Before Dobbs v. Jackson or Roe v. Wade, the government legislated control over Black women's reproduction in America. That started way back in 1662 in Virginia. Tracing this long history with me is Professor Jennifer L. Morgan, author of Laboring Women: Reproduction and Gender in New World Slavery.

Centering Black women in today's debates and laws about reproduction and women's rights reveals a long history of racism, capitalism, and slavery. As it turns out, the logic behind Dobbs and the laws following after it starts with early contact between Africans and Europeans and with some of the first Africans to arrive in America.

It is centuries of history to untangle and dismantle, but starting the story at the beginning with the often-overlooked history of Black women is a good place to start.

Music Credit

PeaceLoveSoul by Jeris (c) copyright 2012 Licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution (3.0) license. http://dig.ccmixter.org/files/VJ_Memes/35859 Ft: KungFu (KungFuFrijters)