Personal Reflections on the Roe v. Wade Anniversary: From choice to voice

by Hannah Joseph, NLIRH  Policy Intern

What did January 22nd mean to me as the anniversary of Roe v. Wade?  I am a new policy intern working for NLIRH between semesters in college.  This position represents my first official advocacy position in reproductive rights outside of my college campus.  As part of the cohort of women born after 1973, for me, abortion has always been a protected right and an assumed possibility. Without even having to think critically about whether I would choose to have one myself, I was able to assume that having an abortion would be a possibility for me.  Does this make me “casually pro-choice”?

This question was brought to mind when reading the recent NewsWeek article that identifies a lack of intensity in young pro-choice advocates.  This sentiment is consistent with the common political trope that that young people do not care about reproductive health.  According to a NARAL survey from early 2011, 51 percent of young voters (under 30) who opposed abortion rights considered it a “very important” voting issue, compared with just 26 percent of abortion-rights supporters.  The young respondents did not view abortion as a right in need of defenders.  Does this “intensity gap” mean that the pro-choice movement is losing its young supporters?

New poll on Latino views on abortion challenges misconceptions and stereotypes

The results of a new poll conducted by Lake Research Partners on behalf of the National Latina Institute for Reproductive Health and the Reproductive Health Technologies Project have been released, showing strong support for abortion rights amongst Latina/o voters.

“This is a watershed moment for the Latina/o community as it provides, for the first time, hard data which defies long held stereotypes about Latina/os and reproductive health,” said NLIRH Executive Director Jessica Gonzalez-Rojas. “This poll underscores the important role of Latino/as in the national debate about access to reproductive health care.”

Indeed, the poll is groundbreaking, and the results an important affirmation of Latina/o support for reproductive justice issues. Amongst others, important findings from the  poll include:

• A strong majority – 74% – of Latina/o registered voters agree that a woman has a right to make her own personal, private decisions about abortion without politicians interfering.
• Most Latina/o voters seem willing to disagree with church leaders on the legality of abortion, with nearly seven in ten agreeing that abortion should remain legal despite the position of the church.
• A majority of Latina/o voters agree that money should not determine access to abortion

The findings firmly reject stereotypes of Latina/os as anti-choice or unable to distinguish their political beliefs from their religious affiliation, and should be an important consideration to elected officials trying to capture the ever-growing and powerful Latino vote.

Take a look at the rest of the data from the poll and the methodology behind it at NLIRH’s website!

Final Round-Up: ¡Acábalo Ya! Working Together to End Cervical Cancer

Today marks the end of NLIRH’s blog carnival to end cervical cancer, ¡Acábalo Ya! Working Together to End Cervical Cancer.

But don’t fret! Here is round-up of all the great posts on the blogosphere that answer the question: What will it take to end cervical cancer?

Latinas and cervical cancer: the fight for greater health care access

This week you have been reading many perspectives on “what will it take to end cervical cancer?” as part of NLIRH’s blog carnival, ¡Acábalo Ya! Working Together to End Cervical Cancer.

All of us here at the  National Latina Institute for Reproductive Health (NLIRH) emphasize the importance of monitoring cervical cancer incidence rates because they serve as indicators of a community’s access to preventive health care services.

Why is this? Because no woman should be diagnosed, let alone die, of cervical cancer. For the first time, we have a comprehensive set of tools to prevent and fight the disease. Cervical cancer is highly preventable with regular Pap tests, the HPV test, and a provider’s monitoring and treatment of precancerous changes to the cells of a cervix. The HPV vaccines (both Gardasil® and Cervarix®) are also effective tools in the prevention of cervical cancer. Furthermore, the disease is also highly treatable when detected early.

Yet Latinas continue to have the highest incidence of cervical cancer among women of all ethnic/racial groups and the second highest mortality rate after African American women. In certain states, particularly along the southern border, Latinas have the highest incidence and mortality rates.

