2008 Woodie Awards
Activist Loretta Ross Speaks of Her Work in Sophia Smith Archives
Christine Linton
Issue date: 4/13/06 Section: News
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While at Smith College, Ross contributed to the four-year endeavor of the Sophia Smith archives, known as the "Voices of Feminism Oral History Project." The project, now in its final year, has collected on film the stories of 50 female activists. In addition to identifying and interviewing a number of women highlighted in the project, Ross' own story was chronicled in the work.
The mission of the Oral History Project, according to the Sophia Smith Collection, is to "debunk the myth of feminism as a white, middle-class movement."
The lecture Ross delivered on Thursday, "From Margin to Center: New Voices of Feminism," addressed some of the issues that she has been involved with over the years, as well as her experience working in the college's archives, which include manuscripts, periodicals, letters, photographs and other sources used for the study of women's history.
Ross' activism over the past 35 years has focused on establishing reproductive justice for women of color. She is the National Coordinator of SisterStrong, an Atlanta-based collective of 76 grassroots organizations and more than 400 individuals from across the country that is dedicated to the goal of improving sexual health and reproductive rights for minority women in the United States.
The organization involves itself with five primary ethnic groups: Black, Asian or Pacific Islander, Middle Eastern, Native American and Latina. Its mission is to provide political advocacy, education and access to healthcare for these populations of women. SisterStrong also aims to provide information and resources that are culturally and linguistically appropriate for diverse communities.
Ross has also been involved in international movements for women's rights. She is a founding member of the International Council of African Women and the Network of East-West Women. In 1984, she organized a delegation of 1,100 African-American women to the International Conference on Population and Development in Cairo. She has also attended three United Nations women's conferences in Copenhagen, Nairobi and Beijing.
Ross' most recent publications include the book "Abortion Wars: A Half Century of Struggle" and the essay "African American Women and Abortion After Roe." She is currently in the process of writing her new book, "Black Abortion," about the reproductive rights of colored women.