Earworm of the Day: Ani DiFranco - Hello Birmingham

There aren't a lot of modern day protest songs. At least, protest songs in the most classic sense of the word. (Though I could go on for days how Rufus Wainwright's "Gay Messiah" more than qualifies, but that's a long-winded screed best saved for another day.) Ani Difranco is one of the few torch bearers of polemic, politically-changed song.

With the on-going war between women and the (largely) white, male conservative faction of the US waging war on women's bodies and rights, I thought Ani's "Hello Birmingham" seemed appropriate. It was inspired by the bombing of an abortion clinic in Birmingham AL, which gravely injured Emily Lyons, a nurse who worked at the clinic, and killed its security guard:

The morning of January 29, 1998, Lyons was approaching the clinic, when Robert Sanderson, a security guard, bent to inspect an unfamiliar potted plant in the front yard. The flowerpot contained a remote-controlled nail bomb,[3][4] which exploded and killed Sanderson immediately. Lyons was severely injured: one eye was destroyed and the other damaged, her hand was mangled, a hole was torn in her abdomen that necessitated the removal of 10 inches of her intestines, and most of the flesh was blown off her legs and hand.[5][6] She was badly burned, her leg was shattered, and shrapnel and nails are permanently buried in her body.[2] Lyons spent eight weeks in the hospital,[7] and has had over twenty surgeries; she currently uses a wheelchair and has poor hearing and eyesight. She does not remember the blast. (source )

Of her own and the guilt that is expected of women who've had abortions, Ani says, "I remember wondering, Should I feel guilty? Should I feel ashamed? The feelings might have been socially constructed, but emotionally they were real. It took me awhile to really answer those questions, to say to myself, No you should not be ashamed. No, you should not allow society to judge your complex responsibilities. Those eggs are yours and what you do with them and which ones you allow to grow is your decision." (source )

The lyrics to "Hello Birmingham" can be found here .

I think it's so important for women to speak honestly and without shame about their abortions. Maybe we can't stop every extremist, but we can alter the dialogue around abortion, to center it around the women who've had one rather than the men who want to deny women the agency of their own bodies.