What Pro-life Should Mean

Basic human rights are under attack, and we cannot stand idly and watch it happen. I also often think about the term “pro-life” and what it means. If someone is so very vested in the notion that women should have zero choice in their reproductive health, then shouldn't they also be supporting systems that promote life? I am pro-life in the sense that I wholeheartedly believe that we live in a society that is having a very hard time taking care of the people who have already been born, yet many are raising hell over a woman’s right to choose. I am pro-life in the sense that I heavily condone any legislation pushed through by the GOP because it is aggressively harming marginalized communities. I made a recent Tiktok discussing the importance of white cis women always using their voice, not just right now. This is not to say that you shouldn’t be screaming from the top of your lungs now as well, but use that same enthusiasm when places like Florida are passing the Don’t Say Gay Bill. Use the same passion when Trans youth are under attack and unable to play sports. Have the same determination when states are stripping away voting rights from predominately Black and brown communities. If we care about the rights of women, we must be intersectional in our advocacy and be sure to include ALL women. So, what, in our minds is pro-life?

Being pro-life is believing in reproductive rights. Women who are raped. Incest. Women whose babies won’t survive but are forced to carry to term. Young girls without access to birth control. Women who have contraception fail them. All these women deserve the right to put themselves first in order to protect their mental health and wellbeing. Imagine the pain of going through any of the above scenarios and still being forced to give birth to a child in a system that is not set up to protect either you or your baby. Because God forbid, we offer paid maternity leave or free mental health services for PPD. Believing that women should not have the right to choose in any scenario is not pro-life, it’s pro-birth.

One thing that has become glaringly clear during this pandemic is the massive discrepancies between people with and without healthcare and their ability to survive and maintain a healthy life. Universal healthcare should be a right, not something provided to those who can afford it. And if the GOP wants to bring all these children into the world and they truly care about their well-being, then let’s give them free healthcare.

We all should have realized ten years ago when 20 innocent children were taken from this earth that semi-automatic weapons matter more than the safety of our children. Nearly 1,300 children die from guns each year, yet we still can’t come together to create common sense gun laws.

Being pro-life should mean working hard to ensure that voting rights are protected and expanded, not taken away. It means that every person has a voice and a say in our democracy.

It also continues to amaze me that people are so quick to be anti-abortion for any reason, however they are comfortable with seeing children taken from their parents at the boarder and put in cages. Pro-immigration is pro-life.

One of the biggest triggers for people is hearing the words defund the police, when in fact calling for police reform is simply putting structures in place that will better serve the communities in which children live. Police reform calls for more money being spent on mental health services, housing, and youth services as opposed to over-policing Black and brown communities and setting children up for prison. Caring about children and working to create systems that aren’t upholding systemic racism is pro-life.

LGBTQ+ youth are four times more likely than their peers to attempt suicide and we are seeing an increasingly large number of laws put into place all around the country that are an attack on the lives of the LGBTQ+ community. Supporting LGBTQ+ rights is pro-life.

The list can go on and on and on. Yes, the hypocrisy is astounding and no it is not surprising that this is happening. Quite frankly, if you are surprised, you simply have not been paying attention.

As always, we have channeled our thoughts into a tee. Each purchase will put a book centered on the excellence of women into the hands of children. Books on women’s rights, women’s history, and powerful women in society is something children need to see. Today and every day moving forward. We'll also be giving a portion of this shirt's proceeds to Planned Parenthood.

Here are some additional resources and action steps you can take to help:

Call your local representatives and contact your state senators now to urge passage of the Women’s Health Protection Act (HR 3755).  You can find your senator’s contact information here: https://www.senate.gov/senators/

Find a rally to go and participate in. Sign up at Planned Parenthood and see if any events are taking place by you. https://www.plannedparenthood.org/

Donate to organizations that are fighting to protect women’s reproductive rights.

The Center for Reproductive Rights: https://reproductiverights.org/

Planned Parenthood: https://www.plannedparenthood.org/

NARAL Pro-Choice America: https://www.prochoiceamerica.org/

National Network of Abortion Funds: https://abortionfunds.org/