NLIRH recognizes and raises awareness of the myriad barriers Latinas face to preventing cervical cancer: lack of health insurance, stigmas around STIs and sexual health, cultural and linguistic barriers with health care systems and providers, the high cost of health care, fear associated to immigration status, racism and xenophobia.

Thus, while we serve to educate Latinas about the importance of gynecological health and demystify sexual health issues, we also will work year-round to bring down the barriers Latinas face in accessing health care.

This year, we will work to increase federal funding for Title X, the only federally funded family planning program, that provides cervical cancer screening and STI counseling to low-income women. We urge the federal government to support other programs that positively impact Latina health including Medicaid,  Community Health Center grants, funding for immunizations and school-based health programs. We will continue to advocate for access to health care for immigrants, for instance by urging Congress to lift the five-year ban for qualified legal immigrants from accessing means-tested benefits under Medicaid.

In 2012, there will be many opportunities to reduce health disparities and increase Latinas’ access to health services. Beyond January, we hope that our elected officials will not only speak about cervical cancer awareness, but work work us to ensure Latinas live cervical-cancer free.

For more information, please visit NLIRH’s resources on cervical cancer.

Cervical cancer and women of color: What will it take to get to zero?

Guest post  by Marisa Spalding, Black Women’s Health Imperative

Each January we celebrate Cervical Cancer Awareness month. This month gives us an opportunity to reflect on our mothers, daughters, sisters, aunts, and friends that we have lost to this preventable disease, and a time to consider how we will get the cervical cancer incidence and death rate among women of color to zero. There is no better time to educate and empower women to protect themselves from cervical cancer and make their health a priority.

It is no secret that women of color—specifically Black and Latina women—are at greatest risk of cervical cancer.  Latina women have the highest incidence rate of cervical cancer and Black women have the highest death rate from the disease, which is almost two times greater than for White women. These staggering and unacceptable figures are only worsened by the knowledge that this disease is largely preventable through timely screening, diagnosis, and treatment.

Then what will it take to put an end cervical cancer?

Community health centers’ role in reducing cervical cancer inequities

Guest post by Amelia “Amy” MacIntyre, Health Research & Policy Analyst, North American Management

The uninsured, the underinsured and those living in underserved communities in which health care services are scarce are the segments of the U.S. population that are disproportionately affected by cervical cancer.  These populations include women in rural areas, the elderly, those with less formal education, and women of color.  For example, the mortality rate for African-American and Vietnamese women continues to be twice as high as for white women – and about 50 percent higher for Latinas.  Meanwhile, in rural communities, uninsured white women have some of the poorest access to routine screening of any patient population.  Thus, cervical cancer incidence rates vividly demonstrate inequities in our health care systems and outcomes.

Community health centers supported by the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) address this disparity by providing preventive health services – including Pap tests and HPV vaccinations – to any woman, regardless of insurance status and/or ability to pay. As such, health centers play a vital role in redressing health disparities and delivering care to groups excluded in the health care system, such as immigrants.

Calling for an investigation of sexual abuse in immigration detention

It’s hard to ignore the numerous ways in which our system of immigration incarceration harms our communities: on a daily basis, tens of thousands of people are warehoused in jails, many of them far from their families, separated from children and other loved ones, and unable to access legal assistance. To our horror, immigration detention produces story after story of even more extreme abuse, including denial of adequate healthcare, refusal of appropriate housing facilities, and unpunished sexual abuse of immigration detainees. We hope that shedding more light on the reality of abuse in immigration detention will help improve the transparency of the system; force recognition of its over-expansion, under-regulation, and general inefficacy for addressing immigration infractions; and, ultimately, bring about the end of our reliance on incarcerating immigrants.

Blog Carnival Round-up: ¡Acábalo Ya! Working Together to End Cervical Cancer

This week, the National Latina Institute for Reproductive Health is hosting a blog carnival, where we bring you posts from the blogosphere that help us answer,  “what will it take to end cervical cancer?”

