The possibility of Roe v Wade being overturned has made millions uneasy. People who can get pregnant are fearful that they will be denied access to not just abortion, but also birth control and even vital information about reproduction. Those who provide reproductive care are justifiably concerned about violence and persecution from anti-abortion militants. Non-binary people are nervous, too, since an abortion ban will be the first domino that topples all reproductive and sexual freedom.
One method anti-abortion crusaders use to find victims is spying on location data, web searches, and apps such as menstruation trackers to decide if someone is seeking to terminate a pregnancy. Any web search on the subject on pregnancy could easily be construed as a quest for an abortion. Having the law on their side will greatly increase the danger since they will have access to more and better resources. If you live in Oklahoma and plan to visit friends or family in Colorado, somebody could think that your itinerary includes a visit to an “abortuary” and squeal to law enforcement in hopes of collecting thirty pieces of silver.
Spying on everybody’s internet and cell phone activity will seriously affect access to medical abortions. How difficult would it be to read phone or Internet records to sniff out people who are ordering pills that induce miscarriage? Search engines, such as DuckDuckGo, that claim to be private and secure are not as confidential as most people believe they are.
This is not just the camel’s nose in the tent, this the camel’s entire head. Anti-choice activists are willing to sacrifice everybody’s precious privacy just to destroy reproductive freedom. On top of that, the right-wing (un)holy war against human and civil rights isn’t going to stop with abortion. They aim to ban birth control, same-sex marriage, and more. They aim to reduce women to the status of brood cows and force LGBTQ people back into the closet. They aim to ram their cruel, narrow-minded, perverted morality down everybody’s throat. I would not put it past them to gut statutes that ban racism, sexism, and even discrimination against pregnant people – to say nothing about further voter suppression.
Legislation against abortion hurts the poor and people of color the most. People of means, and who have the right connections, can take a few days off and travel to a city, state or even foreign country where they can get abortions. Many marginalized people can barely make ends meet, living paycheck to paycheck, constantly finding month left over at the end of the money. Without paid leave, they cannot afford to take off a few days, and they probably can’t afford the travel in the first place. As a result, many will try to self-abort with knitting needles or “accidental” falls down stairs.
Any wonder there was such a ferocious backlash following the Supreme Court leak? Any wonder why people have been marching by the thousands and tens of thousands? Hundreds, if not thousands, of petitions have circulated demanding that local and state governments protect reproductive rights. Some cities have declared that they will become sanctuary cities for those who seek abortions. Many district attorneys have declared that they will not enforce anti-choice laws. More actions are to come.
Unfortunately, within the last couple months a terrorist group called Jane’s Revenge has reared its ugly head, spray-painting threatening messages and setting fire to a crisis pregnancy “clinic.” Right-wing media have been big on reporting these actions, while mainstream and left-leaning media have been mostly silent. The reproductive rights community needs to distance themselves from these bugnuts; if they are our own, we need to expose them and turn them in.
On the other hand, is Jane’s Revenge really a few left-wing loose cannons, or actually a false flag operation? Anti-choice activists have accused their opponents of bombing or torching their own clinics. Do you think they wouldn’t attack their own properties in order to make themselves look like the ones who are being oppressed? It is possible – and I would not be surprised – if the Jane’s Revenge attacks are actually the work of anti-choice activists. Even so, reproductive rights people need to make it clear that such behavior is not acceptable in our ranks. I’m sure many of us have been tempted to do something violent and stupid, but we must never allow the anti-choice bums to drag us down to their rotten level.
We need to fight back with all our might and effort against this vile crusade to destroy reproductive rights. We cannot afford to lose this fight. But we must do so with means that are peaceful, harmless, and, for the most part, legal. We need to make good trouble, not bad trouble.
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