Doris Andrea Dirks' Critical Reads

Doris Andrea Dirks is a senior academic planner with the University of Wisconsin System Administration. Doris Andrea Dirks discusses To Offer Compassion: A History of the Clergy Consultation Service on Abortion, in conversation by Sandra Sullivan-Dunbar, on Thurs. 6/22 6pm at the Co-op. RSVP and details here.

Critical Reads for D.A. Dirks’ June 22, 2017 6 p.m. event at Co-op Seminary Bookstore relating to To Offer Compassion: A History of the Clergy Consultation Service on Abortion by Doris Andrea Dirks and Patricia A. Relf:

Black Maverick: T. R. M. Howard’s Fight for Civil Rights and Economic Power by David T. Beito and Linda Royster Beito: A balanced and vivid biography of the civil rights pioneer, orator, supporter of black enterprise, political figure, physician, and abortion provider who spent much of his career in Chicago.

Unbought and Unbossed by Shirley Chisholm: This short book was written in 1970, but Chisholm could have written it yesterday. In terms of political deal-making, poverty, racism, and sexism, things have either worsened or changed very little since then. Chisholm was a breath of fresh air, bravely speaking her conscience and the truth regardless of the political consequences--though this book also reveals what a great organizer and smart politician she was.

Liberty and Sexuality: The Right to Privacy and the Making of Roe v. Wade by David J. Garrow: Maybe not a beach read, but a definitive reference for the legal side of the story of abortion in the second half of the twentieth century.

Articles of Faith: A Frontline History of the Abortion Wars by Cynthia Gorney: A detailed but engrossing look at the struggle over abortion access through the stories of dedicated activists on both sides in Missouri.

Doctors of Conscience: The Struggle to Provide Abortion Before and After Roe v. Wade by Carole Joffe:  The stories of abortion providers, largely untold before this book.

Sweet Tea: Black Gay Men of the South by E. Patrick Johnson: Giving voice to a population too rarely acknowledged, Johnson collects more than sixty life stories from black gay men who were born, raised, and continue to live in the South. These narratives challenge stereotypes of the South as "backward" or "repressive" and offers a window into the ways black gay men negotiate their identities, build community, maintain friendship networks, and find sexual and life partners--often in spaces and activities that appear to be antigay. Ultimately, Sweet Tea validates the lives of these black gay men and reinforces the role of storytelling in both African American and southern cultures.

The Story of Jane: The Legendary Underground Feminist Abortion Service by Laura Kaplan: The stirring story of how a Chicago feminist abortion referral group discovered that they themselves could provide safe abortions—and did.

When Abortion Was a Crime: Women, Medicine, and Law in the United States, 1867-1973 by Leslie J. Reagan: Abortion was illegal in the U.S. for about a century, but women had abortions throughout that time. Reagan traces the changes in attitudes regarding abortion, its safety and availability, and its legal status.

Undivided Rights: Women of Color Organize for Reproductive Justice by Jael Silliman, Marlene Gerber Fried, Loretta Ross, and Elena R. Gutiérrez: Women of color have shifted the discourse from “pro-abortion,” “pro-choice,” and even “reproductive freedom” to “reproductive justice.” Constraining women of color’s reproduction are population and fertility controls, sterilization abuse, long-term and unsafe contraceptives, welfare reform, criminalization of women of color, immigration policies, medical experimentation, and coercive and intrusive family planning policies and programs. While the mainstream movement has focused on a single issue steeped in liberal individualism, these authors document how articulating reproductive issues within culturally specific contexts has been essential to developing resistance, a political agenda, and constituency bases in communities of color.

Defenders of the Unborn: The Pro-Life Movement before Roe v. Wade by Daniel K. Williams: An even-handed look at anti-abortion activism before Roe v. Wade. If you only remember the protests, violence, and strong political influence of pro-life proponents since the 1980s, it's instructive to recall that in the 1960s the pro-life stance articulated by the Catholic Church began to attract many social liberals, anti-war activists, and mostly Democrats.