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Faye Wattleton

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Early Life and Childhood:

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Wattleton was born in St. Louis, Missouri, in 1943, the only child of a construction worker father[1] and a mother who was a seamstress and a Church of God minister.[2] During her childhood, her mother's calling meant that the family traveled frequently, and Wattleton saw the emotional effect her mother's preaching had on congregation. For eight years Wattleton stayed with family members and friends while her parents traveled for work.[3] Although her mother never approved of her work in reproductive rights,[4] Wattleton considers the principle of non judgment espoused by the faith of her upbringing to have had a deep impact on her future work in family planning.[5]

Education and Early Career:

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Faye Wattleton went on to Ohio State University at the age of 16. She was awarded a bachelor's degree in nursing in 1964, and went on to teach at a nursing school in Dayton, Ohio for two years.[6] While in nursing school, Wattleton worked at the Children's Hospital in Columbus. There she cared for children who were abused, neglected, and sick with diseases.[3]

Chosing where to go to get her Masters Degree was hard for Wattleton. She was accepted to both Catholic University and Columbia University.[7] Wattleton would chose to attend Columbia University in New York. Due to her fascination of children born suffering from addictions because of their using mothers, Wattleton did her master's thesis on phototoelectrophoresis.[7] Phototoelectrophoresis is a medical term referring to the test used to screen the pregnant mother for drug use so that the baby can be treated for withdrawal immediately.[7] Wattleton graduated with her Master's of Science degree in maternal and infant care, with certification as a nurse-midwife, from Columbia University in 1967.[8] Wattleton went to Columbia on a full scholarship.[9]

While working towards her master's degree, she interned at a hospital in Harlem.[9] There, Wattleton saw female patients suffering from life-threatening side effects of unsafe abortions.[6] During her time at the hospital in Harlem she learned about all aspects of unwanted pregnancy.[7] Approximately 6,500 women were admitted for abortion complications regarding incomplete abortions during her time there.[3] After graduating from Columbia, Wattleton was given two job offers. The first offer came to her from the Chairman of Obstetrics and Gynecology at Harlem Hospital.He asked Wattleton to consider starting her own midwifery service in the OB-GYN Department of the Albany Medical College. The offer also included a promotion to Department Chair after a year.[7] The second offer that Wattleton received came from a public health professor that she had and admired during her undergrad in Dayton. The position was the Dayton Deputy in charge of the Visiting Nurses Association's Maternal and Child Health programs at the Dayton Health Department.[7] Wattleton would go on to accept the offer in Dayton and move back home. She thought that she could have more influence in Dayton than in Albany. For two years she served as the nursing instructor at the Miami Valley Hospital School of Nursing in Dayton[9] while serving as the deputy of maternal care for the visiting nurse's association.[7]

In Wattleton's role as midwife and deputy of visiting nurses in the Dayton Health Department, she saw a lot of troubled women. the youngest girl that Wattleton cared for in her clinic was 13 years old.[7] During her time in this position Wattleton realized the societal consequences that pregnancy has on young mothers. The issue of teenage pregnancy troubled Wattleton.[7] Therefore, she continued to work for women's reproductive rights so that women and young girls could get the care they needed.

Since Dayton health clinic was a privately owned facility, they were mandated to report on how many mothers were receiving prenatal care. Wattleton started keeping track and soon realized that about 30 percent of mothers in Dayton did not get prenatal care.[7] Astonished by this statistic Wattleton pushed for change. she concluded that women have to be reached before the time that they have their babies to unsure good health. From previous experience, Wattleton knew that in New York neighborhood health clinics in the inner cities worked.[7] Therefore, she would try to replicate this tactic in dayton, Ohio. her boss at the time said that she could open up said health clinics if she could get doctors that are willing the work at them. Wattleton had dabbled a little bit in local Dayton government and knew many OB-GYN doctors. She was able to present her statistics on how the clinics could help with prenatal care and the overall consensus was that it couldn't hurt to try. Three months later, Wattleton started the clinic with a public health nurse.[7] Three hospitals in the area participated. Wattleton and the nurse would treat the patients for minor issues, and if there were any major concerns, the patient would be transported to one of the affiliate hospitals in the practice. Wattleton was also not allowed to deliver babies in the clinic. After nine months in her care, the patient would be referred to one of the participating hospitals to prepare for having the child.[7]

