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After Abortion Ban in Alabama, State Representative Rolanda Hollis Introduces Bill Requiring Vasectomies for Men at Age 50


In May 2019, lawmakers in Alabama passed a wide-ranging abortion ban that would, among other things, punish doctors who performed the procedure on women at any stage of pregnancy with up to 99 years in prison. (A federal judge blocked the ban from taking effect in October 2019 until the matter is settled in the courts.)

Now, in response, a Democratic state representative in Alabama has introduced a bill that would require men to get vasectomies within a month of turning 50, or after their third child is born—whichever happens first. Per HuffPost, Rep. Rolanda Hollis acknowledges the bill is not a serious proposal, but rather a symbol meant to “send a message that men should not be legislating what women do with their bodies”—either through a straightforward abortion ban or through smaller incursions into women’s reproductive freedom.

“Year after year the majority party continues to introduce new legislation that tries to dictate [rules for] a woman’s body and her reproductive rights. We should view this as the same outrageous overstep in authority,” she said in a statement.

Senator Ted Cruz (R-Texas) responded to the proposed legislation on Twitter—and was then summarily mocked for his hypocrisy, given his support of limiting women’s reproductive rights. “Yikes. A government big enough to give you everything is big enough to take everything…literally!” he wrote. “Alabama Democrat proposes bill mandating all men have vasectomy at age 50 or after third child.”

“Yes, the government shouldn’t be involved in private reproductive health choices, yes, that’s a great point you made, yes,” historian and author Kevin Kruse replied to his tweet. The actor Patricia Arquette wrote, “Thought you wanted to stop unwanted pregnancies.”

“Wow how awful that the government is trying to interfere with bodily autonomy! What’s that feel like?” another Twitter user said.

And just in case the irony was lost on Cruz, one person laid it out super clearly for him. “This bill was not meant to pass; it was introduced to demonstrate how wrong it is to restrict people’s reproductive rights. In other words, the argument you’re applying to this bill shows how your own views on women’s reproductive rights are indefensible!” he wrote.

Cruz, unsurprisingly, has not responded to those calling out his double standard. Meanwhile, the assault on women’s reproductive rights continues.



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Alabama Woman Charged With Manslaughter—For Losing a Pregnancy After Getting Shot


Late last year Marshae Jones, a 28-year-old living in Alabama, was shot in the stomach during a dispute with 23-year-old Ebony Jemison. At the time of the shooting, Jones was five months pregnant. Although she survived, the fetus did not. And this week she found herself in court over the incident. It was there that a Jefferson County grand jury indicted her for manslaughter—of the fetus.

Jones was booked into jail on a $50,000 bond, according to authorities. The police argued that since Jones allegedly started the fight, Jemison only shot her in self-defense. And because Jones failed to get herself out of the situation, they reasoned, she’s culpable for what happened. (Police initially charged Jemison with manslaughter for the death of the fetus, but unlike in Jones’s case, she was ultimately not indicted, according to al.com.)

“The only true victim in this was the unborn baby,” Lieutenant Danny Reid of the Pleasant Grove Police Department said after the shooting in December, al.com reported. “It was the mother of the child who initiated and continued the fight which resulted in the death of her own unborn baby.”

This case comes in the midst of a heated national debate over a woman’s right to choose and whether a fetus should “count” as a person under the law. But it’s no surprise that this case is taking place in Alabama. Last month Alabama voted to pass the most severe restrictions on abortion nationwide. And 25 Republican male state senators passed a bill outlawing abortion from the moment of conception onward, without provisions for cases of even rape or incest. Doctors who perform the procedure could also be punished with life in prison. Alabama governor Kay Ivey, a Republican, then signed the bill into law. While it’s uncertain if the bill will go into effect, it sets up a direct challenge to Roe v. Wade—the apparent goal of recent state-sponsored abortion restrictions.

Alabama is also one of the 38 states that has fetal homicide laws. In other words, in cases of violence against a pregnant woman, the fetus is recognized as a victim. That means a woman can be prosecuted if it’s believed she precipitated a miscarriage.

“When a five-month pregnant woman initiates a fight and attacks another person, I believe some responsibility lies with her as to any injury to her unborn child,” Reid also added. “That child is dependent on its mother to try to keep it from harm, and she shouldn’t seek out unnecessary physical altercations.”



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SNL's Leslie Jones Unloads on the Alabama Senators Who Voted to Criminalize Abortion


Saturday Night Live cast member Leslie Jones took on Alabama’s new anti-abortion law last night during the show’s “Weekend Update” segment—and she didn’t hold back on condemning it.

Jones joined co-anchors Colin Jost and Michael Che decked out as a handmaid from The Handmaid’s Tale in a red robe and bonnet. After joking that her name is now “Ofjost,” she then ripped off her costume to display a black T-shirt that had “mine” written on it along with an arrow pointing down. What followed was a powerful, yet comical, take on the newly passed Alabama legislation that makes performing an abortion at any stage of a pregnancy a felony.

“You can’t control women. Because, I don’t know if y’all heard, but women are the same as humans. And I’m Leslie ‘Dracarys’ Jones!” she said. “I mean, why do all of these weird-ass men care what women do with their bodies?”

She then showed a photo of all 25 of the white male Senators who voted for the legislation and said, “This looks like the mugshots of everyone arrested at a massage parlor,” Jones said. “And if any of them had lips, I would tell them to kiss my entire ass.”

Jones then went on to say, “The fact that nine states are doing this means this really is a war on women.” She then made it clear that anyone feeling alone or scared is not alone.

She concluded her compelling bit on the segment with a “Dracarys” command, which is what Emilia Clarke’s character Daenerys uses on her dragons to release fire.

Watch the entire segment below:



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In Alabama, These 25 Men Voted for the Most Restrictive Abortion Ban in America


This week Alabama passed the most restrictive abortion ban in America, outlawing the procedure from the moment of conception onward. There are no exceptions for cases of rape or incest, with a lone allowance made for instances in which a woman’s health is at risk. As Glamour has reported, doctors who administer an abortion could be prosecuted and face up to 99 years in prison. One headline summed it up well: “Under Alabama’s Abortion Ban, Doctors Who Perform Abortions on Rape Victims Could Get More Prison Time Than Rapists.” The article goes on to explain that even doctors who just attempt to administer one could be sentenced to up to 10 years behind bars.

So who voted to strip women of their reproductive freedom, a right that has been enshrined in our law at the national level since 1973? Well, in Alabama, the antichoice movement has a look. All 25 state senators who voted for the bill are Republican white men; there are just four women in the chamber and all of them are Democrats, who opposed the bill.

This means that despite widespread support for Roe v. Wade nationwide and in both parties, just over two dozen men have voted for a bill whose explicit purpose is to challenge the Supreme Court decision. In other words, 25 men who will never need this procedure (but who can, of course, put a woman in a position where she might need one) have limited the medical options available to 51 percent of the population. The lopsidedness of this equation was not lost to people on social media, some of whom pointed out that just nine women have ever served in the Alabama state senate.

Here are the names of the senators who’ve decided that, in Alabama, women don’t deserve the right to make their own health care decisions: Greg Albritton, Gerald H. Allen, Will Barfoot, Tom Butler, Clyde Chambliss, Donnie Chesteen, Chris Elliott, Sam Givhan, Garlan Gudger, Andrew Jones, Steve Livingston, Del Marsh, Jim McClendon, Tim Melson, Arthur Orr, Randy Price, Greg Reed, Dan Roberts, Clay Scofield, David R. Sessions, Shay Shelnutt, Larry Collins Stutts, James Thomas “Jabo” Waggoner, Cam Ward, and Jack Williams.

It should be noted that the bill will now head to Alabama’s female governor, Kay Ivey, who has not commented on the law but who is antichoice. If she signs it, it could take effect within six months. Women, and white women in particular, have of course supported antichoice legislation. But no matter what Gov. Ivey decides to do, the optics of the bill at this point are impossible to ignore.



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Alabama Governor Has Signed the Nation's Most Restrictive Abortion Ban Into Law


Republican Alabama Governor Kay Ivey signed into law an abortion bill that would outlaw the procedure as soon as the moment of conception. The only exception to the ban would be for women whose health is at risk. Additionally, doctors who perform the procedure could be punished with life in prison. The bill was passed by 25, Republican male state senators. There are only four women in the chamber—all of whom are Democrats—and they all opposed the bill.

