Malignant Ulcers of Capitalism: The Proletarian Struggle for Reproductive Freedom (Part 2)
In our first part on reproductive struggles in class society, we highlighted some of the facts and dangers surrounding abortion and contraception. We also commented on the family unit and prostitution – two phenomena Marxists deem to be flipsides of one another and inseparable from the struggle for reproductive freedom. In this piece, we shed light on sterilization, sex selective abortions, religion, and bourgeois laws as specific to the needs of capital, noting the consequential damages to the proletariat.
Bourgeois Law and the Stronghold of Capital Such laws [against abortion and the distribution of medical literature on contraceptive measures] are nothing but the hypocrisy of the ruling classes. These laws do not heal the ulcers of capitalism, they merely turn them into malignant ulcers that are especially painful for the oppressed masses. (Lenin, The Working Class and NeoMalthusianis