Originally published at IPPF/WHR

How did a lone primate hunter in Cameroon spark the global AIDS epidemic? Tinderbox presents a fascinating history of colonialism and disease.

Tinderbox stresses the importance of local leadership when developing strategies to decrease the number of people infected with HIV. Authors Timberg and Halperin point to a number of failed campaigns led by wealthy and well-meaning heath promoters who were unfamiliar with a country's cultural context. This is juxtaposed by the successes gained by local groups and individuals, such as beloved musicians who spoke out about the disease.

Aware that the solutions are not always simple or clear, the authors of Tinderbox use their professional clout and expertise to push for a more comprehensive movement to end HIV that combines cultural leaders educating their fellow citizens with the support of the global community.

Across American universities, women’s studies programs face budgetary crises and marginalization in the wider academic community. In Feminist Solidarity at the Crossroads, editors Kim Marie Vaz and Gary L. Lemons explore the issues behind the crisis in women’s studies, showing how these programs are threatened, not only by lack of funding and institutional support, but also by ideologies of white privilege, racism, and Eurocentrism that persist within these programs.

The collection is divided into five parts. Parts I-III assess the current state of women’s studies in the face of corporatization, commemorate pathbreaking thinkers and activists such as Anna Julia Cooper and Gloria Anzaldúa, and describe ways of incorporating intersectional approaches into teaching. Part IV considers strategies for coalition building for feminist alliances, and includes essays that present research in black feminist masculinities studies and that detail the politics of exclusion that dominates feminism within the academy. Part V closes the collection with strategies for fostering anti-domination politics.

While the focus of the collection is the university, its emphasis on intersectional thinking and practice makes it valuable for pro-feminist advocates beyond academia as well, particularly for educators interested in new teaching methods. Central to intersectional teaching is the use of autobiographical writing, which asks students to question their relationships to systems of inequality based on gender, race, class, and sexuality. In one co-authored essay, Gary L. Lemons and his former student Scott Neumeister describe how this autobiographical approach transformed Neumeister’s awareness of his participation in oppressive systems and brought both teacher and student closer in the shared goal of feminist solidarity.

Christine (Cricket) Keating closes the collection with a thoughtful essay on “compensatory domination,” a politics in which states or institutions create group hierarchies that yield to institutional authority. Keating points us to current work in transnational feminist theory that disrupts “imperialist and neoimperialist rescue narratives” and “the notion of the Third World women as victimized other.” Her essay urges us to recognize differences amongst ourselves even as we interrogate how we are linked by insertion in hierarchies of power; only then can we form alliances that recognize how “a commitment to each other’s freedom is a commitment to one’s own.”

In their introduction, Vaz and Lemons recall the inspiration for this collection, their experiences as faculty at the University of South Florida during a budget crisis that threatened the autonomy of one of the oldest women’s studies departments in the nation. Vaz called together feminist scholars across the country, and from this alliance the anthology was born. Their call for feminist solidarity will resonate with advocates of women’s health and rights everywhere. As this collection shows us, feminist solidarity begins with mindfulness, self-awareness, and activism—even with reading books like this one.

Written by Barbara Barrow

Originally published at IPPF/WHR

In the midst of a week of torrential rains, floods, and mudslides so severe that a state of emergency was declared, Dr. Zanotty and three clinical staff inch their vehicle through the countryside of Guatemala. The drive takes longer than normal as they traverse washed out bridges and carefully make their way past tipped over tractor-trailers. Despite the hazards, the team knows that a group of women will be waiting for them, waiting for sexual and reproductive health information and services.

Dr. Zanotty and his staff run a reproductive health care program in the southeastern most region of Guatemala that is operated by APROFAM, IPPF/WHR's partner in the country. Although most of Dr. Zanotty’s time is spent at the area’s main clinic, Dr. Zanotty and his team of community outreach coordinators bring much-need health care and education to groups that are impoverished and underserved in Guatemala. For many in these remote communities, APROFAM's mobile health unit is their only contact with the health system.

Despite being cold, the women are thoroughly engaged. In a culture where sexual and reproductive health issues are rarely discussed, this is one of the only places where they can learn about contraception, breast exams, and the warning signs of sexually transmitted infections. "These are not issues that we discussed when I was younger,” says one dark-haired woman in her thirties, “but I think they are important to discuss now as adults, and with our children.”

The team’s second stop is another small, impoverished community. They bring a community health worker, Rosa Lidia Santos, a new supply of contraceptives. In remote communities like these—sometimes more than two hours away from the nearest clinic—Rosa is critical in providing high-quality health services to local women and youth who would otherwise receive none.

“When I started having children, I didn’t think about how many," says Esna Marina Aroche. "But I started birth control so I wouldn’t have too many children. Life can be hard and sometimes you can’t pay for what the children you already have need. Imagine having so many that one day you just can’t do it any more. It's better to avoid that.”

Esna talks to her kids about sexual and reproductive health. She buys birth control pills for herself and her daughter. “If I didn’t get the pills from Rosa, where would I get them?”

Community health workers also refer women who need additional sexual and reproductive health care to APROFAM’s clinics and facilitate public discussions about adolescent pregnancy, cancer, and HIV. The country’s alarming sexual and reproductive health indicators, such as high rates of unintended pregnancy and death during childbirth, demonstrate the tremendous need for these services.

Dr. Zanotty, his team, and APROFAM’s network of trained community health promoters are crucial to reaching overlooked populations and providing them with quality health care. By delivering targeted and appropriate services to this population, IPPF/WHR and APROFAM lift the burden of the country's troublesome health indicators and contribute to reversing these worrisome trends.

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Since Takeshita began investigating the IUD, she has had two insertions of the device. She uses her experience to inform her perspective, but is careful not to make assumptions about what others may choose as the best contraceptive method for themselves. In this way, The Global Biopolitics of the IUD is written from a feminist science perspective.

Although the IUD had an unfortunate start, it is now a popular and effective form of contraception. Instead of making politically-motivated arguments in her book, Takeshita raises several interesting questions and give answers that are based on a variety of public health perspectives.

Out of respect for the diversity of sexual and reproductive health needs, Takeshita provides the reader with a solid and broad-based understanding of the IUD. She also encourages them to make the best choices for their health. The Global Biopolitics of the IUD gives a unique history and perspective that will help sexual and reproductive health advocates in the U.S. and internationally advocate for the right to safe and effective contraception.

Originally published at IPPF/WHR

In Arms Wide Open, Patricia Harman takes the reader on a fascinating journey of how she became a certified nurse-midwife. An honest and often poetic memoir, we move with Harman through several peace activist communes in rural America to a remote cabin in Minnesota, where she learns about natural birth, and eventually end up in West Virginia, where Harman opened a women's health clinic with her Ob/Gyn husband. Her experiences throughout the book are as educational as they are entertaining.

When women in her rural community are unable to get to the hospital in time to deliver their babies Harman steps in to assist as they are delivered at home. She describes in fascinating detail the births in which she has taken part, both as a midwife and a mother. She expresses the joy she felt delivering her second son naturally and the deep sense of pride that her first-born, Mica, was able to witness his younger brother's birth. She writes, "I asked Mica what he thought of the birth, and his words knocked me over. 'It is like you were fighting for your life, only it wasn’t your life, it was the baby’s.'”

Eventually, Harman takes steps to receive professional nurse-midwife training and certification. I was surprised to learn that certified nurse-midwives provide care to women not only during pregnancy, labor, and deliver, but also throughout their lives. The services they provide are broad and comprehensive, includes primary and gynecologic care, family planning, and assistance during pregnancy, childbirth, and postpartum for both the mother and the newborn.

A common thread throughout Arms Wide Open is the conviction that women have a right to be informed and empowered when it comes to pregnancy and childbirth. The book winds down with Harmen's bittersweet admission that the fear of a medical malpractice lawsuit caused her to stop delivering babies. Home birth midwives are legal in West Virginia, but in the rare event that a baby is lost during a natural birth, the coroner’s office investigates and that brings the potential for a lengthy (and costly!) lawsuit. A silver lining does exist: Harman and her husband continue to run their women’s clinic in West Virginia, and they are committed to providing quality medical care to rural and low-income women.

Gita Tewari is a freelance writer and editor based in the Chicago area.

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In light of Dharun Ravi's hate crime conviction, Queer (In)Justice: The Criminalization of LGBT People in the United States is a timely and insightful book. Documenting the LGBT community's continuing struggle against the justice system, the authors explore how queer expression is subjected to social stigmatization and expose the ways violence and injustice are embedded within the law. 

While popular media pays a lot of attention to new and existing laws that aim to protect people who are LGBT, it overlooks the pervasive ways these people are also perceived as subjects of suspicion. This is particularly the case for queers of color, sex workers, immigrants, poor people, and youth.

Clearly a book for activists, Queer (In)Justice is an intelligent and accessible read. While the graphic tales of violence are sobering and overwhelming, illuminating this hidden history effectively illustrates the moral imperative for achieving sexual rights. The authors provide a proactive perspective, offering concrete actions that the book's readers can take to advocate for meaningful change. They suggest we “turn a queer eye” to the justice system and engage in innovative forms of activism.

As long as the judicial and law enforcement sectors view 'queer' as 'deviant', full equality for LGBT people will be impossible. The information in Queer (In)Justice can be used to tell lawmakers that being LGBT is not a crime. It also serves as reminder that we are all responsible for each other's well being, regardless of our sexual identity.

Originally published at IPPF/WHR

“Do you have a problem with blood?”

“No,” I lied.

“Great, I have a woman coming tomorrow at 10 am.”

That simple exchange left me a changed woman.

I was 22 years old and traveling alone in Mexico. I came to stay with a French-Canadian documentary filmmaker and his Mexican doctor wife, whom I'd met at a speaking event they held several months earlier at my university. We’ll call the doctor 'Cepoori'.

Cepoori provides safe abortions out of her living room. She risks not only the loss of her medical license, but also incarceration. She traveled to the U.S. to learn the technique because it was not taught in her Mexican medical school.

At 10 a.m. sharp the next morning, a young woman arrived. Nineteen-year-old Elsa was smiling, but clearly nervous. I was introduced as a friend and assistant to the doctor, there to help and make Elsa more comfortable.

Cepoori’s name is known through the grapevine, but due to the illegal nature of what she does, she does not give any information over the phone. She explained to me that she has to make sure the woman is pregnant before she divulges any information because the woman may be an informant for the government or an anti-choice group.

“I will need to give you an examination,” Cepoori informs Elsa. She was wearing a flowing Mexican blouse and jeans, a far cry from a sterile doctor’s uniform.

Cepoori confirms that Elsa is indeed pregnant. The young woman and I were both surprised when Cepoori said the termination could begin almost immediately. But first, Cepoori wanted to have a conversation with the pregnant teen.

A complete departure from the businesslike abortions my friends and I have experienced in the United States, Cepoori sought to truly get to know Elsa. She wanted to understand who she was, what she liked, the details of her relationship with her family, and what her relationship with her partner was like. It came to light that her boyfriend was into drugs and talked down to her. Elsa lived with her controlling parents and gave them all of the money she earned by working hard sewing clothes.

Cepoori and I listened and explained to Elsa that she had options. We asked if her current situation was one into which she wanted to bring a baby. Ultimately, she decided it was not. It was only after Elsa made her choice that Cepoori excused herself to change into scrubs.

Controlled first by her parents and then her boyfriend, Elsa made her first autonomous decision that day.

Alone together for the first time, I could sense Elsa wondered who the heck I was and why I was there. I told her that not long before I found myself sitting on an exam table just like her. I assured her that the decision I'd made truly was the best one for me.

Two months later, before I left Mexico, I returned to Cepoori’s house for several days to help her husband with research for a documentary. I was fortunate to have the chance to cross paths with Elsa again when she came to Cepoori’s home for a follow up visit. As a result of her experience, she had became an avid promoter of the female condom in her community.

Every day, I am inspired by the bravery of Cepoori and Elsa. It is every woman’s right to have autonomy over her own body and fertility. Thankfully, for the hundreds of Mexican women who no longer have to put their lives at risk with dangerous abortion procedures, there is one courageous woman who is willing to put their needs first.

Originally published at IPPF/WHR

"I came to tell the truth. All I want is for justice to be done," Gabriela Chacón said just moments before Luis Enrique Sossa Maltés was sentenced to four and a half years in prison. A few months prior to that victorious day, Luis sexually abused the 25-year-old woman on the street of San Jose, Chile. Unlike most men who harass women in public, Maltés was held accountable for his actions.

Respect for women’s bodily autonomy should be a guaranteed human right, and women throughout Latin America and the Caribbean are fighting to ensure they have the right to be safe when they walk down the street. In Bogota, Colombia, the Latin American Women and Habitat Network (LAWHN) launched a poster campaign on city buses that reads: "We don't need that kind of support."

“During rush hour, when the buses are packed, the male passengers take the opportunity to stand close to women and feel them up,” said Marisol Dalmazzo. “It’s offensive and restrictive to women.”

The WomenSpeak Project in Trinidad and Tobago provides an online platform for street harassment victims to share stories of discrimination and receive peer support. The project leader, Simone Leid, also uses the media to increase public awareness about street harassment being a socially accepted form of violence against women and a global women's rights issue.

"[Sexism] is still present and it affects us every day of our lives," explains Simone. "If you take the time to examine street harassment, you see that it has a great deal to do with discrimination."

Based in Argentina and coordinated by Redmujer, the Cities Without Violence Against Women, Safe Cities For All project is being carried out in several urban areas throughout Latin America -- such as Brazil, Chile, Colombia, El Salvador, Guatemala, and Peru. "The project is based on an assessment that shows that public safety policies in Latin America do not take into account violence against women in both the public and private spheres," said Liliana Rainero.

After the assessment is complete, Redmujer will present city officials with concrete strategies on how to design safer cities. In the meantime, they are also engaged in public awareness campaigns and provide safety training for women, young people, and the police. Some local organizations involved in the project have also started neighborhood revitalization and public art projects to bring the community together to fight violence against women.

From today until March 24th groups around the world will participate in International Anti-Street Harassment Week to collectively demand respect for women’s safety and an end to street harassment. It's women like Marisol, Simone, and Liliana that provide me with the inspiration to continue the lifelong struggle for women's equality and human rights. Join us and become the inspiration for other women to become a part of this growing movement.

Originally published at IPPF/WHR

“This book is about the intellectual traditions of Mesoamerican women,” explains Paloma Martinez-Cruz in the opening lines of Women and Knowledge in Mesoamerica: From East L.A. To Anahuac. A young Chicana college professor, Martinez-Cruz has written a captivating personal narrative that intertwines with the historical account of the ways Mesoamerican women healers played a role during childbirth and helped cure the sick. The resulting story is an engaging read for those intrigued by indigenous healing practices, medicine, and spirituality.

Inspiring examples of courageous women were abundant. Determined to become educated and not be governed by a husband, the famous nun, Sor Juana Ines de la Cruz—who is often referred to as Mexico’s first feminist—made the choice to enter a convent rather than live in “a prison of marriage.” Two hundred years after Sor Juana’s death, her determination to heal the sick was carried forward by Matilde Montoya, Mexico’s first female physician.

By Montoya time, women had access to formal education and convent life had lost its lustre. In spite of the professionalization of medicine, indigenous healing practices survive today and are widely used in Mesoamerican communities to repair those who are unwell.

Women and Knowledge in Mesoamerica enriches our understanding of the alternative healing practices that Mesoamerican women have been performing for centuries. The book serves as a reminder that holistic approaches to treating patients have a history in both women’s role in nurturing communities and their empowerment.

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Legendary birth-control pioneer Margaret Sanger would likely have loved Jean H. Baker’s description of her in Margaret Sanger: A Life of Passion as “an activist, propagandist, organizer, educator, advocate, and occasional martyr.” An often imperious, singleminded crusader, Sanger spent more than six decades championing family planning as an essential element of societal betterment—donning numerous hats as she fought to achieve her dream of a woman-controlled contraceptive.

Still, it wasn’t until the first decade of the 20th century that Sanger—by now married to artist Bill Sanger and a mother of three—saw the human toll of unlimited reproduction more broadly. As a visiting nurse on Manhattan’s Lower East Side, she went from tenement to tenement and noted palpable despair among the residents of this largely immigrant community. Despite this, it wasn’t until she encountered a 28-year-old mother of three named Sadie Sachs that Sanger had an epiphany. Sachs had tried to self-abort and become gravely ill; when she recovered her question was simple: What could she do to keep from becoming pregnant again?

“Another baby will finish me,” Sachs reportedly told her physician. “Tell Jack to sleep on the roof,” the doctor callously replied.

Months later, Baker writes, “Margaret was called back to the Sachs apartment. Again Sadie had become pregnant and again she has resorted to a dangerous self-abortion.” This time she died.

“I was now finished with superficial cures, with doctors and nurses and social workers who were brought face-to-face with this overwhelming truth of women’s needs and yet turned to pass on the other side. I resolved that women should have the knowledge of contraception,” Sanger wrote to her sister.

This wasn’t in-the-moment bluster. After her interaction with Sachs, Sanger decided it was high time to take on Anthony Comstock, the man responsible for pushing Congress to make it a criminal offense to send information on contraception, abortion, or “sexual implements” through the mail. Thumbing her nose at the law, Sanger wrote a series of articles for the progressive New York Call entitled "What Every Girl Should Know." Among the topics covered were venereal disease and pregnancy. Predictably, the Post Office suppressed the newspaper “on the grounds that Sanger’s extended discussion of syphilis and gonorrhea violated the law.”

Thrilled by the notoriety, Sanger continued her defiance, writing numerous articles and pamphlets on “family limitation.” By 1914, however, she wanted to do more than write: She set out to open a center where women could get solid information about pregnancy prevention. Two years later, in 1916, the nation’s first birth control clinic opened in Brooklyn’s Brownsville. A voluntary ten-cent registration fee made the storefront clinic affordable, and Baker writes that multitudes flocked to see the knowledgeable staff. Then, 10 days after opening, a plainclothes policewoman entered the facility and arrested Sanger and other employees for operating an illegal business and violating state obscenity laws. Sanger was sentenced to 30 days in prison; her sister, nurse Ethel Byrne, was also incarcerated.

The ensuing years did not lessen Sanger’s fire, but they did alter her tactics. She wrote endlessly and lectured all over the US—at civic clubs, women’s organizations, union halls, and universities—and later spoke at conferences and before professional societies throughout the world. Seeking financial support, she courted wealthy investors and worked tirelessly, despite frequent ill health, to bring the medical community to her cause. Sanger also founded a host of organizations, one of which eventually became the International Planned Parenthood Federation.

Baker's biography portrays Sanger as a difficult, rigid personality. Nonetheless, her unwavering commitment to family planning as a force for liberation continues to make her an inspiration. Brash, bold, and savvy, 46 years after Sanger's death her message of accessible health care remains relevant. Indeed, men like Ray Blunt, Rush Limbaugh, and Rick Santorum would surely benefit from reading her story.

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Adolescent fertility rates in Latin America and the Caribbean surpass the world average, and more than 1 in 3 women in the region give birth before the age of 20. In rural areas, the adolescent birth rate is even higher. This is partly due to severe income disparities between the rich and the poor in the region that translate into disparities in access, sexuality education, contraception and health care.

In Latin America, a region that has one of the most unequal income distributions in the world, many adolescents are unable to access sexual and reproductive health services. Recent research shows that income inequality has become more accentuated in Latin America and the Caribbean in the last 15 years, and the impact is being unfairly absorbed by the region's 160 million youth. With nearly half the world's population under the age of 25, increasing young people's access to sexual and reproductive health care is crucial.

