In Texas, a new law has been passed which bans abortions as soon as a fetal heartbeat is detectable - which is, for some women as early as five to six weeks into pregnancy - and only one or two weeks after a missed period. Let's just clarify that medical professionals say the term ‘heartbeat’ is misleading because embryos don't possess a heart at that development stage. Regardless, the short time span means that some women might not even know they are pregnant until they have passed the allowed time to abort the child.
If a women seeks help to abort the child after the six weeks, people opposing abortion can take her to court and try and sue. People who sue the abortion providers can come into at least $10,000 as well as the cost for the attorneys fees if they won. The people in charge of passing this law claim that it won't throw away the ‘typical way that the judicial system works’ because apparently there will be a high bar. The bill also does not allow rapists to sue. However, abortion rights advocated saying that this wording offers flimsy protection because not all rapes are reported or end in conviction.
There are so many problems with this but I think that one of the most important is that this law creates an incentive for a person to impregnate a woman so that they can later sue and come into a large profit. Unlike before, there is now an award or a benefit of aborting a child because by suing, you could come into money. This law puts women in a very dangerous position because rapists could easily take advantage of the situation to win money. But also, could couples be inspired to abort a child simply for the gains? If so, this means that the law protecting ‘unborn children’ is actually doing the opposite.
Furthermore, why are men still making laws to regulate and control women's bodies? Greg Abbot, the governor of Texas, is the man who signed the bill saying he was trying to save every unborn child who has a heartbeat from the ‘ravages’ of abortion. Women deserve the right to be in charge of their own bodies no matter what! Who on earth thinks that it is okay to force a woman to be pregnant? And has anyone thought about
how many women could die or be badly injured if they went to back alley operations because abortion was illegal? What about the children who will be raised by people who don't want them, who would most likely end up in foster care. Abortion is a controversial topic, of course - but what happened to freedom? Isn't that the most important thing? Whether you agree or disagree with abortion I think we should take a stand with the women affected by this law and fight for the right to make our own choices about our own bodies!
If you would like to discuss this topic further / find ways to help out please email me and I would love to chat. mpaisner@godolphinandlatymer.com
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