Writers 2 Remember: Margaret Sanger
Nurse who pioneered birth control
Margaret Sanger is a lot of things… nurse, writer, sex educator, activist… Some praise her while others hate her. She is all too human, with good and bad ideas, both a product of her time as well as someone ahead of it.
Why does Margaret Sanger matter? For me, I think she should matter to the world because she saved lives and was an advocate of female sexual autonomy. In a time when it was illegal to even discuss contraception, she bravely stepped forward to end butchered abortions and stop women from being forced to have unwanted pregnancies. Sometimes, these pregnancies weren’t viable (such as a tubal) and other times they were unhealthy for the woman because she had already birthed too many babies for her body to handle, making her sickly. Many conditions led to suffering and death.
Margaret didn’t believe in abortion[11], per se, but she believed in prevention. She believed in women having the right to decide what would happen to their bodies themselves, based on their circumstances and health. She gave a safe alternative to so-called back-alley abortions[9] by opening the first birth control clinic.
There has been a lot of controversy about Margaret Sanger’s views when it comes to eugenics, poor, and race, but that should not mitigate the value of her contributions. Her believes speak more about the need for educating people and the horrific beliefs people have held throughout history, which MUST change. However, she still left a legacy that did more good for ALL women of the world despite Margaret’s disturbing flaws. Therefore, I champion her for fighting for women to have dominion over their bodies, which is why she’s a writer to be remembered!
