My Body is Not in Question is a project that invites individuals to respectfully explore the relationship they have with their bodies in order to promote sexual health and reproductive justice. According to the American Association of University Women (AAUW) in their report, How Schools Shortchange Girls, “moving from ‘young girl’ to ‘young woman’ involves meeting unique demands in a culture that both idealizes and exploits the sexuality of young women while assigning them roles that are clearly less valued than male roles.” Girls and women face an implicit tension between caring for their bodies and being seen as an ‘object’ by others, and at a time when the political climate is not prioritizing our bodies, it is crucial that we be vocal about our rights and needs. The objective is to encourage reflection that empowers women to advocate for their needs in a society where our social power, our rights, and our privileges as women are not considered and at times dismissed.
Daniela created a series of visuals in both English and Spanish that participants can interact with, working both to create a space for reflecting as well as a tool to gather information regarding how girls and women understand their bodies and their health. The primary intention is to invite participants to explore and (re)interpret their bodies through their own perspective, understand their rights to their bodies, and have a space to articulate their views on reproductive health. The second intention is to create an archive of information that functions as a resource for medical practitioners and policy makers to better understand their patients and inform policy that focuses on people’s actual needs and wants. Having these two goals in mind, Daniela approached people in public spaces to engage in a conversation about reproductive justice and fill out the visuals.
For more information, visit the artist’s website: Daniela Mekler
See the worksheets:
