On May 3rd, 2022, a draft was leaked from the Supreme Court’s early decision to override Roe v. Wade. As a woman, this was devastating to read. When I first saw it I genuinely thought it was a joke. I thought that there was no way that the Supreme Court would make a decision that was so different from the feelings of the general public. Even with the few days, I’ve had to process this news it just feels insane.
Growing up in an extremely conservative state, I’ve always gone against the grain and tended to lean far more liberal than anyone in my family. They had always thought my views were extreme but Roe v. Wade was something they could never get behind like I did. Roe v. Wade was a supreme court DECISION that the constitution of the united states protects a pregnant woman’s liberty to choose to have an abortion without excessive government restriction. This is something I’ve always been thankful for seeing as I am a young college student and in no distant future am I anywhere close to being ready to raise a child.
The thought of losing the choice to terminate a pregnancy for any reason has been weighing on me. I don’t think I’ve ever really considered what I would do if I became pregnant because I had options. In Texas, abortions have already become extremely hard to get and Greg Abbott, the current governor, has said that as soon as the supreme court overturns Roe v. Wade officially he plans to put laws into place to make abortions illegal for any reason at all. It doesn’t matter how you became pregnant, they are going to force people to carry their pregnancy to term and give birth. Something no one should ever be forced to do if they don’t want to.
I also don’t understand how this could even happen. How can 9 people have the final say in what I choose to do with my body? These last two years have made me believe that we truly will never be able to make any decisions for ourselves.
I don’t think this is truly about pro-lifers thinking that people that are getting abortions are ending innocent lives but rather it’s about and has always been about controlling women and their bodies. They want to rip away our bodily autonomy and we’re just going to have to deal with it.
This isn’t going to end abortions, this is just going to end safe and legal ones. If someone isn’t ready for a child or just doesn’t want one, you can not make them go through with it. They will find a way to terminate the pregnancy in whatever way they can. This is going to do far more damage than I think anyone cares to admit right now.
Sorry, this is a little sporadic, I just wanted to get my feelings out in a productive and safe way for myself. I have always been pro-choice and I hope that whoever reads this just sits for a minute and really thinks about the consequences we’re all going to face if Roe v. Wade is really overturned.
If this news has also ignited feelings in you, I hope you’re ok and I hope you take care of yourselves. Whether you just need to sit with your thoughts or maybe start a conversation with your friends and family. Take care of yourselves and if you feel so inclined, look into protests that are going on all over the country. We can not let anyone take away the choice to do whatever we want with our bodies. Stay safe and take care.