.

If McCain hopes to overturn Roe v. Wade, and remove a patient’s choice to terminate an unwanted pregnancy, then he needs to do more to ensure young people never have to face that choice. He needs to advocate real efforts to curb teen pregnancy and reduce the number of teens who have an STI (currently 1 in 4).

Instead, when a reporter asked McCain whether he thought contraceptives help stop the spread of HIV, he replied, after a long pause, “You’ve stumped me.”

And if McCain is stumped, then the choice for parents who want real sex education for their kids should be crystal clear.

kk recommends: fresh n easy edition.

i've been to fresh n easy twice now, and i am a smitten kitten. at first the packaging of a lot of the produce might seem a bit sterile, but i appreciate the simplicity behind it. i also like that there are many items suited for a single shopper, and the prices are completely reasonable. but specifically, what i like about fresh n easy:

1. THE PARKING LOT

outside the store, there are reserved spaces for hybrids, expectant mothers, and adults with children. i don't qualify to park in any of these, but i certainly applaud the emphasis.

2. THE SHOPPING CART

has a cupholder! brilliant!! i actually walked in from lunch, and i still had my cup of coke. imagine my delight in having a place to put it. 

3. CHICKEN MAKHANI FROZEN DINNER

anyone who went to vcu with me remembers the indian cart, a roach coach that would serve generous portions of indian food for $5. this frozen dinner is the closest we'll ever come to that without returning to richmond. a simple chicken makahni, rice, potatoes, and peas. granted, it's a tv dinner but none of us are over completely over frozen foods quite yet, are we? this is the best tv dinner you'll ever have. you won't be hungry (in fact, i couldn't finish mine), and it holds up well in the microwave. it's definitely not healthy (50% sodium/per serving... it's 2 servings) but it is gooooood.

4. FROZEN PORTOBELLO MUSHROOM RAVIOLI

surprisingly flavorful. same deal with the makhani, not good for you but goood.

5. MANGO NECTAR

mmmmm, mango nectar. 

6. HANSEN'S SUGAR CANE GINGER ALE

granted, not a f&e brand, but they carry it. rather than using high fructose corn syrup, hansen's uses pure cane sugar. you can taste the difference. at first it seems a little too sweet (sort of like sugar in the raw) but then you get used to it and realize it's amazing.

7. FROZEN MARGHERITA PIZZA

ok, so i got pretty excited about the frozen food section. sue me. i would put these frozen pizzas just a notch above trader joe's pizzas. the crust is better. 

8. SELF-CHECKOUT

normally i hate self-checkout. i mean, it's never proven any faster to me, the machines practically yell at you, and it's generally a hassle. but at f&e, they've got it down. plus, it's your only option. i like that you have an "i don't want to bag this" option, because, in trying to be environmentally conscious, i'm not going to put a gallon of oj in a bag when i can carry it by the handle. normal grocery store self check-outs don't allow this (and the machine yells at you!). also, because most of the produce is packaged, it's easy to scan... no looking up codes. annnd, while you're scanning your groceries, a manager comes by and gives you a $5 coupon for your next visit. (not sure if this is a grand opening thing, but it's happened both times i've gone). one more bonus: no rewards cards.

9. F&E CANNED CHILI

i tried both the chicken and the beef, and both are awesome. i had my bowl resting on the counter while i tore a paper towel and my roommate walked by. she goes, "that looks bomb." it was. 

10. SLICED MULTIGRAIN SPROUT BREAD

did i seriously just say that? yes. wheat bread that's good.

all in all, i would say fresh n easy is a safe bet. if you haven't hopped on the shopping bandwagon, go now. NOW.

album review: little jackie, the stoop

normally i send album reviews to soundsxp.com, but they don't review hip hop or r&b. so, friends, here it is, my latest obsession, little jackie.

LITTLE JACKIE, THE STOOP

S-Curve Records

Take hip-hop themes of poverty, racism, and sexuality. Sprinkle on pop rhythms. Add old-school R&B backbeats and silvery vocals. Blend til smooth. 

This is the winning recipe behind Little Jackie, the refreshing combo of singer Imani Coppola and programmer Adam Pallin. Proving that you attract more flies with honey than vinegar, Little Jackie’s debut album The Stoop masks sharp-tongued lyrics with sweet, easygoing melodies.

The title track invites the listener to Little Jackie’s corner of Brooklyn, which “ain’t no Beverly Hills.” But this isn’t some angry polemic of life in the ghetto; instead, we’re treated to a celebration of a brownstone paradise, where piano and trumpet create a danceable groove, and Coppola’s vampish voice assures us “it ain’t all hard up in the hood… sittin’ on the front stoop, it’s all good.” 

That “all good” mentality prevails throughout the eleven tracks on the album, led by Coppola’s provocatively femme attitude on the mic. Songs like “The World Should Revolve Around Me” and “Guys Like When Girls Kiss” are cheeky, seductive, and instantly endearing.

With its genre-bending and -blending, Little Jackie offers something for everyone. Coppola sings that “there’s only one of me in the galaxy,” and The Stoop is certainly a strong argument in her favor.

freedom isn't free...

and therefore, we should tax the shit out of it.