Every day we wake up for new headlines that are like “Roe is as good as gone” or “Forget about Roe, it’s already been repealed basically” or “Stop talking about abortion, ladies.” And we so commend the great journalists out there (except, you know, the last one) who are holding politicians’ feet to the flames, who are diligently reporting all the ways states can keep abortion accessible (or have failed to keep abortion accessible). We’re not gonna blanket bash “the media” here! We love journalism!
However, there are a few trends we… would like to see go away. First things first, the assertion that we aren’t REALLY gonna go back to coat-hanger and back-alley abortions after Roe, because the abortion pill exists. Take this otherwise great column by an abortion provider (quick reminder that the writer usually doesn’t write the headline) “If Roe Is Overturned, Self-Managed Abortion Won't Be A Coat Hanger.” There’s a nuanced impulse to assert that, yes, in fact self-managed abortion by the abortion pill is safe! It’s an amazing option for pregnant people who don’t have easy access to a clinic. We should absolutely be screaming from the rooftops that the abortion pill is safe!!!
However, just because the abortion pill exists, doesn’t mean people are going to figure out how to access it. Remember being in high school (or middle school)? Remember not having a credit card? Or having to go to the library to go online. Not everyone is going to be able to access the pill, but everyone knows that if you fall down a flight of stairs you could lose your fetus. So, although we see the value in pointing out that there are safe ways to self-manage abortions, we still think it’s vital to point out that dangerous and unsafe abortions will be rampant if abortion is abolished. So make these politicians (and protestors) look at the image of the coat hanger, make them realize how violent it is to women and pregnant people to outlaw abortion. Don’t let them off the hook!
We say “abolish abortion” because these fools who hate uterus-havers but love fetuses ACTUALLY CALL THEMSELVES abolitionists. They want to abolish abortion ENTIRELY and if Roe goes away there are trigger laws in place in four states that automatically ban abortion, and 17 states have laws that could restrict the legality of abortion. And then it becomes… how much are they gonna get rid of? Are fetuses gonna be protected in state constitutions? Is misoprostol gonna be outlawed entirely (sorry if you have an ulcer)? We don’t really know how bad it could get (I mean, we’ve seen The Handmaid’s Tale but in terms of terrible things it like… could even get worse than the second season of that).
So we say use whatever imagery gets your point across, and make people uncomfortable. Make them have to look their cruelty in the eye! And never give up! We will never go back!
