COLOR Lifts Up Voices in the Latinx Community

Female reproductive health has been a topic worthy of discussion. However, we must also take a moment to examine reproductive health regarding Latinx communities. In today’s political climate, the importance of including other communities in topics relevant to us all is high.

The U.S. is a diverse country, but that diversity appears to factor into a divide. Latina adolescents have higher birth rates compared to their white peers. The reasons for such are the socioeconomic factors contributing to the difficulty in accessing contraceptives. Latina teens are less likely to have health insurance or are able to afford contraceptives. The lack of reach to birth control methods and the economic status of a large portion of the Latina community can factor in families being started early. The barriers to college can result in the early start of families. Young mothers also have poorer maternal health; however, this is also a result of the difference in access to health care services, contraceptives, and insurance.

Often, the image projected in Latino culture still shakes hands with the outdated traditional views on virginity and a woman’s role in the family. The idea that a woman is not having sex unless she is married has been grounded in various Latino cultures. Machismo also plays a factor in the inequality of women in southern cultures. The culture that women are to be confined indoors proves as cancer for women around the world.

Reproductive health plays a massive factor in Latinx culture. Rather than addressing the surface of an issue, it is important to kill the root: access and economical status.A local organization catering to giving women access to reproductive health resources is the Colorado Organization for Latina Opportunity and Reproductive Rights (COLOR). The organization’s goal that encompasses their work is assisting Latinas and families to make their own decisions regarding reproductive health, among other items. COLOR works to promote individuality when it is about our personal health, whether that is physical or mental. Their work orbits around a certain code of beliefs that states: “Every person has a right, to decide to become a parent or not, to have their birthing plans honored, to express gender identity and sexuality freely, and to raise children and families of any composition in safe and healthy environments free of environmental racism, free of police brutality, free of deportation and family separation.” expressed Victoria Gómez Betancourt.

Betancourt’s position at COLOR is part of the Director’s Team. One of her contributions to COLOR is to keep the organization financially stable through development. Through art and stories, Betancourt also has the “privilege of leading the organization’s artivism efforts that center abortion destigmatization.”

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The organization’s work does not solely center around reproductive health. COLOR explores a variety of other avenues of activism. By creating a focus on framing, leadership development, organizing, and advocacy, the anthem of the organization is able to be amplified. Betancourt defines these points as the organization’s primary focus.

COLOR has a variety of programs with different demographics. Latinas Increasing Political Strength (LIPS) is a program created for Latinas between the ages of 16-21 to enhance a variety of empowering skills from fundraising to public speaking. After the ten-week program is through, the group has the chance to meet with legislators and voice issues relevant to our youth in Washington D.C.

The organization also offers students from the ages of 18-26 to work on destigmatizing abortion in the Denver college campuses. The participants bring their message to life through art and storytelling.COLORado #1in3 Youth Council members help audiences of 200-350 college students talk about abortion and what access looks like for marginalized identities. Council members connect with national partners and abortion positive campaigns, and author blog content and other curated media to influence dominant narratives and challenge the culture of shame, silence, and stigma surrounding our reproductive lives.

There is also a program specifically for older audiences. Cafecitos is an organized meeting for parents to discuss and act on issues surrounding reproductive health over coffee and pan dulce.

COLOR’s manner of approaching others leaves no cluster untouched: targeting the community directly by knocking on doors and working with local organizations. In addition to such extensive outreach work, the organization also has a Spanish-language radio show, “Mujeres de COLOR.” Defying censorship, the radio program can be heard on 1150-AM.

Recognizing the busy lives people have, COLOR makes sure to provide services such as child care, transportation services, meals, among others. COLOR is a mirror into Latino culture. The organization holds representing the community they serve to a high standard. Members of COLOR’s staff consists of over half being POC and mainly Latinx women alongside queer, disability, and immigrant representation in addition to the diverse, yet reflective board.

Working on positively impacting the Latinx community, COLOR focuses on making the experiences of individuals the centralized idea for their work. Their activism and work on educating others has reached rural and urban areas across the state of Colorado.Despite the strides made, the fight for issues highly relevant within Latinx communities is not over.

“Because our focus is reproductive justice, not just reproductive rights, we are concerned with people’s livelihoods and access to the full spectrum of reproductive health care services.” Betancourt stated.

COLOR does not solely place their time and resources onto reproductive rights. The group has worked on economic justice in order for people to have security and access to paid leave and pregnancy accommodations, to list a few. Immigrant rights is also a large focal point in order “to ensure people have access to driver’s licenses and sanctuary protections that otherwise prevent many folks from even seeking care.” In rural Colorado, one cannot use public transit to get to reproductive health services. Which is why COLOR works to assist immigrants in getting their driver’s license.

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We can’t engage in reproductive rights work without creating inroads from an immigrant rights and economic justice perspective.

COLOR does not just hold the front of working in the realm of reproductive issues, but they have worked on becoming the catalyst of targeting the roots of the issues they are passionate about: through educating others, through meeting, through economic and immigrant justice.

For more information on COLOR, follow them on Facebook and Instagram, visit colorlatina.org, or call (303) 393-0382. Donations and volunteers are highly appreciated.

Photos Courtesy of COLOR