Reproductive rights in question
By Lindsay Cain
The F Word

It’s been 35 years since Roe v. Wade, and what has been a struggle for decades remains a struggle today. More than ever, abortion has become a hot-button issue in politics and religion. What began as a matter of privacy continues to escalate in public arenas.

The controversy around abortion reaches much further than the abortion procedure itself. Pro-life advocates campaign to take sex education out of school and to take birth control and other contraceptives off the market.

They long for a world in which sex is a private matter only explored between man and wife. Since many pro-lifers also claim religious affiliation, many are also against homosexuality.

Pro-choice no longer simply means being supportive of a woman’s right to choose. Many on this side of the issue also fight for more comprehensive sex education, and better access to birth control and contraception. Pro-choice can also relate to sexuality and matters of sexual preference.

Film is a great medium to explore these issues. Controversial director Tony Kaye (American History X) illustrates the depth of these heated topics in his new documentary, Lake of Fire, now available on DVD.

Lake of Fire, a grueling and sometimes graphic journey, was in production for nearly 20 years. The documentary chronicles our nation’s attitudes and legal matters surrounding abortion, and runs more than two-and-a-half hours long. Some depictions and situations are not for the squeamish or easily shaken. But, for anyone curious about the big picture and the social and cultural ramifications of such loaded issues, Lake of Fire is a must see.

Other DVDs exploring the topic of abortion include: If These Walls Could Talk, Unborn in the USA and Vera Drake.

Playing now at the Little Theater in downtown Rochester is a foreign film entitled 4 months, 3 weeks, and 2 days.

This film follows a young woman as she attempts to procure an abortion in 1980s communist Romania.

If you find yourself facing a difficult decision regarding your reproductive rights, seek support. Roe v. Wade helps safeguard your reproductive rights, and its ruling is in jeopardy. To find out more about the ongoing controversy surrounding reproductive freedoms, visit the Women’s Center located in the basement of the Student Union, or call 395-5584.

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