Monthly Archives: February 2024

The two chapters of this book were really surprising. The way that women that underwent either an induced or spontaneous abortion are treated really poorly in countries where abortion is illegal, such as Senegal. Some of the practices like digital … Continue reading →

Having read “Introduction: PAC as Reproductive Governance” and Chapter 3 “‘We Wear White Coats, Not Uniforms’: Abortion Surveillance in Hospitals” in Siri Suh’s (2021) Dying to Count: Post-abortion Care and Global Reproductive Health Politics in Senegal I find myself very appreciative of … Continue reading →

“Spending money on an intervention may in fact be more critical to establishing political credibility within a short period of time than rigorously determining the intervention’s cost-effectiveness over long-term intervals” (110). This quotation in chapter four really grabbed me, gave … Continue reading →

After reading the introduction and chapter 3 I definitely have to say that I am on the same boat as Mandy. Prior to reading this text I had an idea of what PAC might look like and how abortions would … Continue reading →

From the very beginning of her work, Suh’s book threw me for a loop. On page two, Suh notes that between a quarter and a third of women in Senegalese prisons are there on abortion or infanticide charges. A quarter … Continue reading →

Siri Suh thoroughly documents what she calls “reproductive governance” in three different hospitals in Senegal. She links this phenomenon and PAC (Post-Abortion-Care) practices to the Foucauldian concept of biopower that is to say, the practice of modern nation states and … Continue reading →

The tradition of midwifery in Mexico showcases not only that the marginalized groups have to find alternative ways to get health services, but also their resilience. Through struggle, these groups are able to adapt new practices. In Chapter 3, we … Continue reading →

What stood out to me while reading this text was the way that Dixon made the distinction between global health as a noun and then as a verb. In her distinction between the two, she addresses the way that ‘infrastructural … Continue reading →

Delivering Health: Midwifery and Development in Mexico takes a consciously focused approach at examining how in a state of “entrenched social inequalities, structural failures, and legacies of misogyny and colonialism”, (Dixon 2020: 25) midwives take diverse yet interconnected approaches at addressing … Continue reading →

Irma’s story serves as a stark reminder of the intersectional oppression and systemic violence that profoundly impact women’s reproductive healthcare, especially those in marginalized rural areas. The narrative powerfully captures the intricate web of social, historical, and infrastructural factors that … Continue reading →

Something that really caught my eye in Dixon’s piece was the slippage between “professional” and “traditional” as it relates to midwifery practices. From the very get-go, Dixon presents what seems to lean towards a generational divide: “if you want traditional … Continue reading →

I was struck by the forced duality of midwifery in Mexico between working with the state and against it and its abusive practices. As demonstrated in the introduction and more particularly in chapter 3, this position places them in a delicate in-betweenness: people … Continue reading →

The academy’s shift from “Black Lives Matter” to “#OurLivesMatter” reflects a broader cultural tendency to generalize difficulties, overshadowing focus on the specific injustices faced by Black communities. This immediately made me understand that the stark mismatch between the academy’s punishing … Continue reading →

Liberal academic institutions frequently employ terms such as people of color (POC) in an attempt to acknowledge the structural racism, violence, and oppression towards racialized, ethnicized, and minoritized non-white populations. Yet, such terms and discourse dilutes the innately anti-black racism … Continue reading →

  As I read the introductory chapter, I am drawn to the emphasis on the idea of ‘winning.’ Specifically, when Shange explains how the idea of winning is the ‘dominant logic of social justice work,’ as she provides the context … Continue reading →

In the introductory chapter, the author distinguishes between performativity and having an actual progressive narrative. This was introduced in a school context (high school named Robeson Justice Academy). Although this academy’s mission is to achieve racial equity in the school … Continue reading →