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| We are not our breasts. |
As a celebrity, Angelina enjoys a platform from which she can speak internationally, amplifying the power of her message. In sharing her story, she has directed a brighter spotlight on breast and ovarian cancer.
She addresses the most essential issues of womanhood, motherhood, beauty, femininity and family. In her candor, she added her distinct voice to the destigmatization of perceived imperfection. Her bold, controlled and direct discussion of her choices delivered the message that when faced with illness or a personal crisis, there is no place for shame or secrecy. For those among us who have been challenged, it is a call to our best selves to become beacons, guides and escorts to those who follow in our footsteps.
Allowing time for private healing for both herself and her loved ones, Angelina bypassed the press, the paparazzi and the celebrity voyeurs. But when Angelia spoke in her own time and in her own voice, it resonated with a simple elegance.
Thank you to all celebrities who have reached out to us to share your challenges. Whether encompassing your physical, emotional or mental health issues, or those of your parents or your children, you remind us that pain and suffering know no bounds. Not money, not fame, not prestige, not power nor influence can shield any one of us from the dangers of the human condition. You remind us that the truest measure of wealth is health.
Thank you, Angelina, for speaking from your heart to ours. But there is still more work to be done. Please use your eloquent voice to speak out against BRAC1 and BRAC2 gene patenting.
On its website, the ACLU asks, "Did you know that private companies can patent genes in your body? A company called Myriad Genetics "owns" two genes known as BRCA 1 and BRCA2 –or Breast Cancer 1 and Breast Cancer 2. Women with certain mutations in these genes have a strong chance of getting breast or ovarian cancer.
This has very dangerous implications for women’s health and scientific research.
The government should not be granting private entities control over something as personal and basic to the human body as our genes. Moreover, granting patents that limit scientific research, learning and the free flow of information violates the First Amendment."
The ACLU argued it's case against gene patents before the U.S. Supreme Court on April 15, 2013. They expect a decision this summer. You can learn more about this issue from Breast Cancer Action.
[photo credit: <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/dutchamsterdam/3387215389/">dutchamsterdam.nl</a> via <a href="http://photopin.com">photopin</a> <a href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/2.0/">cc</a> ]
Thank you, Angelina, for speaking from your heart to ours. But there is still more work to be done. Please use your eloquent voice to speak out against BRAC1 and BRAC2 gene patenting.
On its website, the ACLU asks, "Did you know that private companies can patent genes in your body? A company called Myriad Genetics "owns" two genes known as BRCA 1 and BRCA2 –or Breast Cancer 1 and Breast Cancer 2. Women with certain mutations in these genes have a strong chance of getting breast or ovarian cancer.
This has very dangerous implications for women’s health and scientific research.
The government should not be granting private entities control over something as personal and basic to the human body as our genes. Moreover, granting patents that limit scientific research, learning and the free flow of information violates the First Amendment."
The ACLU argued it's case against gene patents before the U.S. Supreme Court on April 15, 2013. They expect a decision this summer. You can learn more about this issue from Breast Cancer Action.
[photo credit: <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/dutchamsterdam/3387215389/">dutchamsterdam.nl</a> via <a href="http://photopin.com">photopin</a> <a href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/2.0/">cc</a> ]
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