SisterSong and Human Rights

One of the biggest problems that women of color and other oppressed parties of women face is that mainstream women’s rights groups tend to look at them as a party fighting for a separate cause.  Groups like SisterSong can often be criticized by other women’s rights groups for putting issue of race, class or ethnicity first, but they also may be criticized for putting women’s issue first by other groups who are activists more geared towards race, class or ethnicity. Some scholars, such as Zakiya Luna, argue that SisterSong is taking a more human rights approach in their campaign where the other organizations are more involved in issues centered on civil or political rights although the claim to be fighting for human rights. It is for reasons like this that I believe given a little more time SisterSong could be a very successful organization and make more impact on our nation than they already have.  The organization takes such a different approach to their activism, educating current and potential members. Before doing this research I could be described the same way Luna describes most U.S citizens in her article: “Substitution of “civil rights” for “human rights” in everyday practice leads to the common perception in the US that human rights violations happen to political prisoners in China or to women in Africa – not to citizens in the US” (Luna, 347). Issues such as abortion and birth control are seen and advertised as civil or political issues and we do not see them for what they truly are.  As Americans we see issue such as Female Genital Mutilation as a violation of human rights because it prevents them from having certain options and rights with their bodies, but should not letting women make the decision to have or not have children be treated as a different right? In my opinion, no.  They are both violating our rights as women to do as we please with our bodies and we should be properly educated on the options that we have as humans on this planet.  I think that SisterSong seems to be doing a great job of making these same points and fighting for a cause that they see as more than a political stance and informing all women of this as well.