TW: Discussions of abortion, rape, sexual assault, incest.
In 1973, the US Supreme Court legalised abortions across the United States of America. The landmark case that allowed this precedent was Roe v Wade, when a woman under the pseudonym “Jane Roe”, a 25-year-old single woman, challenged the criminal abortion laws in Texas. Last week, nearly 50 years later, Texas became the first US state to repeal that precedent with the passing of the Texas Heartbeat Act 2021. The Texas law was passed by the state legislature in May and passed through the US Supreme Court last Wednesday. The law bans abortions where foetal cardiac activity is detected which usually occurs around the 6-week mark - long before many women are even aware they are pregnant. It also provides for exceptions in cases of medical emergencies, but none in the case of rape or incest. As with most abortion restrictions, low-income women, and women of colour will bear the greatest burden.
Laws such as these that are aimed at essentially banning abortion are not unusual, especially in historically “red” states. Eleven states, including Louisiana, Missouri, and Alabama, have attempted to pass what’s known as a “heartbeat ban” in the past.
However, what makes this Texas law novel is that instead of a state or government agency enforcing it, the law empowers private citizens to sue anyone who “aids or abets” an abortion. So that could mean someone who provides someone a ride to a clinic, money to pay for health care, counsel about seeking an abortion or someone who is a medical professional who performs abortions could be vulnerable to a lawsuit. Private citizens also do not need to have evidence that the abortion took place after six weeks to file a suit, so legal abortions — conducted before six weeks — are also vulnerable to these expensive civil suits. This characteristic has also prompted its comparison to The Handmaid’s Tale.
Despite living in the UK where abortion is not so much of a political hot topic in the way it is in the US, this conservative Texan law serves as an uncomfortable reminder that my body is still not my own. Even while abortion is currently common practice all over the UK, my medical law module has taught me that its legal framework is still printed within the archaic and punitive framework of the Victorian Era. When it comes to abortion, the concepts of bodily autonomy and equality are still disregarded to facilitate the argument in favour of an unborn foetus. Even so, my access to an abortion, should I ever choose to have one, is not restricted. Yet, this Texan law is a punch to the stomach and a cruel reminder that we women can never take rights we have won for granted.
Indeed, the law on abortions has never been more fragile.
For years, US courts have occasionally chipped away at the right to have an abortion, upholding spousal and parent notification laws and allowing greater regulation of abortion providers, but by and large the precedent of Roe v Wade has always held up. Today, the Texan law has reshaped the political landscape of the US as the Supreme Court has given other states a roadmap for circumscribing Roe v Wade, as well as has allowed Texas to declare and encourage other like-minded states to declare a war on women everywhere.
Where we could compare Texas to Gilead and resign ourselves to the same fate, I am taking this opportunity to remind us of all of ways we can currently help Texan women and join ourselves to the people fighting for equal access to abortion and equality in healthcare:
Online Activism:
Flooding pro-life sites with fake information and more
Designing bots to make fake abortion reports to overload texan systems
Donations to:
Texas Equal Access Fund - provides funds and emotional support to people seeking abortion care.
Lilith Fund - is the oldest abortion fund in the state, serving patients in central and south Texas.
Frontera Fund - provides financial assistance, lodging, and transportation for patients living in the Rio Grande Valley or who have procedures scheduled at Whole Women’s Health in McAllen, Texas.
Clinic Access Support Network - provides transportation, lodging, childcare assistance, compassionate care, and occasional procedure funding to patients in Houston, Texas.
The Afiya Center - was founded by Black women in North Texas to promote the reproductive health of Black women and girls. The center’s Support Your Sistah Fund provides practical help to abortion patients.
Fund Texas Choice - helps with travel and accommodation costs for Texas residents seeking abortion care in- and out-of-state.
The Bridge Collective - provides information, transportation, accommodation, and abortion doula services.
Buckle Bunnies Fund - mobilizes across Texas to help secure funding for people seeking care. You can Venmo @Buckle-Bunnies, CashApp $BuckleBunniesFund, or shop on their website to support this fund.
West Fund - is a community organization working to create universal abortion accessibility. It provides financial assistance to patients in Texas, Southern New Mexico, and Ciudad Juárez, Mexico, who are seeking procedures in El Paso, Texas, or New Mexico.
Jane’s Due Process - provides reproductive health resources, legal aid, and case management to help young Texans navigate parental consent laws and confidentially access abortion and birth control.
The Stigma Relief Fund - provides financial help to Whole Woman’s Health patients.
Volunteering:
Clinicaccess.org
Prestonwoodpregnancy.org
Volunteermarch.org
Austinwomenshealth.org
Prochoicetexas.org
---- Margot Potter, Guest Blogger, Leader of The Women’s Project (Warwick Pro Bono)