In 1967, Faye Wattleton became the assistant director of Public Health Nursing services in Dayton, Ohio.[9] In Dayton, she "began her career as an effective coalition builder for reproductive rights."[9] The same year, she also joined the board of the local Planned Parenthood and shortly after in 1970, Wattleton became the president of the Planned Parenthood of Dayton.[10] Her success in uniting the white, middle-class and people in poverty was proof that Wattleton had a skill for united individuals and was fit for the job as president.[9]During the 1970's the United States was experiencing a heightened political climate because of protests regarding the VIetnam War, Killing of Malcolm X, and overall rebellion against the government.[7] Also in people's political jargon during this time was the legal status of abortion. Wattleton accomplished a major victory for Dayton when she strong armed and initiative for teenagers to be able to get contraceptives without their parent's consent.[7] In 1978, Faye Wattleton was appointed President of Planned Parenthood nation-wide. This made her the first African American woman President of the Planned Parenthood Federation of America appointed by the board.[3]

Planned Parenthood and Future Careers:

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During her presidency at Planned Parenthood Federation of America, from 1978 to 1992, Wattleton transformed the organization into the politically engaged entity that it is today, while at the same time dramatically increasing its health-care services.[10] She did not know the power that she had at Planned Parenthood Federation of America until she realized that the organization was started by one woman's undying wish to free women from the limitations that childbearing holds on mothers.[7] When she first started that Planned Parenthood as the director, the first task she was assigned to was to create the fiscal budget. Wattleton had never done anything to this grander for the organizations she had worked for. However, to lead with confidence she worked hard and produced a budget. The first victorious task that would lead to many other successes.[7] Wattleton also led Planned Parenthood's growth as a health-care provider. By the time she left the organization, it had more than 170 affiliates in 49 states and Washington, D.C., and operated more than 800 health centers.[5] Faye Wattleton had two major goals upon becoming president. These were women's reproductive health and gender equality. Wattleton wished to expand the focus of Planned Parenthood to emphasize abortion rights.[3] Anticipating that the 1980's would bring many political challenges, Wattleton restructured the organization so that it could respond to the new environment created by the Ronald Reagan administration and the rise of the Religious Right. It is said that Wattleton spear-headed advocacy for the right to life movement.[3] She shaped the national and world-wide debate on reproductive rights. Even though the 1980's were a time for reproductive change, many people did not support Wattleton's stance. Planned Parenthood clinics across the country experienced shootings, bombings, fires, and employees killed or injured.[3] As Wattleton's time at Planned Parenthood progressed, there was a major decision in the supreme court case Webster V Reproductive Health in which state-funded abortions became illegal.[3] At the same time, Wattleton was disappointed in about half of Planned Parenthood Affiliates who were not offering abortions.[3] This all led to Faye's resignation as President in February of 1991.[3]

The ending of her time at Planned Parenthood did not end her career. Faye Wattleton now has a tremendous reputation in the political realm causing it to be difficult for her to find a job. This was because many companies found her stance on abortion to be too controversial.[3] Wattleton tried getting jobs in new business fields. From 1992 to 1995, she hosted a Chicago-based talk show on television.[11] After the show ended, Wattleton continued to think about how she could reach future generations to teach them about women's reproductive health and equality. She began to give lectures across the country as a way to keep her message alive.[3] In 1995 Faye Wattleton created a non-profit think tank called Center for Gender Equality.[12] The purpose of this center was to "promote strategies for dismantling the obstacles that impede full equality for women".[12] The goal for the Center of Gender Equality was to start a national conversation about the economic, political and educational aspects of women's everyday lives and highlight ways of improvement for those issues.

Supreme Court Rulings on Abortion During Wattleton's Advocacy:

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Faye Wattleton worked in worked for reproductive rights at a time in America where the political tension surrounding the issue was mounting. From the time she went to school In Dayton to her resignation as Planned Parenthood Federation of America's President, Wattleton fought in her advocacy for the rights of women. In January of 1973, the court made the Roe v. Wade ruling that women had the right under the constitution to terminate their pregnancies.[13] This was momentous in allowing safe health clinics, where abortions could take place to rise in communities around the country. On the same day that the court ruled in favor of Roe v. Wade, the court also ruled on Doe v. Bolton. The ruling of this case was that a doctor can consider the physical, emotional, psychological and familial aspects of a person before deciding if they need an abortion.[13] Three years later, the US court overturned that ruling that a woman needed their husband's consent for an abortion in Planned Parenthood v. Danforth.[13] Harris v. McRae upheld the Hyde Amendment, ruling patients receiving Medicaid could only get an abortion if the case endanger their life or the life of their child. This was decided in 1980. There weren't many cases fought on the U.S. Supreme Court level in the 1980's until the Webster v. Reproductive Health Services in 1989. In this decision, the U.S. Supreme Court upheld the ban Missouri had in performing abortions after 24 gestational weeks.[13] In 1990, the court ruled against minors in Hodgson v. Minnesota. This ruling stated that minors must notify both parents before seeking an abortion unless they sought a "judicial bypass".[13] Lastly, in the ruling of the case Planned Parenthood v. Casey, the Supreme Court ruled that states can make laws concerning the requirements to get an abortion. These requirements can regard topics such as waiting periods and counseling, as long as it does not enact a burden on the mother to receive an abortion.[13] It is evident that there was a lot of decision making from 1970-1990 by the U.S. Supreme Court on abortion law. Wattleton's advocacy for women's reproductive health during this time was key in getting legislation overturned and created.

Family:

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In 1970 Faye's Parents moved to Texas where her mother preached at a small congregation outside of Houston.[7] Wattleton was experience immense change in her occupational path in Planned Parenthood when her father was announced sick with lung cancer. By the time that she found out, he only had six months to live.[7] He passed away in that same year.

Also during this time, Wattleton's mother was struggling with the activism her daughter was doing within her career. Her mother often told her that she was killing children and going against "God's word".[7] Wattleton struggled between her faith and her activism. The church stood at odds with pro-choice ideals. This would be a barrier in the relationship Wattleton held with her mother.[7]

Faye Wattleton met her husband in 1972.[7] He was a man by the name of Franklin Gordon. He was a jazz musician whom she had met at a conference sponsored by the junior league.[7] After the conference they parted separate ways, but Franklin still wrote Faye poems and send them in the mail.[7] Knowing that she was turning 29 years old and wanted to have children, Wattleton decided to marry Franklin at the end of August in 1972.[7] By the end of January in 1975, Wattleton didn't feel quite herself. She went to the doctor and found out that she was pregnant.[7] Although she stayed busy with work during her pregnancy by running for President of the National Executive Directors Council (NEDC), when it came time for her to give birth she put everything to the side for a few days. At around 4 in the morning on October 20, 1975 Wattleton gave birth to her daughter Felicia Megan Gordon.[7]

Television:

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In the year 1990 Wattleton was watching Murray Schwartz on Nightline and realized that maybe her calling was television. She had ideas that she wanted to share with the world, and Planned Parenthood was draining all of her energy.[7] So, Wattleton met with Murray a few weeks later to talk about her hosting a talk-show. The point of the talk show would be for her to reach an audience that she could discuss more aspects of men's and women's lives than just reproductive rights. The show was pitched to ABC, Buena Vista (Disney), and Tribune Entertainment. All offers were dropped before a plan of production started.[7] Wattleton stayed in contact with Murray and Tribune Entertainment. By the end of the summer, Wattleton and Murray were able to make an agreement with Tribune Entertainment for her to have a show where she prompted intellectual debates on controversial topics.[7] Controversy over the show stirred as television production companies tried to manage the stirred made from Wattleton's past in reproductive rights advocacy. There were times the broadcasting station would have to change where the show was being filmed due to disagreements on political opinions. The topics of the shows produced ranged from women in the 90's to women of the church.[7] When word got out that Wattleton was producing this show in Chicago, her audiences got bigger. However, the show never became a hit.[7]

Books and Awards:

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In 1986, the American Humanist Association named her Humanist of the Year.[14] She also was the author of an article, "How to Talk to Your Children About Reproductive Rights"[15] for Planned Parenthood, on the topic of reproductive rights in 1986.[16] In 1990, Wattleton, along with 15 other African American men and women, formed the African American Women for Reproductive Freedom.[17]

In 1992, Wattleton received the S. Roger Horchow Award for Greatest Public Service by a Private Citizen, an award given out annually by Jefferson Awards.[18][19]

She was a 1993 inductee into the National Women's Hall of Fame.[20] In 1996, she published her autobiography, Life on the Line. This book is an autobiography on her life. Wattleton wanted to show people why she became an advocate for reproductive health and the stories behind her reasoning. This book highlights those anecdotal moments that were monumental to her career.[3]

Also in 1996, she received the Margaret Sanger Woman of Valor Award[18]

She contributed the piece "Unfinished Agenda: Reproductive Rights" to the 2003 anthology Sisterhood Is Forever: The Women's Anthology for a New Millennium, edited by Robin Morgan.[21]

In 2004, Wattleton won the Fries Prize for Improving Health.[22][23] In 2010, she became a managing director of Alvarez & Marshal, an international consulting firm.[22][5]

Other awards that she received include: American Public Health Association's Award of Excellence; the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation Humanitarian Award; Independent Sector's John Gardner Award; and the Women's Honors in Public Service from the American Nurses Association.[12]

Wattleton served on the Boards for Estée Lauder Companies, Quidel Corporation, Bio-Technology General, Yellowbox.com, Empire Blue Cross & Blue Shield, The Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation, Institute for International Education and Jazz at Lincoln Center. [12]

Wattleton has also received 15 honorary doctoral degrees.[18]

