Prince William’s overpopulation comments will make women unpopular
But there’s much that doesn’t go with what Prince William said: identifying population growth as the problem, logically presenting population control as the solution. This automatically turns the uterus into legitimate sites for climate policy. In other words, women’s rights to contraception and education have been weaponized: they are no longer tools to help women access better choice, but instead, this goal of gender equality is stolen. to impose the agenda of others.
Imagine for a minute that we accept that population growth – and specifically population growth in Africa – leads to greater pressure on wildlife, an argument that Prince William believes is undeniable. How should this be resolved? One-child policy as a condition for development assistance? How will the impact of that decrease in population be measured? Who will say if it goes far enough to minimize environmental damage? How about not?
All must realize that panic over population growth in Black, Brown and Indigenous parts of the world is reinforced by racial and class prejudices. It should be clear that what every woman needs is the freedom to choose for herself if, when and how many children to have. If, after years of talking about conservation, Prince William doesn’t think his interest in Africa’s wildlife can bring about stigmatizing African women, perhaps now is the time. he should do so.
Story of the week
Women behave badly: Kanno Sugako
Kanno Sugako (1881 – 1911) was one of Japan’s first female journalists and prominent feminists, known for her writings that explored the multitude of oppressions faced by women in a society. modernization.
She often condemns society’s praise of “feminine virtues” such as virginity: “Where does all these perverted men have the right to insist on chastity? fathers, husbands? good!” But Sugako also opposes prostitution, referring to geishas at first as “morally corrupt individuals” and then as “fallen women”.
“For us women, the most pressing task is to develop a sense of self… an educated and socially savvy woman to some degree must certainly be disgruntled and angry about her status. mine,” she wrote.
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