Let's Talk About Abortion
Let’s Talk About Abortion. Recently, a family member asked me how many weeks should be acceptable for abortions. He had heard some people say it should be 12 weeks, others 18 and still others 24. “What is the right answer?” he asked.
I wasn’t prepared for the question, particularly from someone who had never shown much interest in the topic. I stumbled around for a bit but didn’t do a good job answering his thoughtful question.
I wrote him an email later that night explaining why pundits, politicians, and even the two of us talking about when abortion should be acceptable are part of the larger narrative of politicizing the topic. Abortion is healthcare and setting of standards of care should rest with the medical community in the same way they develop standards for every other kind of medical decision-making. He thanked me for the answer.
We need to talk to our friends and family about abortion. Maybe not as much as I do :) but more than we have in the past. Here is a fantastic chart from the United States of Women to help guide your discussions:
The State of States. Nebraska is a good example of exactly the head spinning place we’re in right now with regard to abortion rights.
Last week the police charged a mother and daughter with murder for taking abortion medication at 23 weeks, three weeks beyond the current 20-week limit. There are so many horrific parts to this story. A friend told the police. Facebook gave their direct messages to the cops. Taken together, Nebraska and many other states are creating a system of surveillance, criminality, and terror.
On the other hand. . .
Nebraska’s Governor didn’t have enough votes in the state senate to pass a law banning abortion at 10 weeks. Two Republicans voted against further tightening the rules against abortion. This is a huge win, on par with Kansas and perhaps even more remarkable because Republican lawmakers went against their party. I’m going to keep saying it – we can win anywhere.
Teens Taking Care of Themselves. IfWhenHow has found that nearly 40% of reports to law enforcement for self-managed abortions come from social workers and medical professionals. Again, back to creating system of fear in which professionals are required to report abortion care or risk losing their licenses. One heartbreaking result is that teenage girls are teaching one another on TikTok and other social media sites not to reveal any information about their periods to their doctors. I have faith that these kids will take care of themselves and each other, but wish they didn’t have to.
Three Things You Can Do:
1. Talk to someone you love about abortion. It could be someone you suspect feels the same as you do, or someone you may not have any idea who they feel, but use the prompts above and give it a try. Do not try to change their mind, just explain how you feel about abortion and listen to how they feel. This kind of deep listening, or deep canvassing as organizers call it, is far more effective than trying to convince someone else how they should feel.
2. Send the FTC your comments. Finally (!), the FTC is getting serious about regulating Big Tech extractive data practices. By this, I mean their habit of taking any of our data they can get their hands on and using it to make a profit. They sell our data to advertisers, feed a marketplace for location data, and manipulate what we see and do to get more of it. This is the beginning of the process for the FTC. As the chair, Lina Khan said, “Our goal today is to begin building a robust public record to inform whether the FTC should issue rules to address commercial surveillance and data security practices and what those rules should potentially look like.” Here is a tip sheet on how the FTC makes its rules and how you can comment. Also, there is a public hearing on September 8th you can sign up to attend. This is why we worked so hard to elect a Democratic administration. This is how the government is making its policies, and it’s our chance to shape Big Tech’s approach to data.
3. Sign up to be a poll worker. Yesterday was National Poll Worker Recruitment Day! One great way to defend our democracy is to work the polls, and advocate at work for making Election Day a day off! And good news, more local jurisdictions are allowing for split shifts, a half day for poll workers, instead of the incredibly long, 15-hour days. Finally, get this, Nebraska is the only state where poll workers are “drafted” like jury members. Hey, Nebraska, you’re a very interesting state.