I did not have to wait long for any kind of idea for a horror story. Just had to read the news of the so-called ”Supreme” Court’s overruling of Roe v. Wade which has been in existence almost my whole life. I am in shock. We had Trump and Mitch to thank for that as they overloaded the ”Supreme” Court with sleazy Bible-beaters that want to control women, down to the ability to choose whether or not to have a child. This piss-poor decision will affect men too who do not wish to be fathers or cannot help raise a kid, resulting in yet more children in poverty.
I had an abortion when I was 20 years old. It was at a Planned Parenthood in San Antonio where I received counseling, medical care, and comfort. It was traumatic, but they tried to make it less so. My boyfriend at the time was a bisexual asshole addict alcoholic (yes, I know, my fault) who could never raise a child, especially since he didn’t work. If I had the baby all those years ago, I most likely would not have finished college, obtained advanced degrees (including a doctorate) and never would have traveled outside of San Antonio. I certainly would never have been a professor of psychology, or a psychologist, or a therapist for veterans and for folks diagnosed with serious mental illness and cognitive impairment. That never would have happened. My world would have remained narrow and that is what conservative men want. I would have probably remained a waitress or possibly worked in retail, earning barely enough to live with my mother and a kid, and my life would have been even more of a struggle than it was already. Do I think about ”what if I had the child”—of course I do. I think about how old he or she would be and wonder what they would be doing, how they would have turned out despite my immature parenting. But, raising another child in poverty and keeping me in poverty was not how I wanted my life story to end. So, I went on with my original plan to become more educated than my parents (their wish too!) and work and travel and meet all kinds of new people I never would have met if I had stayed at home and had a baby at 20.
I saw a post on Facebook about women stopping, taking a deep breath, and then burning everything to the ground. I feel this to my core. Women cannot allow themselves to become handmaidens. We have come too far for this. Ruth Bader Ginsberg would be so disappointed in us as well. I feel like marching in Austin and D.C. and letting all the conservatives know that the fight is not over. It’s never over as long as women are targeted and oppressed.
Merrick Garland published a statement which is somewhat reassuring in that he does not agree with the ”Supreme” Court (really, the name of the court needs to change) and neither does President Biden. They wish to support women’s rights to medical care and I hope they follow through with these wishes. Part of his statement is as follows:
“The Supreme Court has eliminated an established right that has been an essential component of women’s liberty for half a century-a right that has safeguarded women’s ability to participate fully and equally in society. And in renouncing this fundamental right, which it had reportedly recognized and reaffirmed, the Court has upended the doctrine of the stare decisis, a key pillar of the rule of law.
The Justice Department strongly disagrees with the Court’s decision. This decision deals a devastating blow to reproductive freedom in the United States. It will have an immediate and irreversible impact on the lives of people people across the country. And it will be greatly disproportionate in its effect—with the greatest burdens felt by people of color and those with limited financial means….”
Mr. Garland goes on to state how the Justice Department can still support women who may need an abortion, including a need to travel to and to obtain the drug Mifepristone. I am somewhat relieved to read his statement, but the next fight will be for the contraception. We just need to read “The Handmaid’s Tale” to find out what will happen next if we do not act now.
Percolations 