LatiNegr@s & The 40th Anniversary of Roe v. Wade

[originally published at The LatiNegr@s Project]


This week marked the 40th Anniversary of Roe v. Wade, the supreme court decision that made abortion legal in the US. In much of the coverage around this anniversary there has been a lot of discussion regarding Latin@s and Black men and women*.  What is missing is the inclusion and narratives of LatiNegr@s. 


As readers know LatiNegr@s are both ethnically Latin@ and racially Black. Our experiences matter and must also be included. Our experiences may very well be similar to Latin@s of any racial group and racially Black people as well. However, we also have specific experiences because we are both. 

The National Latina Institute for Reproductive Health has data and a focus on abortion access.  They also have a new project Yo Te Apoyo with a video discussing how to support a friend who is terminating a pregnancy. Unfortunately, it seems there is only one LatiNegr@ featured. This is a great example of inclusion, and I expect to see more of us included on a regular basis and in more numbers. However, I’m not sure how NLIRH has included LatiNegr@s in their past research. It’s safe to say we are rarely (if ever) featured in a headline and often discussed as only Latin@.


This is a similar approach we see in spaces focusing on Black women as well. Rarely do we see a ethnic breakdown of the racially Black women featured. Earlier this week Dani McClain published an article at Ebony.com asking why Black women are not represented in conversations about abortion and why we don’t share our stories. McClain examined the videos folks published for the 1 in 3 campaign and wrote: “Out of the 31 moving, intimate videos posted online, four appear to feature Black women.” 

Although it “appears” to only feature 4 Black women, McClain has excluded the voices of LatiNegr@s. Perhaps the appearance of a Black woman McClain is seeking is very specific to certain characteristics such as skin color only because she did not include this LatiNegra’s story (yes that’s me, the author). McClain’s question of why Black women are not represented or sharing their stories of abortion is valid and important. I’d like to take her question a step further and ask why are the experiences and narratives of LatiNegr@s not represented (yet)?

The primary issue is that we are not included. Either we are discussed only as Latin@s or only as Black people and rarely as both. Ignoring this connection/complexity is a form of erasure and silencing. We will no longer be silent or ignored! We will hold folks accountable for excluding us and support them in ensuring their representations are inclusive. If you are interested in sharing your story as a LatiNegr@ with the NLIRH Yo Te Apolyo project learn how to do so here. 

If you know of research and projects that include us please share them!


*The terms wo/man are in reference to gender and not sex assigned at birth (SAAB). As a result, abortion is a topic that may impact people of all genders and not only folks whose SAAB is female or intersex. For these reasons the @ sign will be used to recognize gender and terms wo/man will both be used. For more information about how the @ sign is used read here.