New Workshop Champions Reproductive Justice and Advocacy
January 31, 2022
On Saturday, January 22, 2022, an inaugural advocacy workshop on health and human rights was held specifically on the topic of reproductive justice. Attendees of the workshop titled “Championing Reproductive Justice: Advocacy Workshop” had the opportunity to learn more about health-related social justice advocacy and develop an understanding of how domestic health issues are also global.
This workshop was organized by the Dornsife School of Public Health’s (DSPH) Office of Global Health and was co-sponsored by the Ubuntu Center on Racism, Global Movements & Population Health Equity at DSPH, the Maternal and Child Health Program at DSPH, and the Center for Law, Policy and Social Action at the Kline School of Law.
The workshop consisted of a keynote speech and informational lectures, followed by an interactive session working through a case study on access to reproductive health services. Watch the full workshop below.
The keynote speaker was Dázon Dixon Diallo, Founder and President of SisterLove, Inc., an HIV and reproductive justice organization based out of Atlanta, GA, and Johannesburg, South Africa. Established in 1989, SisterLove, Inc, was the first women’s HIV, sexual and reproductive justice organization in the southeastern United States.
Diallo is a recognized visionary and advocate in the struggle for human rights, sexual and reproductive justice, and the fight against HIV with, and on behalf of, communities of women and girls living with HIV and those at risk for HIV and STIs. She is a proud member of In Our Own Voice: National Black Women’s Reproductive Justice Agenda Partnership, where she advocates for sexual and reproductive health, rights and justice in public health and prevention policies and programs.
Next, Megan McLemore, Independent Consultant on Health and Human Rights (formerly Human Rights Watch), and Nina Sun, JD, Deputy Director of Global Health and Assistant Clinical Professor of Community Health and Prevention at DSPH, each served as expert facilitators for discussions on advocacy tactics on human rights issues in domestic and global health.
After each presentation, participants had the opportunity to speak with Diallo, McLemore, and Sun about opportunities and strategies in health and human rights advocacy.
Participants were given time to engage in an interactive workshop to develop their own advocacy strategy on access to reproductive health services in Mississippi. The groups focused on developing advocacy strategies on access to family planning services and abortion.
Participants ranged from undergraduate to doctoral students, and also included external participants. External participants ranged from high school students to community organizers.
The next workshop will be held in 2023 and will focus on a different health and human rights topic.
Watch the workshop below, which includes Diallo's keynote address and Advocacy Overviews, part I and II:
Keynote
Advocacy Overview, Part 1
Advocacy Overview, Part 2
Learn more about Dornsife's Office of Global Health, which trains new leaders, scholars, and researchers to address current and emerging global public health issues facing the world today.