As you know from our work on cervical cancer, Latinas continue to suffer from the highest rates of cervical cancer among women of all ethnic and racial groups. As we work to educate Latinas about how to take action to prevent cervical cancer in their own lives, NLIRH will continue to fight to bring down the barriers Latinas face in accessing the routine gynecological care necessary to prevent, diagnose, and treat this disease.
Here is a round-up of what we have so far:

Why cervical cancer is a LGBT issue by Verónica Bayetti-Flores, Policy Research Specialist, National Latina Institute for Reproductive Health.

Cervical Cancer Awareness Month: Trans Men and Genderqueer/Gender Nonconforming People by the National Center for Transgender Equality.

Screen more women for cervical cancer – not the same women more often! by Kate Ryan, Program Coordinator, National Women’s Health Network.

Thank YOU Affordable Care Act for helping cervixes stay healthy by Keely Monroe, Program Coordinator,  National Women’s Health Network

Please stay tuned this week for more posts! 

Cervical health for transgender, genderqueer, and gender non-conforming people

The National Center for Transgender Equality has put up a blog for Cervical Health month, recognizing the importance of this issue for trans, genderqueer, and gender non-conforming people:

Anyone with a cervix can contract cervical cancer, so this means that lots of trans men and genderqueer/gender nonconforming people are at risk. But because trans people face widespread discrimination from health care providers and insurance plans, they often avoid seeking or cannot access preventive care.

The post lists ways to prevent cervical cancer among trans men and gender non-conforming people, including tips to keep your own cervix healthy and advocacy items to ensure access to care. Check it out!

Why cervical cancer is a LGBT issue

When talking about bringing the number of cervical cancer deaths to zero, it is crucial not to forget about LGBTQ people’s distinct experiences accessing health care. We know cervical cancer is completely preventable, and that regular pap smears are designed to catch any changes in the cervix that may lead to cancer later on. Just as with many other Latinas, however, preventing cervical cancer for LGBTQ Latin@s becomes a matter of access – to affordable exams, to providers who are culturally competent, and to providers who are trained to deal with LGBTQ patients. Unfortunately, for many LGBTQ Latin@s, affordable preventive care with properly trained clinicians is simply not accessible.

One of the most pressing issues for LGBTQ access to care is discrimination and bias. Homophobia at the doctor’s office is unfortunately common, and a great detractor to queer women seeking care. This then affects access to preventive care – women who have sex with women are at risk for cervical cancer, and research suggests that queer women who report positive attitudes about their providers are more likely to have had a recent pap. Transphobia is also a concern, and especially for highly gendered health services such as Pap smears, a huge barrier to access. In fact, in a recent survey about the experiences of transgender people with discrimination, nearly a quarter of trans Latin@s reported having been denied medical services due to their gender identity, and 36% reported delaying needed medicals services for fear of bias.

Discrimination at the doctor’s office is only part of the problem, however. While person-to-person discrimination is an issue, the systematic oppression and marginalization of LGBTQ communities plays a role in LGBTQ Latin@s’ ability to afford care, research and knowledge about LGBTQ health, and clinicians’ training on treating LGBTQ patients. Existing research suggests that LGBTQ communities are disproportionately poor, and the Latin@ respondents of the Transgender Discrimination Survey reported high rates of both unemployment and harassment at work due to gender identity. This means that health care is often out of reach for these communities, especially non-emergency and preventive care such as Pap smears. But even if LGBTQ people are able to afford care, most physicians are woefully unprepared to treat LGBTQ patients due to a lack of training on relevant issues.

We are seeing progress, however. Reproductive justice activism is incorporating the needs of LGBTQ communities, and the LGBTQ advocates are beginning to consider reproductive rights issues as ones that are relevant to their base. Every day we are seeing research on LGBTQ health grow. And last November, in a historic move, the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists released a statement urging their members to be prepared to treat transgender patients. It’s a long road ahead, but as long as we don’t forget our LGBTQ herman@s in the fight to bring down cervical cancer deaths to zero, we are moving forward.