Firstly, I need to say that I personally am beyond angry and disappointed with the system, the country, the courts, the government, and the entire population of this horrible place. I vacillate between anger and despair. I have heard this from my sisters of another mother over and over since the ruling came down. Ok. we were supposed to have some time to get used to it with the leak but it hit like a ton of bricks. If one more person says I should be OK with this because we knew it was coming I will scream. To consider that I no longer have control over my body makes me physically nauseous, and the decisions leave me without one word that would truly describe my feelings. I am a wash with anger, frustration, resentment, a feeling of being dominated, sadness, depression, and on and on and on.
I grew up in Canada, thankfully, and know that this is not the way society has to be. We don't have to live in fear of our schools being shot up, or in fear of someone blowing us away in a mad traffic moment. You don't have to live without respect for your bodily autonomy, without healthcare, without maternity leave, and without decent respect and compassion for each other. Yet that is 100% where the USA is today.
Let's talk about Abortion. I have had one and I am thankful that my country of birth, Canada, had free, safe, accessible abortion available when I needed it. I could tell you that I was young, not ready to have a kid, in a relationship with an abusive man who was an alcoholic and after 7 years would even commit to having the child. Yet, regardless of any of that, the reality is it is my body, my choice, and none of anyone's fucking business why I had an abortion.
Now I'm being told that my body is not mine. I don't have control over it. The same Republicans who did this are the ones that used bodily autonomy as a reason not to get a vaccine and thus prolonging the pandemic and causing the deaths of hundreds of thousands of people and the destruction of the economy. They said their body was their choice. They did not want a simple shot in the arm that could have made a huge difference. Now they say 'oh you don't get to decide if you have a baby'. A baby for fucks sake. A baby that you will have to raise for the rest of your life, or give away to strangers and feel that pain for the rest of your days.
In Missouri, within 15 minutes the trigger clause was executed and the right to privacy and bodily autonomy was taken away. In Missouri, abortion is only permitted for medical emergencies, with no exceptions for rape, or incest. A healthcare provider that is found in violation can be imprisoned for 5 to 15 years and have their medical license revoked. It burden of proof is on the physician to persuade the state as to why they needed to do the procedure. Many hospitals and medical associations are forbidding any procedures due to liability. Religiously, Christian, affiliated hospitals will not do any procedures.
Missouri first outlawed abortion in 1825 and that law is still on the books. In Missouri "unborn children have all the qualities and attributes of adult human persons differing only in age or maturity. Medically, human life is a continuum from conception to death." Case after case in Missouri law states that human life starts at conception. It even states "the laws of this state shall be interpreted and construed to acknowledge on behalf of the unborn child at every state of development, all the rights, privileges, and immunities available to other person, citizens and residents of this state." In 2019 section 188.010 was enacted "In recognition that Almighty God is the author fo life, that all men and women are 'endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are life." into Missouri's constitution.
So what happens if you miscarry. I know many women that have dealt with many miscarriages in the process of trying to have a child. One of my friends has had 9 miscarriages and keeps trying. Now when a woman has a miscarriage she can't go to the hospital without fear of persecution. The attendant on duty gets to decide if that woman is having a self-inflicted miscarriage vs one that was caused by "GOD". That woman then can face being charged with murder as that concept of a baby has more rights in Missouri than the pregnant woman does. The medical staff in the hospital has to decide if they dare help this woman or not bother as she is a "sinner". They also get to decide if they will take on the liability of helping this person. Will they go to jail. I have a friend that works in labor and delivery in the hospital and she told me that when a woman comes in with a miscarriage there are nurses, surgery techs, and physicians that will not do the procedure and they have to wait for someone to come in that will. This was before the law changed. What will it be like now?
Now let's cover self-inflected abortions. I have been to several rallies in the last few days and each time some strong woman gets up and starts talking about how on the world health website there are instructions on how to give yourself an abortion. Seriously, that is where we are at. I have to sit there with a knitting needle and try to pierce my own cervix trying to end my pregnancy. Or I have to use a suction device and a tube and put that tube into my cervix myself and then operate some pump to suck out the contents of my uterus. Or maybe I should just grab a hanger, straighten it and start jabbing into my crotch hoping I don't kill myself in the process. The fact that women are being asked to do this casually is insane. If men were being told to stuff a hanger up their urethra this would not be happening. These poor women are going to die in back allies, in their beds, and in hospitals. They will die in horrible pain, in horrible conditions, and for what? Hell, I don't even want to cut my own toenails never mind sticking something in my vagina to stop a pregnancy.
