Who Controls My Body?

Who Controls My Body?

“Bodily autonomy” means the right to govern one’s own body. In simple words, you, yourself, have the power to make choices concerning your body. People typically think it concerns only medical examples, like abortion or health treatments, but bodily autonomy is an issue in many parts of life and society, ranging from dress codes to masks to rules about marriage.

In June, the Supreme Court overturned a decades-old ruling that had allowed women the right to seek an abortion anywhere in the country. That challenge to abortion rights made people worry that the Court might soon try to overturn other rights related to bodily autonomy, such as the right to same-sex marriage. In other countries, meanwhile, citizens are fighting back against restrictions on their bodily autonomy – in Iran, demonstrations over dress codes for women have grown fierce and bloody and threaten to topple the leadership. Understanding how to think about bodily autonomy begins early, even in high school where sex education classes often don’t provide all the information young people need to make choices about they use their own bodies.

Right To Abortion

When California voters go to the polls on Nov. 8, they will have the chance to vote on a key issue of bodily autonomy in a proposition that makes reproductive freedom a constitutional right in the state. The proposition seeks to protect the abortion rights that have existed for the past 49 years. The U.S. Supreme Court struck a blow at bodily autonomy when it overturned the Roe v. Wade decision...

Opinion: Oppression Over Clothing

Iranian women bravely tear off their hijabs in front of guards, cut their hair and shave their heads in public, boldly confront the morality police. Thousands of people mass in demonstrations, chanting their rage through the streets, and workers go on strike. The upheaval started in response to the cultural and systemic standards that have oppressed and intimidated Iranian women for decades, but ...

Inclusive Sex Ed

COVID caused lots of problems with student learning in math and English, but guess what else? Sex Ed. Even sexual education classes suffered from the turn to remote learning. Schools across the country had to set their own priorities and adjust classes on the spot, which led to a decrease in school-based sexuality education. Moreover, many schools gave up on striving for an inclusive, culturally...

Same Sex Marriage

Same-sex marriage qualifies as a matter of bodily autonomy because the act of marrying involves both mind and body. After years of controversy over whether same-sex couples should be allowed to legally marry, in 2015 the Supreme Court ruled in Obergefell v. Hodges that same sex marriage could no longer be banned in the United States and must be recognized legally in every state. Same-sex couples ...

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