Woman's Day

Have you ever wondered why we cel­eb­rate Woman's Day on the 9^th August in South Africa? It has noth­ing to do with hon­our­ing women just because we need another "Mother's Day", this day com­mem­or­ates the 9 August 1956 when women par­ti­cip­at­ing in a national march peti­tioned against pass laws ... (For any­one who does not know the his­tory — "pass laws" were legis­la­tion that required African per­sons to carry a doc­u­ment on them to ‘prove’ that they were allowed to enter a ‘white area’ dur­ing the Apartheid regime).

On this day in 1956, over 20 000 women of all races and ages from every corner of South Africa marched together towards the Union Buildings in Pretoria. These brave women were march­ing in protest against the pass laws that pro­posed even fur­ther restric­tions on the move­ments of women.

We celebrate these pioneers of feminism as women all over the world are still struggling for their right to equality and choices that they are restricted from making, in all aspects of their lives.

In the ‘birth world’, we have the feminist pioneers of birth – Ina May Gaskin, Gloria Lemay, Michel Odent, to name but a few. In the same sense, these birth pioneers advocate for pregnant and birthing women; in that they should not have restrictions imposed on them regarding their choice of labour and birth, obviously with the safety of the mother and child in mind.  Whilst we value the ways that obstetrical science has made birth safer for women with high-risk pregnancies, low-risk pregnancies and births show that the midwifery model of care is as safe as hospital birth with a gynaecologist, often with fewer interventions and post-birth complications.

From a feminist perspective, it’s all about taking the power back. Women are powerful and smart and amazing enough to make these choices for themselves. We can rely on the help and expertise of doctors, midwives, and doulas to walk with us through our journeys in birth — but it’s essential that we’re put at the forefront of the decision making process. The power of birth is systematically being taken away from us by a culture that believes that our bodies and minds are fundamentally flawed to the point where birth is no longer a natural process, but rather a medical one —and that absolutely makes birth a feminist issue. Our babies and we deserve so much better.

We believe that Genesis Clinic embraces this philosophy, in that a woman has the right to have the birth she chooses, with the expertise care of the midwife and back-up of the gynaecologist. 

Have a wonderful Woman’s Day!