The question of reproductive rights has mobilized student groups concerned with the possible long-term ramifications the presidential election will have on issues such as abortion.
For most students, this will be the first presidential election in which they are eligible to vote. Groups including Students for Choice, the Feminist Majority Leadership Alliance and the Brown Democrats have been working together since the semester began to organize voter registration drives and encourage students to vote, said Emilee Pressman '05, co-chair of SFC.
SFC, which has an active general body membership of over 50, helped students register and obtain absentee ballots, but its main focus remains informing the student body about candidates' stances on abortion.
"Our goal is just to let students know who is the candidate who is pro-choice and who is not," Pressman said. "Since we've already passed absentee ballot deadline, we're focusing on state elections."
Along with activities emphasizing voter registration, some groups have invited speakers and planned special events aimed at demonstrating the importance of reproductive rights in this election. SFC had an abortion provider speak at a general body meeting about how difficult obtaining an abortion has become because of political and legal complications, Pressman said.
The FMLA also sponsored a screening of "Vote for Choice," a documentary about the March for Women's Lives, on Tuesday.
Many students think the issue of abortion and reproductive rights is particularly pressing this election because of the connected question of judicial appointments.
"I think that abortion is always an important issue, especially for us who recognize that the next president will probably be appointing two new justices to the Supreme Court," said Kelly Hall '06, chair of the Brown Democrats' legislative committee.
Hall said the Democrats tend to avoid talking about abortion when canvassing in swing states, where opinions are more divided, but amplify it among the generally liberal population of Brown students.
"We use this issue when it's advantageous, in areas such as Brown's campus," she said.
Still, most students, even those who hold strong opinions on abortion, are not mobilizing around the issue, Hall said. "Many students don't understand how threatened reproductive rights really are," she said. "Most students don't have the possibility of Roe v. Wade being overturned and George Bush appointing pro-life judges to the Supreme Court in the forefront of their mind."
Christopher McAuliffe '05, president of the Brown College Republicans, said the degree to which reproductive rights are at stake in this election is overstated. "Personally, I don't think that (the issue of abortion) is as important as people think," he said. "I think the issue of judicial appointments is very important.
"People have a very simplistic view of the abortion issue - they tend to believe that if Republicans appoint conservative judges, abortion will be illegal in the imminent future," he added.
McAuliffe estimated that the College Republicans are evenly split on the question of abortion.
A host of smaller issues fit under the umbrella topic of reproductive rights, said Gail Cohee, director of the Sarah Doyle Women's Center. "There's concern about access to birth control and reproductive health," she said. "This issue of availability of contraceptives is something many of us never even thought would be an issue."
Faye Reiff-Pasarew '05, president of FMLA, and Hall both emphasized that the presidential race is not the only contest in which reproductive rights are at stake. "While the presidency is important, Congress and the Senate are also important in this election," Reiff-Pasarew said.
Hall also said local elections and candidates remain central in determining the status of reproductive rights. "It's important to have advocates on the state level as well as national advocates, because so many of the smaller issues under reproductive rights are decided at the state level," she said.
in an effort to raise awareness about state elections, SFC will be distributing table slips Monday and Tuesday that indicate which local candidates are pro-choice, Pressman said.
Pressman said the issue of reproductive rights encompasses a holistic view of a woman's life. "If you're not going to let a woman terminate her pregnancy, are you going to take care of her?" she said. "It goes into welfare and other social issues as well."
