Learning from Black Communities. Sexual and Reproductive Health Activism in Britain

Learning from Black Communities. Sexual and Reproductive Health Activism in Britain, 1970-2000

Naomi is a PhD candidate at the Department of International History and Politics and research associate for a Swiss National Science Foundation funded project on Race and Ethnicity: Sexual Health and Reproductive Experiences (RE:SHaRE) supervised by Dr. Caroline Rusterholz. Naomi’s research focuses on activism led by and for racialized communities that informed experiences around sexual and reproductive health (SRH). From the 1970s onward, Black and Asian women in Britain organized and set up groups to campaign and denounce racist practices in connection with SRH. From the 1990s, Black women and Women of Color set up their own SRH services. Drawing upon archival materials from these activists, medical articles, media analysis, and oral history interviews with key members of activist groups during this time, this research takes on a reproductive justice framework and initially asks: To what extent was SRH activism instrumental in the illumination of racist practices in SRH services and broader linking urban policies? How did the setting up of Black and POC-led SRH services answer the SRH needs of their communities? To what degree did the circulation of theories and frameworks from international women’s health activism shape British SRH activism?

Naomi, alongside her research team, is collaborating with a number of organizations that have and continue to center the experiences of Black, Indigenous, and Communities of Color in Britain. The growing list of these organizations can be found on the RE:SHaRE webpage.