tonguebreaks:Daisy Patton, from ”Would You Be Lonely Without Me?” series. In this painting series, I
tonguebreaks:Daisy Patton, from ”Would You Be Lonely Without Me?” series. In this painting series, I paint the portraits of women who died because abortion was illegal. Searching through newspaper archives, yearbooks, and periodic internet articles that attempt to remind the general public of the horrors of pre-Roe v Wade, I collect as much information as is available to recreate what each woman looked like, based on those photos and any identifying information. In this research, many women are treated as bystanders or afterthoughts in articles on their own demise; focus is placed on the men, whether doctors or romantic partners, with scarce conversation around who the woman was and what her loss meant to those around her. Similar to the current era, those that receive the most attention in these spaces are generally white women, especially middle to upper class. Poorer women gain spotlights when their deaths were especially gruesome, and women of color are purposefully erased in dominant culture newspapers. Their deaths are noted in race-specific news sources, but unlike their white counterparts, much more is written on how their deaths devastated their friends, families, and communities. We should remember the terrible numbers of lives lost, their potential as living, breathing people denied autonomy, and the wake of their deaths as it affected the women surrounding them, as well as their sons, fathers, husbands, brothers. Religious Americans were initially in favor of Roe v Wade because they recognized the awful impacts of these women’s deaths. Because it is so easy to forget with time and propaganda, the “pro-life” movement began not because of concern over fetuses, but rather the religious right’s desire to protect segregation in schools. The fact they continue to try to limit women’s access to birth control, a proven way to lower the abortion rate, underscores how little this difficult subject is about concern but rather control over women and their bodies. Let us remember the women lost during this barbaric era and fight to ensure this history is not repeated. The title of this series comes from the last words of 17-year-old Arlene Thompson to her mother, just before she left to die from a botched abortion. Understanding she might not return alive, she asked, “Mom, would you be really lonely without me around?” Her body was found over ten days later in a shallow grave in an empty lot, covered with trash. *Note: This series is for sale and 100% of the proceeds go to reproductive justice organizations. All works oil on paper with embroidery. -- source link