Roe vs Wade: Today is a good day to affirm we are a wedding space that champions body autonomy and joy over your lifestyle and love styles!

A beautiful Evie and Maddie taken by the wonderful photographer Alia Romagnoli to soak up.

Obviously there’s a lot to be said, but perhaps nothing at all here. Buutt…here we are.

I wrote something long - as per ! Well not super long but double the length of an insta caption so I’ve put it on the blog.

Roe vs Wade being overturned IS gut wrenchingly diabolical but let’s keep this energy for all of the ways that people are marginalised and live as second class citizens every single day. And bearing in mind who will be the most effected by the decision - being a woman or someone with a uterus, is one thing but it will always be intersected and further impacted with, as always, class/poverty, able-ness and race and other types of marginalisation. 

Body autonomy is taken from people all the time, particularly marginalised people, always has been and will always be a battleground, as part of the way white supremacy, capitalism and patriarchy functions and Is designed to do so. And we can’t ignore the way that these systems work, only until it comes for us. Passively living with a harmful status quo when its working ok for us. Because it’s coming for other people ALL.THE.TIME. Keep aware, vigilant, keep listening, reading, keep engaged with community projects at a grass roots level.

Those who are the most oppressed know the best course of action, because for many these battles are the every day, second nature, pervasive, big, small, dramatic and subtle but always here. So we got to keep keep calm and steady, listen all the time and join forces. We should never forget the real change has always come from the most oppressed - and lets get to the heart of it, it is Black Women who have always been the back bone of any true inclusive civil rights movements from Marsha P Johnson and Stonewall to Ida B Wells pushing to get the vote, countless more to mention here and across the pond. 

SO we can bolster what’s already being done, because there’s people actively fighting every day, whether we are involved or not. So we can and should combine with them, and not just turn our backs when things are “alright” for us again.. Only to periodically cry and shout and be shocked when it effects us but really don’t follow through with any long game to disrupt the actual systems that make it so, the systems maintained by these moves.

By that I mean - those civil rights change makers are not just historical figures - they are here RIGHT NOW doing the thing, steadily and all the time, and we need to listen and get involved and not only when it directly effects us.

@moemotive @amandaseales @kimberlylatricejones - were all people ready with the plan on Friday - because the plan is essential to existence for those who live with oppression and is running all the time..

(There are so many to mention and not wanting to lump everyone together)

And it’s definitely not just an American thing. Priti Patel and her crew taking away our right to protest, Dominic Raab setting about ’overhauling’ the human rights act, Jacob Rees Mogg said just last week he thinks maternity pay and leave should be cut further. Boris intentionally not including Trans people in the banning of conversion therapy, while also cutting 70million in disability benefits last year. All effecting the access people have to living fully and safely.

There are horrendous disparities in Black and brown birthing people's maternal health outcomes against their white counterparts - showing how right now in this moment people are already battling with bodily autonomy - and is something we should be up in arms about in the same way we are about this - see @fivexmore and @birthrightsorg for action!

Feminism MUST be intersectional at every step, otherwise it ain’t feminism.

This has been coming for a long time (52% of white women voted for Trump in 2016 which increases to 55% in 2020?? a big part of setting this in motion), and America sets the trends and other countries who are also on the fence with these type of laws - or already have them let’s not forget! - and are now emboldened and validated by this to also go back hundreds of years of conservatism.. and it’s just the start, with this new turn LGBTQ+ rights, legality of contraception, are all now on the table, under question, right now because of this.

It’s scary and it’s overwhelming but it’s long game, but let’s not sleep walk into and be surprised by these big decisions. Let’s be focused and non-reactive. Keep the energy a constant disrupting of the harmful structures, in all the spaces we inhabit.

We can look at how we can help locally with organisations that already exist that fight oppressive systems or support or uplift those living with the consequences of them, what skills do we have that we could apply to the cause? In schools, in work, in our community, in our own actions? How could our work we already do align with them? Are we having conversations with the people in our lives who support discriminatory ideas? As it is all connected. It’s at this level we can make an impact, little by little, so let’s do it!

Also check out @withprideweddingss for info on how this week, seven years ago, the legalisation of same-sex marriage was celebrated in the US - makes you realise how fragile these moments are..

And @ukblackpride to see their amazing inclusive happenings to support, including the upcoming event at Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park on 15th August! Support these type of organisations and not just in Pride month!

And Nova Reid writing actual manuals on how to free others and ourselves from these structures on a human to human level.

@sistahspace looking after the safety of women, on the ground.

And our friends @patchwork_it also giving practical advice and signposting to more action points on the Humans Rights Act issue this week.

And to repeat! see @fivemorex and @birthrightsorg as above for action on equity in maternal health and rights.

Picture of a beautiful Evie and Maddie taken by the wonderful photographer @a8lia to soak up - because we will always try our best to be a space that celebrates and actively champions autonomy and joy over your lifestyle and love styles!