Prior to signing the bill Governor Ivey had not commented on the law, though her pro-life stance was known. After the signing, she released the following statement regarding her decision.

“Today, I signed into law the Alabama Human Life Protection Act, a bill that was approved by overwhelming majorities in both chambers of the Legislature,” Governor Ivey wrote. “To the bill’s many supporters, this legislation stands as a powerful testament to Alabamians’ deeply held belief that every life is precious and that every life is a sacred gift from God.”

Governor Ivey also went on to discuss that while the new bill is likely to be unenforceable due to to Roe v Wade, their overall aim is to challenge that very decision.

“No matter one’s personal view on abortion, we can all recognize that, at least for the short term, this bill may similarly be unenforceable,” Governor Ivey added. “As citizens of this great country, we must always respect the authority of the U.S. Supreme Court even when we disagree with their decisions. Many Americans, myself included, disagreed when Roe v. Wade was handed down in 1973. The sponsors of this bill believe that it is time, once again, for the U.S. Supreme Court to revisit this important matter, and they believe this act may bring about the best opportunity for this to occur.”

This bill could now potentially go into effect within the next six months.

Read more about how you can help women in states with extreme abortion bans, here.



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With the Alabama Abortion Ban, Republicans Push to Challenge Roe v. Wade and Strip Women of Their Rights


“If we are arguing personhood,” said Eric Johnston, the president of the Alabama Pro-Life Coalition, “then it does not matter how a child is conceived.” Late last night, Alabama passed a total abortion ban passed in the state after an amendment that would have made an exemption to the law in cases of rape or incest failed. (The ban does have an exemption for cases in which a woman’s life is in danger.) Johnston had helped draft the bill. If it’s signed into law and allowed to take effect, doctors who perform abortions on women at any stage of pregnancy could face 99 years in prison.

In the lead up to the vote, Republican Rep. Terri Collins was even clearer, arguing that “[o]ur bill says that a baby in the womb is a person.” Collins is a cosponsor on the bill, which she hopes will help overturn Roe v. Wade. In Alabama, as in Georgia and Ohio, which both passed extreme abortion bills earlier this month, a clump of cells now has more rights than an adult woman—or, as CBS News pointed out, an sixth grader. Under the Ohio law, for example, a pregnant 11-year-old rape victim would no longer be allowed to have an abortion.

Yes, ICYMI: Republicans want to overturn Roe. They want to take away the right to have a safe abortion. They want to send us right back to America pre-1973. But it’s not just about Roe. Under Donald Trump, a man who’s had a lot of sexual relationships with a lot of women who aren’t his wife, the GOP has declared an open war on women’s reproductive health. It seems we can’t reach the end of a week without a new crisis, some gruesome legislative nightmare explicitly crafted to rein in our rights. It’s 2019, and Republicans have an unquenchable thirst for the Handmaid’s Tale agenda.

Lately, the crusade has taken the form of “heartbeat bills,” which ban abortion before most women even know they’re pregnant at around six weeks. (That’s a little after one late period, although presumably most of the men who wrote these bills are unfamiliar with how menstruation works.) Other efforts have attempted to defund Planned Parenthood, which provides life-saving mammograms and pap smears to millions of people, using a sneaky Title X “Gag Rule.” But inevitably, there’s more to come. The GOP has one goal when it comes to women—strip us of our rights to reproductive health care and the freedom to live the lives we choose.

Since the appointment of Supreme Court Justices Brett Kavanaugh and Neil Gorsuch, state and local Republicans have doubled down on their plan to regulate women’s bodies. And why not? For the first time since Roe v. Wade was decided in 1973, the makeup of the court is so conservative that it’s entirely possible the decision will soon be struck from the books.

We could scream ourselves hoarse, calling out how highly strange and deeply hypocritical it is that the supposed party of small government wants to squeeze itself inside women’s uteruses. Or we could acknowledge what’s really going on here: It’s not a set of ideological principles that motivates the Republican Party. It’s a desire to control women, to limit our possibilities and our potential, to beat back the gains of feminism and civil rights, and to do all that on a platform of coercion, intimidation, and misinformation. Of course, there are some good actors in the Republican Party (likely Catholics) who truly believe that life begins at conception. I don’t believe that, but at least I understand where those people are coming from. Most anti-choice sentiment isn’t that.





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