Along with other IPPF/WHR Member Associations and civil society organizations, APROFAM is a member of the Mesoamerican Coalition, a region-wide alliance advocating for CSE policy changes throughout Central America. APROFAM's peer educators have been creative and outspoken in their advocacy, and as a result have been recognized by the Mesoamerican partner organizations as being a key element of the project's success in Guatemala. Their work establishing a youth voice that is taken seriously by the media has helped achieve widespread recognition of young people's sexual rights and the need to provide sexuality education that is comprehensive, in conjunction with youth-friendly services, so young people have the resources to prevent unwanted pregnancy.

In reaching Guatemala's most vulnerable youth, APROFAM's peer educators have been the strongest link. To meet the needs of the country's young homeless population, they partnered with likeminded organizations and distributed coupons that can be exchanged for free health services at APROFAM's clinics. The peer educators distribute these coupons while giving educational talks at health fairs and schools. As a result, the number of young people using the clinics has increased.

The activities of Jóvenes sin Censura get a lot of coverage in the local media, providing them with the unique opportunity to inject positive health messages into popular radio and TV programs. This kind of coverage also helps amplify their advocacy efforts -- such as their actions in support of a new law on sex education. The dynamic and vibrant mobilization of young people in support of the bill was critical. The youth coordinated and led the advocacy campaign, developing strong links with the Ministry of Education and other key partners in progress. Ultimately, the National Congress passed the law.

In Guatemala, the Catholic and evangelical churches have considerable policy influence and have spoken out against sexuality education. The media work of APROFAM’s peer educators turned the negative publicity to their own advantage. They used the opposition's attacks on youth sexual rights as an opportunity to publicize sexual and reproductive health services. The strong and effective partnerships built with the Ministry of Education, Doctors without Borders, and other regional partners helped establish CSE as a national priority, and they were able to achieve their goals.

APROFAM has done a tremendous job of developing and successfully implementing peer education programs and delivering high quality, youth-friendly services. Although the organization was previously well known and well regarded in Guatemala, their advocacy successes with the Mesoamerican Coalition has added to that positive image as a leader in youth rights. And the vital work of APROFAM’s multiplicadores has gained national credibility for the power of youth advocacy.

To see photos of the youth advocacy in the Mesoamerican Coalition, click here.

Adapted from External Evaluation of SALIN+ Projects

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With nearly half the world's population under the age of 25, today’s generation of youth is the largest ever. Yet many young people lack access to the services and information they need to make decisions about their sexual and reproductive health. Each year, there are an estimated 1.2 million unintended pregnancies among adolescent women in Latin America and the Caribbean, proportionally surpassing figures from Sub-Saharan Africa. While 35% women in the region give birth before the age of 20, in rural areas the rate is even higher.

Young people's needs go beyond contraception; they include comprehensive sexuality education, youth-friendly clinics, and services for survivors of sexual violence. Sometimes in order to best meet the needs of youth, they need to be given a place of their own.

Although modern technology plays an increasing role in the lives of young people, it has not supplanted the need for Centro. Instead, the youth volunteers use a mix of social networking sites, the Internet, and mobile phone technology to share resources, hold meetings, and coordinate outreach projects. This diversity provides a variety ways for young people to access critical health information and get involved in INPPARES' youth volunteer work. It also helps them avoid the common obstacles of limited access to public transportation and parental restrictions.

There is much to be done to ensure young people receive the sexual and reproductive health services they need to navigate into adulthood safely. Young people need support in developing the confidence and maturity to make informed decisions about their sexuality. They also need comprehensive and confidential services, reliable information about sex, and governments whose laws reflect their needs. Progress is possible when youth are empowered to make informed decisions about their sexual activity, and when their sexual and reproductive rights are put at the center of institutional policies and programs.

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Despite anti-discrimination legislation to protect the rights of sexual minorities in Venezuela, sexual orientation and gender identity remain taboo and sensitive issues. In 2008, Venezuela's Supreme Court ruled that no individual may be discriminated against or treated in an unequal fashion because of their sexual orientation. However, the following year, 19 gay men and lesbian women were arbitrarily arrested, verbally and physically abused, and detained by the police. In addition, violence against transgender people significantly increased, causing some to voice concerns about the lack of legal protections for the LGBT community.

