The original content of Democracy Now! Headlines appears under the Creative
Commons BY-NC-ND 3.0 License (United States). For more, including their other
shows and media, visit www.democracynow.org.
December 31, 2013

Reproductive Justice Pioneer Dr. Kenneth Edelin Dies at 74 
-----------------------------------------------------------


 
Dr. Kenneth Edelin, an abortion provider and key figure in the struggle
for reproductive justice, has died at the age of 74. In 1975, Dr.
Edelin, who was African American, was charged with manslaughter after
performing a legal abortion in Massachusetts. An all-white, mostly male
jury convicted him. He was later acquitted and became an outspoken
advocate for the healthcare rights of women, particularly poor women of
color. In a speech posted by Planned Parenthood in 2008, Dr. Edelin
hailed the women's movement.

Dr. Kenneth Edelin: "For all those women who marched, for all those
women who lobbied, for all those women who died, we say to you today,
your lives have always been our concern, your sacrifices our motivation.
We will continue the fight, and our struggle will go on for as long as
it must."

Edelin died from cancer on Monday in Sarasota, Florida.

 

.