Will women go to jail in Missouri for having an abortion? While the bill does not currently allow for prosecution of the woman who has the abortion that may not be the case for a self-inflicted abortion. If you have a medically necessary one they will not prosecute you but they may prosecute the doctor. If you do it yourself you could be liable based on the above quotes of when Missouri decides life begins. We have yet to see how this will be interpreted by the Missouri judicial system and courts.
A woman who has a non-viable pregnancy now can not terminate that pregnancy. They can't end a horrible situation. They have to go through months and months of horrible suffering and eventually full labor. If you believe that a fetus is a life why put it through that suffering only to die as it matures. In Missouri, a medical emergency is defined as the following "A condition which, based on reasonable medical judgment, so complicates the medical condition of a pregnant woman as to necessitate the immediate abortion of her pregnancy to avert the death of the pregnant woman or for which a delay will create a serious risk of substantial and irreversible physical impairment of a major bodily function of the pregnant woman.” A woman, a couple, or a family no longer has the choice to end a horrible situation of suffering and pain. They have to continue with the physical, mental, and financial struggles to go through with a pregnancy that will scare everyone for life. The only way to terminate it is to avert death or impairment of major bodily function. This is criminal. In the bill it does not allow for Mental health to justify an abortion it must be "physical" in nature.
People say just take the morning-after pill. Well, there are several pill options out there. If you catch it early enough and can actually access the pill you might be lucky. But there are some issues here:
- Doctors will not prescribe it.
- Pharmacies will not fill the prescriptions.
- Money may not be available for it.
- It only is guaranteed to work on women who weigh less than 155 lbs. Yes, you read that correctly. It will not work at all on women over 175 lbs. Apparently, less than 50% of women under 29 are less than 155 lbs. with 40% in the 30 -39-year-old and 37% in the 40 - 49 years. So less than half of women in any age group could use this pill successfully if they could get it.
- Many women can't have it mailed to them because they can't privately access their mail. Maybe they can't tell their parents or roommates about the situation.
- Another issue with the pill is that many States like Missouri are trying to make it illegal to get the pill by mail. They are trying to make that illegal to limit yet again the access to this medication. While President Biden said he would defend this right we see little chance of it as states move forward on this plan.
So who are the women we are talking about?
- Young girls in high school that just happened to go to gathering with friends only to find themselves raped in the basement.
- Young girls that were hanging out with their Uncle, or parents' friends, that just happen to like to molest children.
- Daughters that are raped by their fathers.
- Women that go to a party and men who "just like beer" like one of the justices on this decision, that rape them and deny it so they can be on the surpreme court and take away our rights.
- Women who are not ready to have a child.
- Women who can't afford to have a child.
- Women who are knocked up and the men take zero responsibility.
- Women who are in poverty will have yet another child they can't afford to pay for or love.
- Women who are older and thought they were in menopause find themselves pregnant in their 50s.
- Women who have a nonviable fetus growing in their bodies that not make it to birth or will die as soon as they are born.
- Young women who got pregnant have to choose if they will be a child themselves or have one.
- Your Mom, Sisters, Daughters, and Partners.
We settled this so many years ago. No one was forcing anyone to have an abortion. If you don't want one or don't believe in having one no one was forcing you. Yet now we are being forced not to.
Here are some abortion facts for you:
- 6 in 10 women who have abortions already have children.
- 43% of abortions are in the first 6 weeks of pregnancy
- 57% of abortions are for women in their 20's.
- 9% of abortions are for women under 20 years old
- 34% of abortions are for women 30 and above.
- 41% of women who have abortions have attended some college.
- 49% of women who have abortions are below the poverty line.
- 58% of women who have abortions have not had a previous one.
- 46% of women who have abortions are not married.
- 56% of abortions are surgical with the rest being medically induced.
- 38% of women who have abortions are Non-Hispanic Black (12.4% of the population, 19.5% in poverty)
- 33 % of women who have abortions are Non-Hispanic White (57.8 % of the population, 8.3% in poverty)
- 21 % of women who have abortions are Hispanic (18.7% of the population, 15.7% in poverty)
