VideoIf you can’t say it, don’t legislate it.

As the War on Women rages on, anti-woman forces – primarily a cadre of ultra-conservative men – continue to beef up their offensive troops. They now have Paul Ryan “a no abortions ever” kind of guy, teaming up with Mitt “I’ve always been pro-life” Romney, and together, they’ve created a party platform that represents the biggest threat to Roe v Wade we’ve seen thus far.

New to the frontline, we’ve been introduced to the rogue soldier, Representative Todd Akin, a Missouri candidate for the U.S. Senate. In a recent interview, Rep. Akin was seen munching on a tasty foot in his mouth as he expressed his belief that in most cases of “legitimate” rape, “the female body has ways to try to shut that whole thing down,” thereby preventing pregnancy. Sadly, he isn’t the only politician who actually believes this absurd theory, nor does he stand alone in his justification for excluding rape-induced pregnancies in legislation that would restrict abortion funding.

Though our battles have escalated in the 2012 presidential campaign, women have long been besieged by fundamentalist religious groups, a male-dominated government, and society at large. It wasn’t until the 19^th Amendment was ratified in 1920, that women were granted the right to vote. Finally, we were allowed to raise our political voices, even if we would not be spared continuing efforts to silence us. We’re now all too aware that a strong declaration of opinion can lead to consequences. The duality of our political system was clearly exposed when Michigan’s State Rep. Lisa Brown, was censured for using the word “vagina” during a debate on abortion rights. Politicizing the word “vagina” helped mobilize many of us who had grown a little too accustomed to minding our manners.

If you can say it, display it.

Women have continued to say “vagina.”

Some even seek to destigmatize other descriptive terms for female genitalia, speaking – what may still be to many – the unspeakable. Others, the more demonstrative among us, are showing their vaginas (or vaginae…) to the world in a no-skirt-lifting fashion, through various forms of artistic expression. Vagina art may not be a new concept, but it is a window to society’s changing regard for women throughout history – from divine worship to oppression and repression.

Instead of conforming to expectations of “good girl” behavior, we’re seeing an emergence of newly empowered and emboldened women who have set up their easels, raided granny’s baskets of crochet hooks, knitting needles, embroidery kits, and hauled the sewing machines down from the attic. The results, as seen in the examples we’ve collected, evoke a broad range of emotions. Laughter. Anger. Sadness. Pride. Each creative effort celebrates the artistry of the individual as well as our collective identity. All have been inspired by “the sacred source of life” –the vagina.

Slideshow Music Courtesy JSP Records “Mama Don’t Allow It” by Julia Lee & Her Boyfriends; Images: Not Your Average Hooker, Hypgnosis, Shine Maverick Jewelry, Hypgnosis, Johnny B Wilde,  Expired Goods, Scarlet Tentacle, Purple Hippo Stitches, I Wear Party Hats, spidercamp, Irma Diaz/SourOctopus, TheVaginaZine, The Tie Dye Bohemian, Alex Florschutz, Adrien Art, Tina Casebeer/wikit626, ©Carrie Reichardt, Alex Florschutz, Woman In Bloom, thepixelrat, The Voting Box , VJazzle, Bridesmaids, Wedding Dress, Protest/CODEPINK, ©Ursula Kölle, Cupcakes, Body Parts Poster, Pink Flannel by Daria, Graffiti, Stenciled Tees/#waronwomen, ampule, the moss girl, ©Lydia Shalanko, Protest/CODEPINK, Scarlet Tentacle, Pochos Cosas, Vulva Love Lovely, Sinful Soap Favors, Family Tree Glass, Delicious Accessories

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Women once again fight for their bodies to be their own and the ability to talk about their genitalia like adults.

Lately, it seems like the abortion debate has come to this: Republicans sticking their fingers in their ears and singing which is about as mature (and useful) as the recent silencing of Michigan state Rep. Lisa Brown (D) last week on the House floor. During a debate about abortion, she spoke out against a GOP bill that would outlaw the legal procedure after 20 weeks (aka, the You Might be Pregnant RIGHT NOW bill), and also require women to take the morning-after pill in the presence of a doctor—which is just dumb). The offensive words that got her booted from the floor? “I’m flattered you’re all so interested in my vagina. But no means no.”

Republican Rep. Mike Callton said Brown’s comment, “…was so offensive, I don’t even want to say it in front of women. I would not say that in mixed company.” There have been some great articles about what we should call our genitalia when the menfolk are present, and especially when having discussions about things that directly impact our right to legally choose what goes into and out of our vaginas, but I think Jezebel really nails it with number six on its list: sin gash.

This highly publicized incident came on the heels of another effort to shut women out of the political conversation. On June 13, a bipartisan Virginian political action committee supporting local candidates who protect women’s reproductive rights was denied the opportunity to participate in the state Republican convention.

Allegedly, it was all a big mistake and the Women’s Strike Force’s application was lost. Director Kenan Draper said that on May 31 she was told that as a bipartisan organization the group would be welcomed at the Republican Party of Virginia State Convention. She says her organization filed the paperwork properly and paid the $250 vendor fee. “Unfortunately, the Republican Party of Virginia conveniently ‘lost’ our application for two weeks, but re-discovered it two days before the convention and informed us that they could no longer accommodate the Women’s Strike Force’s application to sponsor a table at the Virginia Republican Convention,” Draper says.

On the same day, George Allen, Republican candidate for the U.S. Senate said,  “We need to get all of the wings of our party flapping together in the same direction,” adding that the party needs to welcome independents, “and yes, Democrats” into the fold to win. Maybe getting those wings all flapping to the right will be too tough when it comes to polarizing issues — which could be part of why the Women’s Strike Force was shut out.

What we can take from the vagina incident is that our bodies are so gross that we shouldn’t talk about them — and also that people uncomfortable saying vagina have every right to legislate women’s health. And, in the second case, fear of discussing women’s reproductive freedom kept women out of a direction-setting meeting for one of the country’s two most powerful political parties. In both cases, women are being told to be quiet.

This week, Brown teamed up with Eve Ensler to perform The Vagina Monologues on the Statehouse steps in Michigan — maybe it’s one more step toward a real vagina dialogue where women have seats at the table.

Photo: Dana Moos

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