Posted in: Comics | Tagged: abortion, scholastic

Scholastic Editor Calls For YA Books/Graphic Novel Pitches On Abortion

There is a lot of discussion online regarding the US Supreme Court's decision to overturn the Roe Vs Wade legal precedent that legalised abortion across the USA, with a number of states looking to instantly enact legislation to ban all abortions, in some cases of rape and incest, or when the mother's own life is in danger. I was putting together a reaction article but a couple of posts stood out amongst the rest and I stopped dead in my tracks. They deserved an article to themselves.

San Diego Comic-Con's Pam Noles had previously tweeted in response to a Variety article headlined "Disney, Netflix, Paramount and Comcast to Cover Employee Travel Costs for Abortions After Roe v. Wade Overturned". She wrote "Covering bare minimum of travel costs to seek Basic Reproductive Health Care is good. But! Will those multi-billion corps ALSO cover the legal costs of the states that now have SCOTUS clearance for bounty hunters targeting pregnant women known or suspected?"

I get the feeling someone somewhere is preparing that reality TV show right now. Probably one of those companies Pam mentioned. She continued "Do their lawyers have protocols in place to handle & evaluate cases of forced pregnancy resulting from domestic rape/abuse that may involve minors? Cuz you never *really* know what's happening in a family bubble. Is the press releases put out by these multi-billion Corps TRUE and ready to ACTUALLY be backed up by the Might Of Their Lawyers, or is it all Performative for the knee-jerk We Got Y'all immediate reaction? THESE are the questions y'all need to ultimately ask, @Variety @CondeNast. Cuz if these multi-billion corps hand-wave away The Deep Dive *Terrifying* Rest Of It? All you're doing is giving them cover. You are their Beard. You are complicit.  Ask the Hard Questions, even if that means your people may be "punished" with being culled from access to actors/creators et and al on red carpet or other interviews *temporarily*. Y'all @Variety @CondeNast are in a unique position to possibly Help if you choose to do so."

It was an excellent point, will such companies so more than pay lip service to this issue? Well, Emily Seife, Senior Editor at Scholastic Press, the biggest publisher of comic books in America, and who recently bought Maysoon Zayid and Shadia Amin's graphic novel, Shiny Misfits, had a different approach from her own wheelhouse. She tweeted; "I'll mention now that my colleagues and I absolutely do want your YA books with or about abortions. There aren't enough of them and these stories need to be told and normalized, and that's not going to change. Senior Editor at Scholastic Press tweeted out "I'll mention now that my colleagues and I absolutely do want your YA books with or about abortions. There aren't enough of them and these stories need to be told and normalized, and that's not going to change."

If the pen is mightier than the sword (especially if it's a brush pen) consider that a call to arms.

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