Hiya!
First off, thank you for all the attention I received in context of my introduce yourself post! Hurrah! Ironically, what comes next here now is not exactly representative of what I said I would use this platform for as I’m about to dive into the political end of the spectrum.
Picture: http://kvinnefronten.no/event/ikke-ror-abortloven-oversikt-over-demonstrasjoner-i-hele-landet/
It is the 17th of November today, which in itself has had no major significance in recent time (that I am aware of). Yet, after today, it's now a day for me to remember. I was out in the streets of my own home city, in Norway, attending a nation-wide demonstration, to protect our current abortion-law from getting reduced/altered. Just a few months ago, I was in Argentina and could feel both the thrill and the fright of the abortion-law being revisited by the State.
I must admit, prior to 2018, I had not really understood all the implications that this small paragraph carries. However, after having been there, it became clear to me that the reproductive-rights must be understood in the scope of autonomy; the right to make your own choices, - over your own body and future. At a civil society level, I believe in granting people the privilege to choose, as long as it hurts nobody, - which I suppose can be summarized as the core quarrel of abortion in the first place.
I was living in Buenos Aires, Argentina for roughly 5 months this spring, and one of the most high-profiled political debates concerned just those of making abortion legal. For my Argentine friends group, then this was not simply a right to be won, - it was a legacy to claim! They all owned green banners which is synonymous with the support of pro-abortion, and taught me the altered version of the Italian song “Bella Ciao” with the Argentine lyrics being “Today we fight for our bodies...we are here singing together for legal abortion,”.
(My own recording of the song)
https://www.facebook.com/Nocompassnorway/videos/2075213029363246/
I encountered this song several times throughout my stay, such as during the 8th of March - being the International Women’s day. Crowds of hundreds and thousands were collectively singing it together in what could be perceived as a 7km long choir. Although not without resistance of course. This one guy went around and claimed it wasn’t appropriate for the occasion. He seemed to be on a mission to hush down one group at a time, - to which my Argentinian friends responded by singing even louder and stomping their feet to the ground.
The actual pro abortion-rights campaigns that were carried out were always big, loud and crowded. People expressed a unity which I have only ever experienced in relation to sorrow, being the terrorist attack of Utøya in 2011. Due to the attention it received while I was there, it sort of merged in with my “Argentinian identify”; I felt like I could relate, and it was something I wanted to fight for.
Having left Argentina just a few days before, I was disappointed to not have been a part of the crowd that was overseeing the livestream-vote at Plaza de Mayo which unfortunately didn't end as we had hoped.
Picture: https://www.clarin.com/sociedad/plaza-mayo-congreso-pedir-aborto-legal_0_SkVFPV2iW.html
However, never in my wildest dreams had I thought that I might get to relive it in my own country. I’m sure you can imagine my dismay when I learned that the prime minister had brought up a proposal to alter the paragraphs. I was still in Vietnam when I first heard about it, and I actually thought it was a bad joke. Now, I’m just shocked. Norway has a long history of being in the frontline when it comes to advocating gender-equality. With this bizarre law proposal in effect, I must admit I feel like a plausible victim of “The Handmaid’s tale”, and I’m sure I’m not alone in that perception. Thousands of people were drawn to the streets from all over the country today, consisting of not only pissed off women, but also angry men, carrying banners saying “ I cant believe women’s bodies are on the negotiating table as part of a political power game again.”
The horror in this, is that this proposal does not reflect the majority of people. This is strictly a political move made by our prime minister to appease a minor political party.
As explained by the Independent: “Though not yet in legislation the move is seen as an attempt to win the support of the country’s Christian Democrats party, KrF, and give Ms Solberg’s right-wing coalition government an outright majority.”
Anyhow, that is my rant for the day. This was not exactly the direction I thought my next Steemit post would take on. I did however feel very strongly about this, so I decided to do a post about it anyway. But hey, that’s just me, what’s your view on all of this?
You can read the full Independent article here:
https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/europe/abortion-norway-protest-oslo-storting-womens-erna-solberg-christian-democrats-march-a8638966.html