Everyone was always afraid that this extraordinary technology would be politicized, brought into the world of politics where those two kinds of politics that we ‘re all familiar with compete with each other. There’s the “politics as a way of life” view where people focus on making life better for all.  Then there’s the politics that’s all about people trying to get elected (or re-elected)  (and maybe even have a hard time finding anything else to do). Back then, everybody feared that these immensely fragile tiny babies would become the object of a politician’s agenda who would start blaming others as uncaring when there wasn’t enough money to fund these leading edge (and risky and controversial) medical technologies.

And there was the fear that those politicians who thought of themselves as deeply caring about the quality of people’s lives would use support for these extremely expensive centers to parade themselves as bigger and better humanitarians than the other politicians who were just trying to get re-elected. The caring politicians were the real humanitarians. The other politicians were just manipulating an election.  After all being a humanitarian – Mother Theresa aside- is rough on any day. 

Then there were the feminists. Back then, just like now, being a woman did not automatically make you a feminist. Back then, just like now, some people did not go much beyond the idea of what being a feminist meant other to say: “Hey, I’m a woman. I must be. “ Back then, being a feminist meant working very, very hard so that things that people used to characterize women as inferior and less capable or disabled were, well,  anti-feminist.

The idea that pregnant women couldn’t work and had to stay home because their babies might be harmed was (and still is) anti-feminist. You can bet that there were plenty of allegations that these aggressive, overly ambitious feminists who wouldn’t stay home when they were pregnant like they should, were pushing for funding for these extremely expensive centers because they insisted on working during their pregnancies which was "bad" for the health of their babies. It was all about those bad, anti-humanitarian feminists.

By now, we’ve got to hope that people understand that being a feminist is more than just saying “I’m a woman”; that women have learned to speak very clearly about what their needs are, so that pregnancy isn’t seen as a disability and mothers know that saying loud and clear about what they need to take care of their babies IS a priority AND accepted.  Hope springs eternal that the two worlds of politics (which still exist)- those who will do anything to get re-elected- and those who are trying to make the world a better place, overlap - at least some of the time.

By now, we’ve got to hope that what happened back then, using babies as a political tool to further a politician’s agenda, has stopped too. In the long run, this serves no one. 

In the 30 years that have passed since those early neonatal intensive care units came to be, and in my more than 30 years as a feminist (and many more as a woman), there’s one thing that gratefully has stayed the same.  The wealth and brilliance of this country keeps medical advances for newborns coming, which is great news for the babies of the world, who, as ever, keep doing what babies do: sleeping, eating, pooping and occasionally smiling on those who just can’t put turmoil aside and enjoy life.

Susan Cook
Bath