Is the great plan against infertility, which the government has announced it will work on, necessary and does it promise to be effective? Should we launch a belly strike to recognize the right to dispose of one’s body as one wishes?
Immerse yourself in a dystopian universe
By using the term “demographic rearmament”, Emmanuel Macron consciously drew on the military semantic field, with reactionary overtones.. Would this imply that French women’s bodies are tools made available to the nation?
“ As caregivers, we are not at all in favor of this term » explains Manon Marmouset de la Taille, gynecologist at the Pierre Rouquès – Les Bluets hospital and head of the day hospital specializing in fertility and repeated abortions. “ Women’s bodies belong to them and we are here to support them in their choices, whatever they may be. Under no circumstances should there be a social and political injunction on procreation, especially in the military sphere. »
“ We’re not at the remake of The Handsmade Tale yet. » says Fiona Schmidt, journalist and feminist essayist, author of “Let go of the uterus!” » and “Old skin”. “ But it is very worrying that Senate President Gérard Larcher and other elected officials from the far right and the conservative right refuse to see the right to abortion (voluntary termination of pregnancy) enshrined in the Constitution. Larcher believes that “the Constitution must not be the catalog of social and corporate rights”: this means that he believes that abortion, therefore the freedom for half of humanity to dispose of their own body and life, is not a right fundamental. Is it serious. »
“ All the more serious in a context of unprecedented decline in reproductive rights in the United States and Europe, as in Poland, Hungary and now Italy, where the far-right government is carrying out intense pro-natalist propaganda. This is the worst time in history to rest on achievements in terms of social rights! ” continues.
A request for a belly shot?
In the past, in the 19th century, France experienced several belly strike calls to protest capitalist production of “cannon fodder” and “cannon fodder.” Or more recently, in 1974, when ecofeminist writer and activist Françoise d’Eaubonne called a belly strike on Charlie Hebdo, to regulate the demographics of an already overpopulated planet.
Should we once again call for a gut punch, this time in a spirit of rebellion against government discourse? “ I hope that the French people’s plans for parenthood or non-parenthood are not influenced by the declarations of the Head of State: whatever they are, these life plans must not be reactionary projects, but ones of reflection, serene and free”, says Fiona Schmidt. «But it is very difficult to make the peaceful choice not to have children, when injunctions on motherhood come from everywhere, even from the highest levels of the State. »
“ Parental injunctions have always bothered me deeply, whatever they are. AND I’m not sure that a jab in the belly will have the slightest effect on government policy on parenting and early childhood, which is the heart of the problem. We want truly egalitarian parental leave, so that maternity no longer penalizes women professionally and economically, we want places in nursery schools, the improvement of the working conditions of people who take care of young children, and who are, coincidentally, women. A general strike of professionals in the early childhood sector, I tell myself, would be more effective for everyone. » adds the journalist.
“ I don’t know if women would take a militant approach to a belly shot, because it would also mean recognizing that we agree to enter a stalemate with politics, when no one has rights over our bodies “, reminds Manon of Marmouset La Taille. “But it is important to continue campaigning, this speech makes us aware that our rights have not been acquired. This conveys the symbol that in the president’s eyes, women’s bodies belong to society and to men. Obviously this is not the case at all, but in 2024 the message is still not clear, we are not wombs. »
An unsuitable infertility plan
Among the ideas indicated by the government to combat the decline in the birth rate we find the assessment of fertility to be carried out at the age of 25. “ This should remain an option, but currently no Social Security nomenclature allows women to have fertility control reimbursed. », recalls the gynecologist. “ And before talking about “rearmament”, there are other things that public authorities can do. »
Among the priority issues, we should improve access to care, reimbursement and better communicate with women about their rights, so that they can choose whether they want to have children or not, without obstacles.
“ Currently, access to oocyte cryopreservation is still very limited. Centers are already overwhelmed with standard PMA (medically assisted procreation) activities; there is a gap between the “PMA for all” law and the reality on the ground, with an average waiting period of 2 years. This is a real social problem », warns Doctor Marmouset de la Taille. “ There is also a huge shortage of egg donations in France, even more so if we move away from Western phenotypes, there is real inequality at this level.. »
“ We also need a better information policy on abortion. Many women are confused and don’t know who to turn to, they don’t know their rights. There is inequality across the territory, with “abortion deserts” in some places. And the practitioners’ double consciousness clause is problematic. We would like it to be removed, for abortion to be included in the initial training of professionals and for the practice to be practiced without ethical distinctions. », he adds.
“We therefore need to work on these three main areas of work: fertility assessments, abortion and cryopreservation. There is too much of a dichotomy between IVG and PMA, we must take care of patients throughout their life as a woman, we cannot separate the issue of fertility from that of IVG, everything this is women’s health, depending on their life moments and their needs. We can also decide to make it easier for men to access spermograms, develop male contraception and better support women suffering from recurrent miscarriages or endometriosis, before focusing on demographics. »
In short, offer a fertility assessment in good conditions to those who want it, why not”, but it is a shame that this is part of a “demographic rearmament”, with the ulterior motive of pushing women to become small citizens, and not doing it for the fundamental rights of women », concludes Manon Marmouset de la Taille.
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Source: Madmoizelle
Mary Crossley is an author at “The Fashion Vibes”. She is a seasoned journalist who is dedicated to delivering the latest news to her readers. With a keen sense of what’s important, Mary covers a wide range of topics, from politics to lifestyle and everything in between.
