Articles by Laurie Penny

Source: New Statesman

Nobody should have to play the frightened victim to make basic choices about her future.

What does a good abortion look like? A few months ago, Emily Letts, a 25-year-old American clinic worker, filmed her surgical abortion and posted the video on the internet. In the clip, Letts smiles and hums throughout the procedure, which she chose to have simply because she did not want to bear a child. “I feel good,” she remarks when it’s over, shattering generations of anxiety and fear-mongering around reproductive choice with three simple words. read more

Source: New Statesman

Bigots and reactionaries are like small children, in that when they ask a question over and over and over again, it’s usually because they don’t like the answer. ‘How do we stop teenage girls having sex’ is one of these questions. The answer, “We really, really can’t” is unacceptable to the moral mumocracy, who become incensed when any policy is proposed that appears to prioritise young girls’ safety and autonomy over those excellent, tried-and-tested methods of preventing teenage pregnancy: shame and ignorance. read more