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Boston Women's Health Book Collective

The Boston Book Collective is a feminist group who created [[Our Bodies, Ourselves], a book that presents information to women regarding their bodies so that they can be informed and empowered by the knowledge they receive about their bodies. The collective was created in May 1969, first addressing courses about women's bodies. The collective formed at the peak of the women's movement in Boston. 12 women all between the ages of 23 to 39 first attended a workshop entitled "Women and Their Bodies" which allowed the women to discuss together the issues they have surrounding their health. The discussion created a conscious raising environment, providing each woman with information that they all deal with when handling issues about their bodies. The strong discussion supplied the women with the necessary tools and ideas that lead to the creation of their book that addressed issues surrounding sexuality and abortion. They put their knowledge into an accessible format that served as a model for women who wanted to learn about themselves, communicate with doctors, and challenge medical establishment to change and improve the health of women everywhere. The discussions provided the 12 members: Ruth Davidson, Bell Alexander, Pamela Berger, Vilunya Diskin, Joan Ditzion, Paula Doress-Worters, Nancy Miriam Hawley, Elizabeth MacMahon-Herrera, Pamela Morgan, Judy Norsigian, Jane Kates Pincus, Esther Rome, Wendy Sanford, Norma Swenson, Sally Whelan; the knowledge needed to provide them with the skills to address reproductive freedom. Together the 12 women addressed issues of Reproductive justice. Reproductive Justice was at the forefront during the women's liberation causing much debate over the biological rights that every woman deserves. The Equal Rights Amendment had a section specifically targeting the important issues about Reproductive justice that combines multiple reproductive rights and issues surrounding family. The strategy of the reproductive justice plank was to establish the necessary rights and access for women to gain control over their bodies. Through the passing of this legislation woman would be granted the ability to have abortions, birth control and gain full control over their bodies. The Boston Collective focused on these ideas to allow women the ability to understand their bodies and themselves as women. During the National Women's Conference, women from all over the country deliberated to determine the exact laws that should be put into place for women's reproductive justice. The Boston Collective work together to teach courses and create books that provide knowledge from women not only in Boston, but women across the nation.These women use their skills and knowledge to provide many women with knowledge about their lives through rhetoric that does describe the female reproductive system as: passive, unproductive, helpless, powerless. The terms one finds in a medical journal about the female body begins to create stereotypical ideas that perpetuate constantly. The way women act, speak. eat, and obstacles women face on a daily basis comes down to the struggle they face over their bodies. The outcome of the Boston Collective allows women to regain their voice and learn the importance have had control over one's body. The rhetoric and strategies the Boston Collective use to get their message out there about reproductive justice becomes a platform for the reproductive justice movement. It is important that woman learn about themselves and gain back the rhetoric, control and reclaim their bodies.    

Boston Women's Health Book Collective