Guidelines on sexual diversity were developed to aid the integration of sexual diversity into all organizational programs, policies and practices. PLAFAM also set up a referral and counter-referral system with a network of local experts and organizations that work with sexual minorities. The project led to fundamental organizational change, creating a rights-based and non-discriminatory workplace environment where staff is able to deliver a more responsive, appropriate, and tailored approach to care.

In the community, PLAFAM used innovative and engaging outreach techniques to educate the public about sexual diversity, respect for different sexual orientations, and acceptance of various gender identities. They collaborated with likeminded partners in order to use resources most efficiently and reach the largest number of people possible with creative communication techniques. These outreach activities raised public awareness of sexual rights as human rights and increased people's understanding of laws that prohibit discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity.

PLAFAM's drama activities and interactive discussions promoted safe sexual health practices and encouraged people to think critically about their attitudes and beliefs about sexuality and gender. By the end of the project, they had reached over 1,000 people with messages promoting sexual rights, encouraging respect for sexual diversity, and challenging traditional gender roles and stereotypes.

It is often challenging for people of diverse sexual orientations and gender identities to accept and be open about their sexuality. This is particularly hard for people who live in an environment where their rights are not known or respected. PLAFAM provides essential support, tools, and information about sexual diversity. Its work plays an essential role in empowering sexual minorities in Venezuela and improving their emotional well-being.

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The freedom to express our sexuality is an integral part of our happiness and well-being. However, people whose sexual orientation or gender identity does not conform to majority norms often face stigma and discrimination by the state and by society. Over 70 countries criminalize same-sex sexual acts between consenting adults, and in countries where the legal environment is more LGBT-friendly, institutions still hold negative biases and impose restrictions on sexuality.

Men who have sex with men are 19 times more likely to be living with HIV than the general population in low- and middle-income countries. Among transgender people, HIV prevalence is likely to be even higher.

In Latin America, there are some encouraging signs of progress towards creating more supportive environments for people who identify as LGBT or have alternative gender identities. In 2010, Argentina began to legally recognize same-sex relationships and was the first country in the region to legalize gay marriage. Last month, Brazil followed suit. Same-sex marriage is also legal in Mexico City, and several countries in the region -- Costa Rica, Uruguay, Ecuador, Colombia -- have enacted anti-discrimination laws that grant rights like civil union and adoption.

While steps have been made in the right direction, there is still an urgent need to meet the demand for specialized health services and information for sexual minorities. In partnership with our Member Associations across the region, IPPF/WHR working to ensure that the sexual rights of all are upheld, respected, and enjoyed. Targeted, bold, and innovative interventions are needed to integrate diverse needs into existing health programming. By working together, we can empower people to enjoy their sexuality in good health.

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In January, health providers throughout the United States recognized Cervical Cancer Awareness Month, reminding women and adolescent girls of the steps needed to prevent this disease.

The good news is that cervical cancer is one of the most preventable cancers when caught early. It is caused by specific types of the Human Papillomavirus (HPV), which is a common infection that nearly everyone who is sexually active will have at some point in their lives. Among medical professionals there is a general consensus that vaccinations, regular pap tests beginning at the age of 21, and HPV tests help prevent and detect cervical cancer. There are also vaccines that block the types of HPV that are most often found with cervical cancers, and screenings can help identify the women who are most at risk.

The solution is to ensure that more women have access to better health care, including the HPV vaccine. When given to young women, these vaccines can prevent up to 70 percent of new cases of cervical cancer. Throughout the region, our partners are piloting innovative—and effective—programs to ensure that all women have access to quality sexual and reproductive health care, including screening for cervical cancer:

In Bolivia, the toll of cervical cancer is especially tragic. Every day, five women die from cervical cancer, and nearly 3 million young women are at risk for developing this preventable disease. In response, we worked closely with CIES, our partner on the ground, to educate parents and young girls about the HPV vaccine as a simple and effective means for preventing cervical cancer. Then, CIES set out to provide the vaccine to girls in poor urban and isolated rural areas with the most difficult access to services. Our campaign against cervical cancer in Bolivia resulted in nearly 87,000 girls being vaccinated against the disease.

