My Body, My Choice.

I have never been faced with having to decide whether or not I would have an abortion.

I have been in situations where partners have removed condoms without my knowledge or consent.

I have been in situations where I’ve forgotten to take my birth control, but had sex any way.

I’ve taken all of the right precautions and still had condoms break during sex.

I’ve counted the minutes, hours and days waiting for a late period.

So yes, I’ve never been faced with having to decide whether or not I would have an abortion. But the difference between me and the women who have had to made that choice sits on a very thin line.

But that’s not the point here. Last week, Alabama Governor Kay signed the most restrictive abortion bill we’ve ever seen into law. It strips a woman of any right to the medical procedure, even in cases of rape or incest. While the bill hasn’t taken effect just yet (it would take about 6 months for that to happen) and women can still access abortions in Alabama, we don’t have time to wait before we act.

In situations like this one, where women’s rights (which, by the way, are human rights) are so blatanly and violently under attack, it’s normal to feel helpless and powerless. I wanted to put this post together to remind all of us that we do have power, we have voices and rights and all of those things matter.

As someone with a mostly female audience, I do feel a responsibility to only share and promote things that are going to keep women healthy and able to live their best lives. Whether you believe in the morality of abortions or not, that isn’t what we’re fighting for. The fact of the matter is that bans don’t remove the thing, they remove easy and safe access to things. Prohibition didn’t eliminate alcohol from society. It just led to bootlegging, crime and even more law breaking. The same will happen when women’s access to safe and legal abortions.

For as long as women have been getting pregnant, they have been terminating pregnancies. It makes no sense that in 2019 a woman should be forced to terminate a pregnancy in any way that is not safe. Period.

What’s going on?

I know the news can be a lot, and it’s tempting to just scan headlines and tweets to get the gist of things. Not to mention, it’s pretty depressing to scroll through article after article of bad news. So here are a few articles from sources I trust to help break things down. Remember to always do you own research and fact checking around any issue!

• Alabama Governor Signs Law To Effectively Ban Abortion In The State. What’s Next? (Refinery29)
• Alabama Aims Squarely at Roe, but the Supreme Court May Prefer Glancing Blows (New York Times)
• Where is abortion legal? Everywhere. But … (USA Today)

How you can take action

We all have different levels of access and privilege which determine how we can take action here. I say, do what you can with what you have. Doing something, anything at all, will help to make a difference.

Remember that you feeling powerless, voiceless and hopeless is the goal. The second you decide to fight back, the other side realizes this won’t be the cake walk they envisioned.

Donate

Yellowhammer Fund helps women in Alabama pay for medical treatment at any of the state’s 3 abortion clinics and helps cover the costs of travel and lodging.

Women Have Options is Ohio’s statewide abortion fund and helps women, especially low-income patients, pay and get access to reproductive services.

Though right now, the spotlight is on states like Alabama and Ohio, the fight for women’s reproductive rights is nationwide. Consider giving to organizations like NARAL Pro-Choice, the ACLU and Planned Parenthood.

Volunteer

Reach out to a local clinic or organization in your area to see if they need help. If you feel able, consider being an escort at a clinic to help be a source of comfort to those women (many who are simply going for standard procedures). You can always volunteer with Planned Parenthood.

This Twitter thread has a great roundup of aways to donate and volunteer, broken down by state.

Call your reps!

Seriously, politicians love getting re-elected. It’s their bread and butter. If your reps are supporting anti-choice legislation, call them out. If they are already supporting pro-choice legislation, call them and thank them or donate so that they can continue doing so!

Here is how you can find your representatives and contact them.

Register to vote

The fact of the matter is that the best way to guarantee women’s rights are protected is to vote for people who value them. I highly recommend using Vote Save America to help you check your registration status, get connected and learn about elections everywhere and how you can help. The Presidential election is big and important but state and local elections carry so much weight to how our daily lives are impacted. Exercise your right!

If you know of other ways to help and get involved, please share in the comments! I rarely post controversial topics here, but because I’m determined to keep this space safe and respectful, I’ll be monitoring comments and removing any that are harmful or disrespectful. You have the right to agree or disagree with anything you want, but consider if this blog post is the platform you need to share on before commenting.