  1. ^ "Alyce Faye Wattleton Biography". The HistoryMakers. Archived from the original on 30 September 2007. Retrieved 27 December 2012.
  2. ^ "Faye Wattleton". Biography.com. A&E Television Networks. Retrieved 27 June 2015.
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m Encyclopedia of World Biography: Faye Wattleton. 2004. pp. 405–407. ISBN 9780787691240.
  4. ^ Jesse Green. "What I've Learned ... From My Daughter". O, the Oprah Magazine. Retrieved 15 March 2013.
  5. ^ a b c Rachel Port. "A Conversation With Faye Wattleton: Part 2, Belief and Mission". Planned Parenthood Advocates of Arizona. Retrieved 15 March 2013.
  6. ^ a b Middleton, Britt (8 July 2013). "This Day in Black History: July 8, 1943". BET. Retrieved 27 June 2015.
  7. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z aa ab ac ad ae af Faye., Wattleton (1996). Life on the line (1st ed.). New York: Ballantine. ISBN 0345392655. OCLC 35652753.
  8. ^ Jone Johnson Lewis. "Faye Wattleton". About.com Women's History. Retrieved 15 March 2013.
  9. ^ a b c d e f Bracks, Lean'tin (2012). African American Almunac: 400 years of triumph courage and excellence. Visible Ink Press. p. 559. ISBN 9781578593231, 1578593239, 1578593816, 9781578593811. {{cite book}}: Check |isbn= value: invalid character (help)
  10. ^ a b Boman, John, ed. (2001). "Faye Wattleton (1943- )". Cambridge Dictionary of American Biography. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 9780521402583.
  11. ^ "Alyce Faye Wattleton Biography". The HistoryMakers. Archived from the original on 30 September 2007. Retrieved 27 December 2012.
  12. ^ a b c d "Faye Wattleton Biographical Sketch". www.ncccusa.org. Retrieved 2018-03-07.
  13. ^ a b c d e f "A History of Key Abortion Rulings of the U.S. Supreme Court". Pew Research Center's Religion & Public Life Project. 2013-01-16. Retrieved 2018-04-04.
  14. ^ "Humanists of the Year". American Humanist Association. Archived from the original on 14 January 2013. Retrieved 26 December 2012. Faye Wattleton - 1986
  15. ^ Palmer, Louis J. (2009). Encyclopedia of Abortion in the United States. McFarland and Co. ISBN 9780786438389.
  16. ^ Wattleton, Faye (1 July 1986). "Reproductive Rights for a More Humane World". Humanist. 46 (4): 5–7, 30. ISSN 0018-7399. Retrieved 27 June 2015.
  17. ^ Kathryn Cullen-DuPont (1 August 2000). Encyclopedia of women's history in America. Infobase Publishing. p. 6. ISBN 978-0-8160-4100-8. Retrieved 4 February 2012.
  18. ^ a b c "Faye Wattleton". Baker & Taylor Author Biographies. 2 January 2000. Retrieved 27 June 2015. {{cite journal}}: Unknown parameter |subscription= ignored (|url-access= suggested) (help)
  19. ^ "Jefferson Awards FoundationNational - Jefferson Awards Foundation". Jefferson Awards Foundation. Retrieved 16 February 2016.
  20. ^ "Women's Issues". The Fischer Ross Group, Inc. Archived from the original on 31 August 2013. Retrieved 15 March 2013.
  21. ^ "Library Resource Finder: Table of Contents for: Sisterhood is forever : the women's anth". Vufind.carli.illinois.edu. Retrieved 15 October 2015.
  22. ^ a b "Faye Wattleton". Biography.com. A&E Television Networks. Retrieved 27 June 2015.
  23. ^ "Fries Prize for Improving Health Recipeints". James F. and Sarah T. Fries Foundation. Retrieved 27 June 2015.

articles evaluation

- read the wiki article on Planned Parenthood because Faye Wattleton was the first African American President.

- This article goes in depth depicting the evolution of Planned Parenthood.

- The article was good for general background knowledge to my topic of Faye Wattleton.

- However the only section that came up that was relevant to her was under the 'After Sanger' Section.

- This article is well developed and written in a neutral voice.

- The information within this article is well cited and all of the links work within the citations.

- This article has a good article rating, meaning that it is well reviewed by many wikipedians.

- There are pictures and suggested links that are helpful to the reader wanting to learn more.

- I wished there was more on the activism that Faye had within Planned Parenthood, however I will take it on as my responsibility to fill in those gaps with my own article.

- We have talked about Planned Parenthood in class but not with this great of depth. Therefore, this article gave great insight on issue areas of activism within planned parenthood that I wasn't aware of before.

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