Cura Personalis and the Rights and Dignity of Pregnant People

On Tuesday, February 2nd, a panel of experts gathered at Fordham to speak about "cura personalis" (concern for the rights and dignity of the whole person) as it applies to the rights and dignity of pregnant persons, most of whom are women.  More than 100 people, mostly Fordham students, attended the event.

The event, "Cura Personalis and the Rights and Dignity of Pregnant People," was organized by our very own Dr. Jeanne Flavin, Professor of Sociology, and Hailey Flynn of the Fordham Chapter of Law Students for Reproductive Justice. The panel was made up of Julie Burkhart (Trust Women), Soffiyah Elijah (Correctional Association of New York) and Lynn Paltrow (National Advocates for Pregnant Women).  American Studies and Women's Studies also co-sponsored the event.

The panel during the question and answer portion of the event.

Ms. Burkhart described opening clinics that provide abortion, prenatal care, and other reproductive health services in the Midwest. State policies requiring dual parental consent, mandatory ultrasounds, waiting periods, and expensive and unnecessary facility modifications often make it difficult to provide and meet the needs of the person coming in for health care. Doctors also face harassment and marginalization that can pose a barrier to providing continuity of care to patients.  Burkhart described a need for broad access to contraception as well as repeal of laws and policies that create barriers for the pregnant women seeking services.

Ms. Soffiyah Elijah speaking to a student after the event.

Ms. Elijah described some of Correctional Association of New York's work monitoring conditions in prisons. “Nothing in prison vaguely resembles cura personalis," she observed.  Shackling of pregnant women is a dangerous practice. There is a high risk of falling or tripping and the worry and stressors may lead to anxiety which may in turn affect the health of the woman and her fetus. As the result of the advocacy of Correctional Association of New York and other organizations, the New York State Department of Corrections now prohibits shackling of incarcerated pregnant women. Elijah states that while progress has been made in terms of anti-shackling legislation, incarcerated women continue to need better care, including access to medical care and contraception, greater respect for their right to privacy and attention to the needs of older women, including those in menopause.

Dr. Jeanne Flavin, Ms. Lynn Paltrow, Soffiyah Elijah, Julie Burkhart and Hailey Flynn, Fordham Law student (moderator and co-organizer of the event).

Ms. Paltrow shared her knowledge on fundamental laws and policies that are negatively affecting pregnant women every day noting that “More than 39 states [have] gender discriminatory advanced directive laws” and that the United States is one of two countries that does not have paid maternity leave. Due to these set policies, many women are unable to make their own decisions regarding their pregnancy.  Paltrow also remarked upon the comparisons of abortions to slavery and genocide.  Such rhetoric defames pregnant women at the same time as it distorts and erases the reality of what slavery and genocide actually are. Paltrow encourages people to defend the rights and dignity of pregnant women, whether they plan to go to term, seek to have an abortion, or experience a pregnancy loss.