This commentary is by state Sen. Kesha Ram Hinsdale, D-Chittenden.
Earlier this month, I joined hundreds of Vermonters at the Rally for Abortion Justice to take a stand for reproductive rights in front of the Statehouse in Montpelier. Leading up to the event, I had been reflecting on what I wanted to say about the importance of equitable access to abortion, which mostly centered on the dual fight for voting rights and reproductive freedom to make lasting progress.
When I got up to the podium, however, I was hit by the strength and power of the community surrounding me and was moved to share my own experience.
I got an abortion 15 years ago when I was studying at American University for a semester in college. I had never felt more alone in my life. Back then, the health center where I got care had anti-abortion protesters who would get extremely close, pulling at your clothes and praying in your ear. All I could hear was the blood pumping in my brain and then a voice above the throng saying three important words: “I’ve got you.”
Those words came from a clinic escort and her calm voice meant so much as she encouraged me to walk forward and look straight ahead as she helped me make my way into the health center.
This is something we can and must all do for each other. From seeking an abortion or birth control, to running for office, to fighting for our rights over our bodies, we need to find ways to support each other. I felt extremely held when I shared my story at the rally, and it made me feel brave enough to share it again here, even more publicly.
This is how we turn a moment into a movement.
In August, anti-abortion politicians in the Texas Legislature enacted SB8, banning all abortions after six weeks of pregnancy and emboldening citizens to harass virtually anyone who they think may have violated the law, including people who drive someone to their appointment, punishing someone for showing the same love and kindness I got from that clinic volunteer years ago.
After the U.S. Supreme Court refused to intervene in this egregious violation of reproductive liberty, the law went into effect for nearly five weeks, but then faced legal whiplash as one judge stepped in to block the bill and then, 72 hours later, another court allowed the law to go into effect again. Today, abortion is virtually inaccessible for Texans, and there is more to come.
In December, the Supreme Court will hear oral arguments in another case that has the potential to undermine Roe v. Wade, the 1973 decision that ensured legal abortion. Despite abortion still being legal today, anti-abortion politicians across the nation have passed hundreds of restrictions on reproductive health care, carrying disproportionate impacts for people of color whom our health care system already turns its back on. Abortion is on the line like never before.
As a former Planned Parenthood of Northern New England board member, I’ve been engaged in this fight for years. I’m proud of the work that our state has done to ensure reproductive freedoms, from avoiding medically unnecessary waiting periods on services, to ensuring that abortions are affordable and covered by insurance.
During the 2021 session, the Vermont Senate advanced an amendment to our state’s constitution to protect our right to choose. If Proposition 5 passes next November, we will be the first state in the country to explicitly enshrine reproductive freedoms in our constitution. This proposition not only guarantees the right to abortion but includes the right to become pregnant and carry a pregnancy to term, to choose or refuse sterilization, as well as the right to access other reproductive services such as contraception, family planning services, and maternal health support.
Here in Vermont, we believe in freedom, unity and common sense. My colleagues and I have laid the groundwork toward ensuring abortion access to everyone for the long term because protecting reproductive liberty is about having the freedom to make personal decisions.
Fifteen years ago, I wasn’t ready to become a parent. Earlier this year, I married the love of my life, and we will seek family planning services to try to grow our family. These choices are on a spectrum that we must make with medical professionals and the support of people saying, “I’ve got you.”
I will continue using my voice and position in the Senate to do everything I can for reproductive freedom, not only to keep abortion legal but to make abortion accessible to everyone in our state and beyond. No matter what the Supreme Court does next, one fact will always remain: Everyone, regardless of who they are or where they live, deserves the freedom to decide if and when to become a parent. The only way we will be able to win back our rights is together, so as we move forward, I’ve got you and we’ve got each other.