In Haiti, day-to-day life continues to be a struggle in the aftermath of the devastating earthquake. Lack of infrastructure, poor quality roads, and the high number of people still seeking permanent housing make reaching—and treating—vulnerable populations a challenge. Working with our partner, PROFAMIL, we've implemented a breakthrough innovation for detecting precancerous cervical lesions with the naked eye. This approach does not require sophisticated lab equipment, assessment is immediate, and usually the client can be treated during the same visit. With this simple, cost-effective method, we are now able to identify up to 79 percent of women at high risk of developing cervical cancer.

Women in developing countries account for 80 percent of all new cases of cervical cancer worldwide, and new research shows this rate is continuing to rise. Effective screening programs are largely unavailable in poor countries. As a result, most women with cervical cancer obtain health services only after the disease has reached an untreatable advanced stage, condemning them to a horrible death.

A comprehensive approach that includes screening, pre-cancer treatment, and HPV vaccination could save the lives of the nearly 300,000 women who will die from cervical cancer this year. This approach also requires sexuality education where young people learn how to protect themselves and investments in emerging technologies like a rapid HPV test.

More than anything else, putting an end to these preventable deaths requires political will, resources, and cooperation -- and the belief that even one death from cervical cancer is too many.

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January 22nd marks the 39th anniversary of one of the most significant legal decisions of the 20th century, Roe v. Wade. This landmark ruling from the United States Supreme Court legalized abortion and changed the course of history for women in this country. Yet women in Latin America and the Caribbean continue to struggle for this basic reproductive right.

Fear of legal consequences, social stigma, high cost, and lack of access to trained health professionals are major barriers to obtaining safe abortions. Banning abortion does not reduce the numbers of women who attempt it; in fact, the abortion rate is much higher where it is illegal.

Despite these disturbing facts, only 6 of the 34 countries in the region allow abortion without restriction. These countries account for less than 5% of the region’s women ages 15–44.

Over the last decade, gains have been made throughout the region to address unsafe abortion and advocate for decriminalization. In 2007, for example, the Mexico City government lifted the ban on abortion during the first 12 weeks of pregnancy. IPPF/WHR's Member Association in Mexico, MEXFAM, plays a leading role in providing safe abortion services to women and adolescents. In addition to providing legal abortion services in Mexico City, MEXFAM also works to reduce the public health impact of unsafe abortion in states where the law is more restrictive. MEXFAM's work to reduce maternal mortality was highlighted just last month by ABC's "20/20."

Nearly half of sexually active young women in Latin America and the Caribbean have an unmet need for contraception. Fulfilling this need will not only reduce the number of unplanned pregnancies, but also empower women by giving them the freedom to choose when and if they have children. Fulfilling the unmet need for contraception worldwide would avert 188 million unintended pregnancies, which would in turn result in 112 million fewer abortions.

Meeting the unmet need for sexual and reproductive health services helps create healthier communities and is a crucial step towards achieving the Millennium Development Goals by 2015.

Image from The World's Abortion Laws Map 2011

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Originally published at IPPF/WHR

• Photo credit: Elise Mann •

Global weather volatility and the ongoing financial crisis increase the need for new approaches to sustainable development. Meanwhile, more than 200 million women worldwide lack the means to choose how many children to have and when, because they do not have access to contraception.

“Environmental and reproductive health activists must move forward together and create a more just future for all,” said Mary Robinson, President of the Mary Robinson Foundation – Climate Justice and former President of Ireland. “Global leaders must recognize the role of women as agents of change in their homes, communities, and countries, and their intimate understanding of the inter-generational aspects of climate change.”

“Relatively inexpensive policies to provide comprehensive sexuality education and access to contraception can meet the basic human right to decide how many children to have," said Barroso. "It is just common sense – universal access to family planning is a key intervention for sustainable development.”

You can read media coverage of this event on Global Post and National Geographic, and photos from the event can be viewed here.

Watch the full conversation by clicking the video below: