Staunton Democrats Speak !

Please read  Part 1 ,  Part 2  and Part 3  first. Dobbs and all of its ramifications for women didn’t happen overnight.  A cast of characters and a decades-long plan led to the decision, so let’s give credit where credit is due.  To the crowds that marched with “Right to Life” signs since the Roe decision in 1973, proclaiming that all fetuses were really people and that they must be protected:  you have blood on your hands.  To Samuel Alito and his crew of right-wing cronies who rendered the Dobbs decision on June 24, 2022, declaring abortion was not a constitutional right:  you have blood on your hands. To the U.S. Presidents who nominated the right-wing judges to purposely dismantle the past 50 years of women’s health care rights:  you have blood on your hands.  To the governor of Texas, along with 14 other governors, who purposely signed ambiguous abortion bills into law, forcing U.S. women to face possible sepsis, sterility, and...

Please read Jane's Dilemma - Part 1 and Jane’s Obstacles - Part 2 first. Abortions have been around as long as sex. Potions, herbs, magic, old wives tales, and quacks have provided the service to women for thousands of years, because desperate women turn to desperate measures. Problem was, many of these abortions were often unsafe, ineffective, and in some cases, deadly. Roe V. Wade changed that in the 70’s. By giving women the right to choose whether to carry a fetus to term, a host of other medical rights followed. It wasn’t simply legal abortion that gave women choices about their lives; it was also better health care that included prenatal, post miscarriage, and post-natal care. In addition, Roe ensured that a pregnancy gone wrong could be dealt with on a clinical level, without stigma or judgment. The decision opened doors to reproductive counseling and birth control accessibility, empowering women to control their futures, much like men had always been able to do. Sure, ove...

Please read Jane's Dilemma - Part 1 first  If you’re old enough to remember the early 70’s, you probably remember bell bottoms, the Bee Gees, and someone who had to get married because she was pregnant. One of my best friends was the smartest person in my class. At the end of our senior year, she was a wife, a mother, and a high school graduate. What she wasn’t was heading to college, like the rest of our group, to pursue a degree, a career, and a world that was beginning to open up with choices for women. Roe happened a little too late for her and countless others who found themselves in the same position, with a choice between a hurried marriage (which didn’t work out in this case) or a back alley abortion. After 1973, the decision brought choice to those who might have made a mistake in the back of their boyfriend’s chevy and relegated themselves to a youth filled with diapers, Gerber, and dwindling chances for a career. The Roe decision not only gave women autonomy over choice...

Our girl Jane just finished a four-year degree program, graduating with honors in front of beaming parents who proudly watched their only daughter receive her diploma.  Unfortunately, the day after graduation, Jane discovered that all of her fears were right and she was, indeed, pregnant. Her boyfriend of the past several months had accepted a job on the other side of the country. He shouted promises that they’d stay in touch over his shoulder as he ran to catch his flight. Jane was pretty sure they wouldn’t, just like she was pretty sure her parents wouldn’t continue beaming if she told them the news. Jane looked at the three letters of interest from companies she longed to work for, lined in a row on her desk. They had made her jubilant about her future just a week ago, before she began to suspect the truth. She wondered how much interest any of these potential employers would garner if she arrived, breathless with enthusiasm and obviously pregnant. Jane twirled a wrinkled, white...