Trigger Warning: Mention of suicide
Like any other Indian, the idea of going to countries abroad, especially the USA or the UK, always fascinated me. A lot has changed since I was a kid- there’s a pandemic, a war, multiple school shootings, black lives matter, and the “don’t say gay” bill, to name a few. The last three have one thing in common; they all are centered around the USA. And as I kept hearing stories like those, I started questioning whether an Indian like me would want to visit that country. When I thought it wouldn’t get worse, I heard about the overturning of Roe V. Wade.
In 1969, a single woman, by the pseudonym of Jane Roe, fought for her right to an abortion in court. It is because of her, that abortions were decriminalized- until 24th June, in a progressive year like 2022. The laws passed a few days ago now allow states to ban abortions in all cases. I found it unbelievable that such a situation would arise. Already, there are one or two cases reported where women were arrested for having miscarriages, as it’s counted as killing the baby. The situation only gets downhill when you realize that contraceptive methods are banned too. I’ve seen a lot of arguments by people who are pro-life, who try to back it up from words in the Bible. But what about the Jews, Hindus, Muslims, Buddhists, and Jains living there, whose religion allows them to get an abortion if their life is in danger? What angers me more is that even victims of sexual assault are not exempt from these laws. And what will they use as an excuse if teens kill themselves when they can’t get one? Another question is how exactly the government would know whether someone was pregnant or not. But no one knows how far it’s going to get. Will they police the kinds of medicine you buy? Or will one’s menstrual cycles be tracked? Banning abortions isn’t going to make people stop having them; they’re just going to stop having safe ones. Single mothers, foster children, and homeless people are paid no heed, because it was always about denying people the autonomy to their bodies.
Sadly, there’s a refusal to ban guns despite the number of school shootings that happen, but there’s no one pro-life talking about that. There are bills passed to take away the rights of transgender people. Cops are not bound to say the Miranda rights anymore. Americans can do little but protest now, but I hope that in the future, leftist generations will oversee their country, so it can be a safe place for them to live.
