Regaining Abortion Rights in America
Usually, I write about travel on Medium.com. But I have some strong feelings about what the not-so-supreme court has done in reversing 50 years’ precedent guranteeing women a legal right to abortion, and how I, as a US citizen should respond.
I’d like to say first that while this is everyone’s fight, men absolutely must respect that women will lead the way. We must stand with them, but not in front of them. With that in mind, I offer these thoughts. My hope is that it will inspire you to clarify your own ideas, and encourage you to take action.
- The fundamental issue is freedom.
Any court that dictates what a woman can and cannot do with her body is violating the most basic tenet of American freedom. As in: “life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.” When George W. Bush tried to make a case for invading Afghanistan, he said “They hate our freedom.” Well, the not-so-supreme court (and those who packed it) have declared that it hates the freedom of half our citizens.
If you believe in a free society, then this is your fight. If we frame this as a freedom issue, it will make better sense to other Americans who also value freedom.
2. Abortion rights are not just a “women’s issue.”
Men, we alsolutely, positively cannot sit on the sidelines as if this is not our fight. I’m not even talking about the valid pragmatic and personal reasons that affect most of us: women — sisters, daughters, friends and lovers — will suffer, some will die. And, more fundamentally, regardless of your individual situation and relationships, the court’s ruling turns women into second-class citizens. Men and women together have a stake in preventing this from happening.
3. The court’s ruling heralds the Talibanization of America
Make no mistake, the court’s ruling is a step towards “Gilead” — the dystopian religious cult that took over the USA in Margaret Atwood’s chilling novel, A Handmaid’s Tale. Justice-in-name-only Clarence Thomas made this explicit when he wrote that after overturning Roe v. Wade, the courts should take another look at laws concerning contraception, gay relationships and gay marriage. Meanwhile, the not-so-supreme court also ruled states can no longer regulate gun laws. It seems Afghanistan is their model of an ideal society.
Let’s remember that in Gilead and Afghanistan, a small number of elite men have all the power. Most men, like all women, are oppressed. They have no rights and live in constant fear.
4. We don’t need protests. We need a plan.
Teresa my wife pointed out just now that liberals’ first impulse is to gather and protest. That’s an understandable reaction. But how much did all those pussy hats and marches for science accomplish? Republicans on the other hand, don’t march so much, except for the extreme fringes. Republicans know they are a minority, so what they do is plan, strategize for the long-game, winning school boards, city councils, state legislatures, gerrymandering, passing laws making it harder for minorites to vote. This is a war of survival for them. Survival because the one intolerable thing they absolutely cannot stand is — other people’s freedom to be different.
So, it’s not just liberals who need a plan. It’s all Americans who are appalled at this attack on our fundamental liberty who need to sign up.
5. A simple plan:
a. Campaign to make the reproductive rights afforded by Roe v. Wade into law.*
b. Get out the vote & win the mid terms.
c. Pass the reproductive rights law.
To be clear, this is not my plan. Lots of politicians and activists are on this already. See for example, Rep. Ocasio-Cortez’s website.
6. Get involved.
It is not enough to march and to vote. If you care, get involved. Figure out which seats are the most important to win in your area. Donate strategically to those campaigns and the politicians who articulate the plan best. Sign up to help get out the vote. Talk to your families, communities and networks. Tell them what you are doing and why this is important to you. Don’t preach, just share your values.
7. Stop talking smack about people on your side.
Meanwhile, stop blaming people on your side. Joe Biden. Joe Mnuchin. Nancy Pelosi. Hillary Clinton. Ruth Bader Ginsberg. They may not have made the right calls. But there is no point smacking at them while the other side is shooting bullets at you. For some reason democrats love to tear down their own. Republicans stay focused on their goal, and their fight, and they focus all their base’s hate on the enemy (that’s us, the rest of America).
8. Resist the urge to compare gun laws and abortion laws.
It makes me crazy whenever I see these Internet memes. When you equate gun laws with abortion laws, you set abortion inside the frame of killing a person. When you do that, you strengthen the idea that a cluster of cells is a person. That is a religious dogma, not a scientific fact. Stop it, stop it, stop it. You are using the other side’s ammunition to shoot us all in the foot.
To conclude, America used to be a guiding light for much of the world. If feels as if we are sliding backward, losing our democracy, losing our empathy. These midterms offer the best chance for America shake off this darkness, and show that democracy can bring about the will of the people. But that’s the point. “To will” is not simply to hope. To will is to exert yourself. It takes effort. Effort reveals what we care about. Effort reveals our values.
So, please think about how you can get active, make a difference in the midterms, and restore every Americans’ right to control their own body.
