An acronym that conjures specters like pesticides, cancer, obesity, the transformation of life forms into intellectual property, and corporate control of food and politics, GMO has become a metaphor for perceived and real flaws in our food system. … [T]he movement against so-called GMOs helps perpetuate injustice, from sexism to food insecurity.
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A bacterial disease, BXW affects all banana cultivars and is considered one of the greatest threats to banana productivity and food security in Uganda and eastern Africa, where the fruit is a staple crop. There are genetically engineered plants with a pepper gene with strong resistance to banana wilt and, until recently, they languished behind a guarded fence, prohibited from reaching farmers. The only reason for this plant purgatory is ideology.
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The anti-GMO movement consistently claims that genetic engineering is harmful to women and children, saying explicitly or implicitly that these foods affect fertility, breastmilk, and other aspects of women’s health. With slogans like “keep GMOs out of your genes” accompanied by imagery of a topless denim-clad young woman, and explicit comparisons of genetic engineering to rape, anti-GMO groups and their leaders frame genetic engineering as a violation of female virtue, surely a slap in the faces of sexual assault victims.
The GLP aggregated and excerpted this article to reflect the diversity of news, opinion and analysis. Read full, original post: The Anti-GMO Movement Has A Social Justice Problem
