Uneasy about Marie Stopes' views on selective human breeding, the reproductive and sexual health services organisation is changing its name.
Marie Stopes International will change its name in the next few weeks, and that means the SA branch will also have a new name: MSI Reproductive Choices.
Whitney Chinogwenya, spokesperson for the national abortion clinic, said the name change reflects the organisation's "unease" about Marie Stopes' beliefs.
"Marie Stopes was a pioneer and advocate for contraception. However, some of the views she expressed are in stark contrast to MSI’s values and principles."
Stopes was born in Edinburgh in 1880 and is best known for founding the first birth control clinic in the UK. She published a controversial sex manual, Married Love, in 1918 which created awareness for birth control. But Stopes was opposed to abortion, believing contraception was the answer to unwanted pregnancy.
She was an advocate for women's rights, but she was also an advocate for eugenics and is said to have held counsel with Adolf Hitler, who believed in the creation of a superior Aryan race.
Eugenics is the practice or belief in breeding out undesirable traits, diseases or defects to improve the human race. Stopes was a member of the Eugenics Society and is said to have believed in sterilisation for parents considered to be unfit for breeding.
Chinogwenya said the name change in SA would not be immediate.
"We will take a pragmatic, cost-effective and environmentally conscious approach that respects the demands facing our team members. We will also take a client-centred approach, ensuring women's awareness and access will not be hindered by a sudden change in brand.
"Marie Stopes is not our founder. Our organisation was started in 1976 by Tim Black, Jean Black and Phil Harvey. Their first clinic in central London was on the site of the original Marie Stopes’ Mothers’ Clinic, the UK’s first contraceptive clinic. They chose to name their organisation in recognition of the origins of that historic building.
"By distancing ourselves from Marie Stopes the woman, we can focus on the views of our founders and the works that drives us - supporting all women in pursuing the life and future of their choice."
Chinogwenya said in the next 10 years the clinic wanted to ensure no abortion was unsafe and everyone who wanted it would have access to contraception.
"To reflect this, we’re putting choice, in all its forms, at the heart of everything we do, including in our new name
"The power of reproductive choice supports women and girls to live their lives on their own terms, to stay in education, forge careers and contribute to improving their lives and communities.
"We want to empower every woman and girl to take control of their life on their terms. Our new name demonstrates this commitment, stating proudly what we believe in and what we will continue to work for."
She said the name of the organisation had been a topic of discussion and concern internally for some time, and the transformative events of 2020 had reaffirmed that changing their name was the right decision.
"We already use the acronym ‘MSI’ widely in our internal and external communication and are commonly referred to as MSI by our partners and supporters. It is an established and trusted name.
"By retaining that acronym, we are maintaining a connection to the work of our organisation over the past 44 years. We’ve chosen to add a descriptor to the end of the name of the global organisation to make it clear what we believe in."
Marie Stopes SA was established in 1993 and currently has 14 centres across six provinces.
Clients pay for the services but there is a cross-subsidised pricing structure. According to Chinogwenya, no woman who comes to the clinic for help or assistance is turned away.
