The 40th anniversary of the Roe v. Wade decision
was this week, and I have been thinking a lot about it. For those of you who
are unaware, this Supreme Court ruling gave women the right to privacy with
regard to accessing abortion procedures (and according to my great Aunt, the
right to consent to a hysterectomy without her husband present). Loosely translated,
states could no longer limit women's access to abortions during the first and second trimesters.
I have to be honest with you guys. Lately, I have not been
seeing this as a choice or life issue. That is too narrow. It’s not about
choice; it is about women’s rights. Yes, superficially it is about her right to
choose. If you think a bit deeper, Roe v Wade told women everywhere, “You are
the master of your domain.” Women did not have to limit their education,
economic status, life dreams, or wellness, because state legislators had a problem
with the, “A word.”
This may seem like something trivial to bring up. However, I
never want us to lose sight of the fact that women were once considered
property, like the livestock that we have been so famously compared to. We were
not allowed to vote. We were not allowed to run for office. We were not allowed
to leave husbands who beat us. We were not allowed to serve in the armed
forces. We were sent down limited career paths, such as maids, teachers, or
secretaries. We were not seen as intelligent people who could make decisions
for themselves.
I don’t want women to forget the history, because it makes it easier to step out of the pro-choice/pro-life hamster wheel. It allows us to think
bigger and to squash legislation that limits our humanity. It is not about choice. It is about human rights. Because I do
not want to live in a country where I am considered too stupid or too worthless to fulfill my destiny, however that looks. I am worth more than that. We all are.
-
Lauren, Pro-women
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