Christen Reighter: I don't want children -- stop telling me I'll change my mind
Kristen Rajter: Ja ne želim decu -- prestanite mi govoriti da ću se predomisliti
Christen Reighter writes and performs as a poet and essayist, focusing primarily on social justice issues. Full bio
Double-click the English transcript below to play the video.
that were placed on me very early.
koje su mi nametnute, veoma rano.
koji sam posmatrala --
supposed to have children,
da imaju decu,
that adults spoke to me
na koji su odrasli pričali sa mnom
in the context of "when."
u kontekstu "kada."
were always presented to me
su uvek bile meni predstavljene
like someone else's dream.
kao nečiji tuđi san.
always understood about myself
ja uvek razumela o sebi
to explain this,
to da objasnim,
their roles and my values,
njihovih uloga i mojih vrednosti,
at the absurdities of children.
dečijim glupostima.
things like that to me my whole life.
celog mog života.
can turn intrusive fast.
može se brzo pretvoriti u nametljiv.
when discussing childlessness,
kada pričaš o nemanju dece:
a woman may have
da se suzdrži od majčinstva,
not self-prioritizing.
stavljanja sebe na prvo mesto.
to publicly vilify women as such,
javno omalovažavati ženu kao takvu,
have made it into the social narrative.
nije ušao u društveni narativ.
about the inevitability of maternity,
o neizbežnosti majčinstva,
that women consider,
hereditary illness,
naslednih bolesti,
life-saving medication
koji ti je neophodan
415,000 children
in the United States at any given time.
u Sjedinjenim Američkim Državama.
things of this magnitude to chance,
ovakvih razmera prepustim slučaju,
with undergoing a tubal ligation,
for getting your tubes tied.
za podvezivanje jajovoda.
has always been taught to me,
kojima su mene učili,
who didn't want children were so rare,
koje ne žele decu,
one in five American women
američkih žena
the more disheartened I became.
više sam bila obeshrabrena.
da dobiju ovu proceduru.
for women to exhaust their finances
da žene iscrpe svoje finansije,
over many years,
tokom mnogo godina,
that they just gave up.
da su samo odustale.
were often condescending
često bili snishodljivi,
with a child."
who went to go get this procedure,
i otišle da dobiju ovaj tretman,
for getting this kind of surgery were,
državi za dobijanje operacije ove vrste:
acting of your own accord,"
nastupaj po svojoj zamisli,"
all of these legal requirements
sve zakonske uslove,
in the exam room
sa borbom u ordinaciji
to that first appointment.
za taj prvi sastanak.
every piece of evidence
dam svaki mogući dokaz
of birth in that file.
to these doctoral programs,
has this kind of business,"
ima takav i takav biznis,"
on this for months.
about it, all the risks."
that this was not a whim,
da ovo nije samo hir,
looking to go out and party
koja hoće da može da se zabavlja
integral to who I was.
što je sastavni deo mene.
on how it all worked, but ...
budem re-edukovana o tome, ali...
given to me started to feel agenda'd,
su mi dali, počele su da deluju sa namerom
and inflated statistics.
i preduvanom statistikom.
my situation better,
bolje moju situaciju,
asking questions to try to trip me up.
sa ciljem da me pokolebaju.
being cross-examined.
unakrsno ispitivana.
feel about all of this?"
po ovom pitanju?"
the same man for five years,
I make for my body."
bilo koju odluku o mom telu."
what happens in the future,
u budućnosti,
wants children?"
bude htela decu?"
how to react to that,
to disregard everything I believe
da odbacim sve u šta verujem,
has always been first date conversation.
bio tema na prvom sastanku.
come to regret this" ...
zažaliti zbog ovoga"...
decision back then,
drugačiju odluku u prošlosti,
a single path to parenthood.
od puteva ka roditeljstvu
to form family anyway."
da imam porodicu."
deal with that any day
or was prepared to care for.
spremna da brinem.
are not to be gambled with.
was going to approve this procedure,
neće odobriti ovu operaciju,
called medical paternalism,
medicinski paternalizam,
as my well-informed provider,
dobro informisani provajder,
of my best interest,
o mom najboljem interesu,
as the patient, want or believe.
kao pacijent, želim i verujem.
with my potential surgeon,
sa mojim potencijalnim hirurgom,
describe me as a little girl.
kao malu devojčicu.
to each one of these providers
svakom od tih provajdera
i seksistički,
questions and statements.
snishodljivo pitanje i izjavu.
for objectivity and support
objektivnost i podršku,
napuštenom i utišanom,
disrespect me repeatedly.
me uzastopno tretiraju sa nepoštovanjem.
that I had to go to.
konsultacija na koje sam morala da odem.
medical professionals in the same hour.
ili šest lekara u istom satu.
felt more like the door to a clown car.
kao vrata ka klovnovskom autu.
to infect me with smallpox
da me inficiraju malim boginjama
obtain birth control.
to allow the procedure.
da odobri operaciju.
signing the consent forms
and tying up loose ends ...
i podvezujući rastavljene krajeve...
his head in disapproval.
u neodobravanju.
clings to this role
drži ove uloge
to separate me being a woman
da razdvoje mene kao ženu
that having children
not the definition.
a ne definicija.
by whether or not she has a child,
po tome da li ili ne ona ima decu,
of her entire identity
to create life,
sposobnost da stvore život,
is a means to an end.
celokupno postojanje sredstvo za cilj.
that society places on us
koje nam društvo nameće
that comes with them,
to these standards ...
cast aside to accept them?
da bismo ih prihvatili?
to happiness and fulfillment.
to self-determination.
to embrace or forego motherhood
da prihvatite ili odbijete majčinstvo
to your worthiness or identity
vrednošću ili identitetom
a choice behind maternity,
ABOUT THE SPEAKER
Christen Reighter - Poet, essayistChristen Reighter writes and performs as a poet and essayist, focusing primarily on social justice issues.
Why you should listen
Christen Reighter's primary advocacy platform is for the childfree-choice. She often writes and speaks out about her experience obtaining elective sterilization at age 22, including how she encountered and confronted harassing societal prejudice, condescending medical paternalism, and civil rights violations. Her other writing and advocacy work includes LGBTQIA+ rights, gender equality, sex-positivity, women's issues (including sexual assault) and mental health issues and recovery.
Reighter is also an award-winning spoken word artist. she has competed and performed across the country and in international competitions such "Brave New Voices" on on HBO.
Originally born and raised in Texas, Reighter now lives happily in beautiful Colorado with her partner and their three rambunctious cats, and she currently is finishing her MA in clinical mental health counseling.
Christen Reighter | Speaker | TED.com