In a recent journal article, University of Oslo assistant professor Anna Smajdor
advocated for
using the bodies of women in persistent vegetative states (PVS) as surrogates for pregnancy. The suggestion that brain dead women's bodies should be exploited like this is shocking, disgusting, and downright outrageous, especially in the current political climate where women's reproductive rights are under attack.
Sign to demand that University of Oslo leader Rector Svein Stølen publicly and strongly condemn these statements made by Anna Smajdor. As a respected member of the academic community, her words carry weight and could have real, dangerous effects on people across the globe.
This is an affront to human dignity and reproductive rights. The idea that women who are PVS should be used as
flesh incubators to carry children is not only deeply offensive, but it is also a violation of their human rights. While Smajdor claimed that women would need to give prior consent, like organ donation,
the opportunity for abuse and coercion is too great. In fact, this proposal is little like organ donation at all.
Recent research has shown that "as many as 20% of people declared PVS may actually not be PVS at all -- and are fully aware of what is happening around them." A woman who is PVS has no way to change her decision, even though her body is still very much alive and her brain could be too.It is essential that we respect the reproductive rights of all individuals, including those who are incapacitated and unable to speak for themselves. As a society, we must not tolerate the exploitation of vulnerable individuals to protect, as Smajdor puts it, "anyone who wishes to avoid the risks and burdens of gestating a fetus in their own body." How dare she suggest putting those risks and burdens on people who cannot move or speak for themselves.
Sign the petition and demand that Rector Svein Stølen condemn these harmful, hateful suggestions and stand up for reproductive rights!(It's important to note that Smajdor uses the example of women, so this petition has used the same language to argue against her proposal. However, we know that any AFAB person can become pregnant, including trans men, nonbinary and gender fluid people, etc.)