Protest held at UMW

FREDERICKSBURG - A string of protesters lined the entrance to Dodd Auditorium on the University of Mary Washington campus March 20, as the school's Great Lives speaker series honored the late feminist Margaret Sanger.

Sanger, who is credited for establishing in 1917 what would later become Planned Parenthood, worked to educate women on the contraceptive options available during the era. Many of Sanger's writings and protests lead to the legalization of and distribution of birth control to women across the county.

"The truth is Margaret Sanger is a racist and she proposed eugenics as a form of birth control to the black and Hispanic population," said Dylan DeBruin, a protester staged outside of the auditorium.

Through research completed after Sanger's death, the activist has been accused of persuading "unintelligent" women, especially those of African American descent, to not give birth in exchange for money. Sanger felt the idea would allow a stronger gene pool in the country, and would lessen the need to provide government assistance for unfit mothers, according to Ellen Chelser, author of a book about Sanger called "Woman of Valor," and speaker at the event.

Chelser said the accusations of Sanger being a racist, however, are overstated.

"Eugenics held the promise of determining the merit of status, no matter what region of the country you came from," said Chelser of children who were born during the 1920s. "Today you see the impact of controlled fertility in countries around the world-"

Chelser, who drew similar comparisons to women's rights in the early 20th century to today, said Sanger was right to offer cash to poor women and encouragement not to procreate.

"The extension of women's rights in the past 15 years has been a god thing, but as countries around the world have been moving forward, the United States has been moving backward," said Chelser. "Women's rights can be taken away just as easily as it was achieved. Everything lies in the hands of the next Supreme Court justice."

Chelser identifies the recent U.S. Supreme Court appointments, made by President George W. Bush, as being potentially harmful to women's rights issues when it comes to the use of contraception and the right to choose abortion. The speaker said these reasons alone justify electing a Democrat as president in November.

"Other than [Sanger] had three children, I didn't learn a thing," said Kelly McCain, a student at the university who attended the event. "I feel like we learned more about [Chelser's] political agenda than we learned about Margaret Sanger, and I just wasn't interested in that."

The Great Lives lecture series began in 2004, and has covered many influential figures of both United States and world history. Some of the previous lectures held this year addressed the lives of Franklin Roosevelt, Ella Fitzgerald, Adolph Hitler, and Mary and George Washington.

The lecture series is free and open to the public.

For more information on UMW's Great Lives, visit umw.edu/greatlives.