My Body, Whose Choice?

Or How I Learned about Righteous Mom Rage

Abstract

Through an autoethnographic account of fertility treatments, pregnancy, and motherhood, this article reflects on women’s rights and bodily autonomy in the context of recent political events in the United States (US). While sharing her experience with fertility treatments, detailing the physical and emotional toll of IVF, the author reflects on the difficulty of facing this process and her longing for motherhood. The political backdrop of the US Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade fuelled rage and anxiety in her, as she grapples with legal implications for her bodily autonomy and medical care during pregnancy. Abortion is healthcare, and the outlawing of healthcare for women can have dire consequences. Anger and rage have empowered women’s rights movements, and feminist writers have discussed the power of women’s rage as a catalyst for social change. bell hooks and Mona Eltahawy, among other feminist scholars, explain that women need to reclaim their anger as a form of empowerment. This autoethnography critiques the US political landscape that undermines human rights and healthcare, advocating for embracing rage to enact systemic change for everyone’s autonomy and wellbeing.