Emma Watson is not only known for her legendary role in the 'Harry Potter' saga, but also for being one of the most prominent spokespeople in the global feminist movement of today. She recently wrote an open letter in Porter magazine, dedicated to Savita Halappanaver, a woman who died in Ireland in 2012 after being denied the opportunity to abort her 17 week old fetus, despite it being a risk to her health. She then suffered a miscarriage, after which she contracted septicemia and tragically died.
Halappanavar became the face of the campaign for abortive rights in Ireland which took place at the start of 2018 in the weeks approaching the national referendum, voting on the removal of the Irish Constitution's Eighth Amendment which forbade all women the rights to an abortion. This fight became a historic success as the Pro-Choice movement won with a vast majority and succeeded in changing the law.
The actress thanked Porter magazine on Twitter for giving her the chance to publicly write the letter, saying: "It was a great honour to be asked by Porter magazine to pay the deepest respect to the legacy of Dr Savita Halappanavar, whose death powered the determination of activists to change Irish abortion laws & fight for reproductive justice all over the world."
It was a great honour to be asked by @PORTERmagazine to pay the deepest respect to the legacy of Dr Savita Halappanavar, whose death powered the determination of activists to change Irish abortion laws & fight for reproductive justice all over the world. https://t.co/KZWRpp7btO pic.twitter.com/yLDXgcHKyh
? Emma Watson (@EmmaWatson) 29 de septiembre de 2018
In her letter she wrote:
"You didn't want to become the face of a movement; you wanted a procedure that would have saved your life. When news of your death broke in 2012, the urgent call to action from Irish activists reverberated around the world: repeal the Eighth Amendment of the Irish Constitution. Time and again, when our local and global communities collectively mourn a tragic death due to social injustice, we pay tribute, mobilize and proclaim: rest in power. A promise to the departed and a rallying call to society, we chant: never again. But it is rare that justice truly prevails for those whose deaths come to symbolise structural inequality. Rarer still is a historic feminist victory that emboldens the fight for reproductive justice everywhere.
"Your family and friends were gracious and galvanising in their sharing of your memory. They told us you were passionate and vivacious, a natural-born leader. I heard that at Diwali in 2010 you won dancer of the night, going on to choreograph routines with children in your community. I watch the video of you dancing in Galway's 2011 St Patrick's Day parade and am moved to tears by your thousand-watt smile and palpable enthusiasm. Sharing their mourning and hope with the world, your family publicly supported the Together for Yes campaign. Celebrating repeal, your father expressed his "gratitude to the people of Ireland". In reciprocity, I heard Ireland's 'repealers' say that they owe your family a great debt.
"A note on your memorial in Dublin read, "Because you slept, many of us woke." That the eighth amendment enabled valuing the life of an unborn foetus over a living woman was a wake-up call to a nation. For you, and those forced to travel to the UK to access safe, legal abortion, justice was hard-won. From Argentina to Poland, restrictive abortion laws punish and endanger girls, women and pregnant people. Still, Northern Ireland's abortion law predates the lightbulb. In your memory, and towards our liberation, we continue the fight for reproductive justice."
Emma Watson in the Fight for Equality
This is far from the first time that the 'Harry Potter' actress has made a public move in the fight for equality and human rights. She has already given a historic speech at the United Nations in 2014, in which she explained the basis of feminism to those who had yet to understand the term, and as a UN Ambassador, made another speech in 2016 about the issues with gender equality.
In addition, the actress is also dedicated to promoting reading for all, supporting the Disney campaign 'Magic of Storytelling' as well as the 'Books for the Underground' campaign, in which a group of people committed themselves to hiding various books, chosen by the actress herself for their feminist themes, in the London Underground.
