When the news of Alabama’s abortion laws were in peak circulation on social media, I found myself feeling incredibly devastated, and honestly baffled, because I didn’t ever expect the world to regress like this. Although we proclaim it time and time again, it is never easy nor satisfying or anything positive when the current global social order proves that it does indeed hate women; it is heartbreaking each time MEN pit themselves as superior and use their stolen and corrupted power to oppress and marginalise women.
But of all these feelings coursing through my body, it was the helplessness that particularly drove me mad – the fact that I had no power to support the women upon whom this barbaric law will be effected. So, I hopped onto trusted google to see if there are actually things that we can do, and whilst there aren’t many, there are indeed a few points of action that we can take.
Background
To begin with, I would like to give some background in case anyone reading this isn’t entirely familiar with the situation at hand. So, over in the United States of America, a systematic attack against women is taking place, through the medium of anti-abortion legislature, which has seen a rapid increase since Donald Trump entered office.
As well as Mississippi, Georgia, Ohio and Alabama – the four states that engulfed news streams earlier this month – Missouri, Kentucky, Arkansas, North Dakota, Louisiana, Indiana Utah and Iowa have also passed anti-abortion bills however the efforts of Kentucky, Utah and Iowa were blocked (Mississippi temporarily blocked) by the courts. With South Carolina, Texas, Florida and West Virginia working toward passing their own anti-abortion legislature, the motive for these tyrannical bills becomes clearer: to overturn the 1973 Supreme Court ruling that recognised women’s constitutional right to end her pregnancy.
At present, all these laws remain unconstitutional, so will be contested and will eventually elevate to the Supreme Court. The Alabama state rep., Terry Collins openly admitted that this was their aim, saying:
“The entire bill was designed to overturn [Roe v. Wade] and allow states to decide what is best for them”
Not what is best for their people? Interesting.
As there is currently a conservative majority in the Supreme Court (five conservative Justices, of which two are Trump-appointed, and four liberal ones) conservative states are capitalising on the increase in potential favour they might find in the Supreme Court – now more than ever seems an optimal time for them to strike. But there are a few things we can do to protect their victims against this unwarranted attack:
1) Donate to Reproductive Rights Organisations
Below are a few reproductive rights organisations I found through the research. Each organisation has its own objective so please check them out, do a little research and donate as much as you can to as many orgs that speak to you.
ACLU (Alabama)
Access Reproductive Care (Southeast)
2) ‘Get Involved’ with Planned Parenthood
Planned Parenthood are healthcare providers in the US, with sister companies all around the world. Not only do Planned Parenthood deliver vital reproductive healthcare, but they are also pride themselves on their information dissemination when it comes to sex education and reproductive health.
Naturally, Planned Parenthood are heavily opposed to the increase in anti-abortion legislature, and if you are too (you should be) you may take action by showing politicians you #StandWithPP. There are other ways to Get Involved, although most are only are only accessible to those that live in the US.
3) Don’t Stop Talking
So, the whole point of this piece was to a find a way to do something beyond just talking about it, but that was really underestimating the power of my voice and the power it holds within a collective. These new laws hope to eventually normalise anti-abortion agendas, if they are passed the standard will one day be that we consider abortions an immoral 'measure'. So, it is important that we keep talking about it, so there isn’t no doubt about just how unjust these anti-abortion laws are.
More practically, openly opposing the laws might help to sway politicians (who genuinely care about the people they represent) against pursuing these their anti-abortion agendas. US citizens should also call their congress members, hopefully they have some respect for the concerns of their constituents.
And generally, speaking out always helps advocacy of women’s rights. It might not seem like much but place value on your voice and you will make a change!
4) Vote!!!!
And not just in America cos this could happen anywhere, if the political climate is fit for it. Vote; fight voter suppression; and support candidates that have the welfare of individuals at heart, candidates that will promote equality in all parameters.
Honestly, when I concluded my research I still felt powerless, as there seems to be very little one can actually do. But a lot of a little is a lot, so if we all do the little we can, we will make an impact!
And now that you've come to the end of my whole thing, please have a read of the sources for some added information, and also do keep updated with the news!
Sources: