2008 Woodie Awards
Yale student abortion prank
Diana Vilares
Issue date: 4/24/08 Section: Perspectives
Earlier this month Yale student Aliza Shvarts came up with a rather, we'll say, interesting topic, for her senior art project that's made the art major a mini-celeb.
Shvarts has artificially inseminated herself in order to get pregnant only to take abortion medications and film herself inducing miscarriages and bleeding into a cup. Her blood will be collected and wrapped in plastic that will hang from the ceiling wrapped around a cube while videos of the process play on all four sides of the cube - all in the name of art.
This week, Shvarts came out and said that it was all a hoax! Described it as being "performance art."
My initial reaction to her completely insane project was: Is she serious? She's at the top of my "Crazy People" list! I put her right under Theodore Kaczynski, the Unabomber.
Whether I was pro-life or pro-choice didn't matter. This "woman," and I used the term loosely because the title carries a lot of credit that I simply couldn't award Shvarts with, took it upon herself to make a mockery of a very serious issue.
I was furious. I wanted her to take into consideration the women that have opted for abortion knowing it's for the better of their future and wouldn't want to bring a child into an unstable environment; take into consideration the women that regret their decisions to abort every single day.
Americans pride themselves on freedom of speech but what happens when the freedom is too much?
I can agree with Shvarts on one point, the human body makes one hell of a canvas, but not when it's painted with disgrace.
When the announcement came out that she supposedly hadn't really gone through with the pregnancies and "miscarriages," I was relived.
If she lied just to clear her name, I suggest she hide in shame for being too much of a coward to stand by her actions.
If she's telling the truth, I applaud her for one wicked April Fools' prank.
Shvarts has artificially inseminated herself in order to get pregnant only to take abortion medications and film herself inducing miscarriages and bleeding into a cup. Her blood will be collected and wrapped in plastic that will hang from the ceiling wrapped around a cube while videos of the process play on all four sides of the cube - all in the name of art.
This week, Shvarts came out and said that it was all a hoax! Described it as being "performance art."
My initial reaction to her completely insane project was: Is she serious? She's at the top of my "Crazy People" list! I put her right under Theodore Kaczynski, the Unabomber.
Whether I was pro-life or pro-choice didn't matter. This "woman," and I used the term loosely because the title carries a lot of credit that I simply couldn't award Shvarts with, took it upon herself to make a mockery of a very serious issue.
I was furious. I wanted her to take into consideration the women that have opted for abortion knowing it's for the better of their future and wouldn't want to bring a child into an unstable environment; take into consideration the women that regret their decisions to abort every single day.
Americans pride themselves on freedom of speech but what happens when the freedom is too much?
I can agree with Shvarts on one point, the human body makes one hell of a canvas, but not when it's painted with disgrace.
When the announcement came out that she supposedly hadn't really gone through with the pregnancies and "miscarriages," I was relived.
If she lied just to clear her name, I suggest she hide in shame for being too much of a coward to stand by her actions.
If she's telling the truth, I applaud her for one wicked April Fools' prank.
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