I just gave one lecture this week in women’s history, on abortion. The link to the audio file is here. I touched on Roe, Griswold, the right to privacy, the notion of quickening as the starting point for life, and the visit of Justice for All, the anti-abortion group, to our campus. Thanks to Mon-Shane Chou for recording and uploading the lecture.
Haven’t listened to the lecture yet, but don’t have access to headphones at the moment, so I’ll ask here: what is your class’s general reaction when you give the abortion lecture? Is it one of those lectures that you’re very careful about giving, or do you just go all out?
Subdued, angered, inspired — all of these reactions seem to be normal. I don’t apologize for the central role that abortion takes in the feminist narrative, and I make the case as to why it belongs right there. I pull some punches, but at this point in the semester, not many. (Apologies for the metaphor of violence.)