In Ireland, abortions are illegal unless a woman’s life is endangered. And because women seeking abortions in Ireland face up to 14 years in prison — even in cases of rape or incest — 4,000 women leave Ireland every year to have abortions elsewhere. A number of pro-choice groups are working to change that. In part by live-tweeting their periods to politicians.
According to a report from the BBC, in addition to getting over 47,000 signatures on a petition to repeal the eighth amendment of Ireland’s constitution (which bans abortions), a comedian named Grainne Maguire recently started tweeting the country’s Prime Minster Enda Kenny about the details of her period, encouraging others to do the same because “we know how much the Irish state cares about our reproductive parts.”
Since we know how much the Irish state cares about our reproductive parts-I call my womb Ireland's littlest embassy ;-) #repealthe8th (1/3)— Gráinne Maguire (@GrainneMaguire) November 2, 2015
I think its only fair that the women of Ireland let our Leader @EndaKennyTD know the full details of our menstrual cycle #repealthe8th (2/3)— Gráinne Maguire (@GrainneMaguire) November 2, 2015
Hey @EndaKennyTD just so you know, I got my period two days ago. Pretty heavy flow at first but now just occasional spotting #repealthe8th— Gráinne Maguire (@GrainneMaguire) November 2, 2015
Other women quickly joined the twitter storm to give the Prime Minister critical updates on the details of their periods using the hashtag #repealthe8th.
.@EndaKennyTD I just sneezed while on my period. I think I gave birth to a jellyfish.#repealthe8th— Yvonne (@Yerwanmissyu) November 5, 2015
@EndaKennyTD Got my period today! Tampons or pads, what u think? Can't trust I'll make the right decision for myself… #repealthe8th— Jill Mc Mahon (@tweeterjill) November 5, 2015
Hey buddy @EndaKennyTD My period feels like a bull in china shop, but instead of a shop it's my uterus. #repealthe8th @GrainneMaguire— Katie Poushpom (@KatiePoushpom) November 3, 2015
Hey @EndaKennyTD, my eggs are ageing but I still get my periods – each sooner & heavier. Have you advice for how to manage it? #repealthe8th— Ronni Greenwood (@ronnironni) November 5, 2015
Howya @EndaKennyTD c'mere this is what my hand looks like after I've put a tampon in#repealthe8th pic.twitter.com/lWvbzuzqGW— sarah hutchinson (@Hootchinson) November 5, 2015
Hey @EndaKennyTD – what's a period? Asking for a friend. #repealthe8th— Jo Halpin (@sunniecoolbeans) November 5, 2015
There'll be shrieks of "undignified!" at tweeting @EndaKennyTD about periods. Know what's undignified? Lack of bodily autonomy #repealthe8th— Tara Flynn (@TaraFlynn) November 4, 2015
Earlier this year, Amnesty International issued an extensive report on the effects of Ireland’s restrictive abortion laws, condemning them for violating human rights.
“The human rights of women are violated on a daily basis because of a constitution that treats them like child-bearing vessels,” said Amnesty International’s Secretary General, Salil Shetty. “Women who need abortions are treated like criminals, stigmatized and forced to travel abroad, taking a serious toll on their mental and physical health.”
Ask @EndaKennyTD to decriminalise abortion in #Ireland #Repealthe8thhttps://t.co/dTQb4gKuWR via @amnestyuk— Muttley (@ms_muttley) October 28, 2015
About Unknown
0 comments:
Post a Comment