This article brought up a lot of good points that really pertains to our society today, especially in terms of the environment. I think the fact that we have grown up in a sort of "throw away" society really shows how we treat the environment. The fact that we drink water out of disposable water bottles and use oil like there is no tomorrow shows that we expect these things to come from some infinite source, and that where they go afterward is not really our problem. In terms of economics, this lifestyle is embedded into our way of thinking--our capitalistic economy praises the aggressive attitudes and actions of massive corporations and the individual's pursuit of conspicuous consumption. The "American way of life" is not healthy to the environment or society as a whole, at least in the long run.
Another point that the author brought up was the unexpected correlation of toxic bodies and the purity of the nation. I liked how Berila related the environmental issue with AIDS. I hadn't really thought of them going together, but thinking about it shows how they are closely related in issues. When I think of the idea of nation's "purity," I have to ask, what needs to be kept pure? What population's lifestyle has to be kept safe? We have issues of race, gender, sexual orientation, etc. come up with this question. The whole AIDS issue that Berila brings up parallels the readings we read in class about the Puerto Rican women, Native Americans, and the eugenics movement. Somehow, these marginalized members of society must be restrained and/or kept under control in order to maintain the health of the nation. It's scary to think that unfounded beliefs, such as the prejudices against people with AIDS, can form from the idea that there is some sort of a health of the nation--especially the belief that only the homosexual population gets AIDS, and this population must be contained in order to save the heterogeneous, contained population (130). This sort of pervasive way of thinking is embedded into our culture on a very subtle, basic level. Groups like ACT UP are integral in changing this way of thinking. I like how Berila deconstructed basic attitudes and beliefs in order to question their faultiness.
1 comment:
This is a great post and your take on “Toxic Bodies” really brings me back to my activist practicum. As you recall, I worked with a reproductive rights lobbying group called “Spark Reproductive Justice Now.” The leaders emphasized a point of reproductive rights I had never considered. (Previously, I held reproductive rights to be the right to safe abortion, birth control, reproductive education, etc.) They said in paraphrase, “What good is birth control if the children we want are being harmed, if the air we breathe and the milk we feed them are toxic?” It was then that I realized that reproductive rights heavily involve protecting mothers—women, us— from unclean air, water, and nourishment. In addition, we must consider not only the toxicity of our own air and land, but also that of less fortunate countries. In developing countries, many mothers have no access to sanitation, even basic healthcare, or life-saving medicine for their children. The struggle for female reproductive rights is an uphill battle against local and foreign corporations, politicians, and policy makers alike.
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