The celebration of the anniversary of Roe v. Wade is not a celebration of the procedure it legalized, it is a celebration of the court’s upholding of the fundamental American values of freedom, privacy and personal choice. A ruling that granted those rights to women in particular, it immediately came to represent a feminist victory, but it was also a victory for family planning advocates and for all who would vote to limit the government’s influence in personal decisions. Protecting Roe v. Wade as an example of the Constitutional guarantee to the right to privacy is tantamount to belief in reproductive freedom. With the election year upon us, protecting Roe is as important as ever. By this time next year we will have another president, one whose stance on this issue has yet to be known. A commemoration at this crucial time is a way to bring the issue front and center during a campaign season where the subject barely makes “talking points.” With this in mind, Planned Parenthood has organized an event based around the idea of empowerment through ownership of one’s body. That is the context for a show of photographs by artist KC Pratt. In this exhibit, local people—diverse in age, race and gender—reveal how altering their bodies through tattooing has empowered them in their lives. There will be appetizers and drink specials, and all proceeds benefit Planned Parenthood of WNY.

Tuesday, January 22 from 5:30-7:30pm.Level Nightclub, 75 W. Chippewa. $15 at the door. Contact 831-2200 or visit ppwny.org for details.