The right to choose in “Trump’s America”

Ready for some alarming statistics? Planned Parenthood states that 3 out 10 women in the United States will get an abortion before the time they are 45. 18 out 100 people who use condoms will become pregnant every single year.

The birth control pill is only 91% effective. In my eyes, as a young woman in the free world, it is so glaringly obvious to me that women deserve the right to choose. And yet, to my disbelief, Roe v. Wade, the pivotal 1973 decision that legalized abortions, is an ongoing discussion, not a stable fact.

In the third presidential Debate, when asked if he would want the court to overturn Roe V. Wade, President-elect Donald Trump responded:

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“Well, if that would happen, because I am pro-life, and I will be appointing pro-life judges…it will go back to the states, and the states will then make a determination.”

Mr. Trump, I’d like to say a few words on behalf of my fellow countrywomen, because we are highly concerned.

With all due respect, you are a man, and perhaps it is hard to truly understand the anxieties women feel surrounding sex. The concept that something as common as a contraception failure (18 out of 100 people using condoms) could lead to something as life altering as having a child is crippling.

Try to comprehend the fact that a fetus could grow inside our bodies, and our bodies would have to morph and rearrange for nine months, interrupting our commutes, our class time, our study sessions, our full time jobs, our portals to achieving our full potential.

Women can become pregnant as soon as they get their period. For some this is before they even turn eleven. Not to mention, sometimes sex is not a voluntary action. 1 in 5 women in college fall victim to rape.

There is no law that legally binds a biological father to the child. There are no systems in place that ensure that every mother and child is provided with enough money for a good life. There is no funding to protect children born with disabilities. There is no system to help women earn a college degree under these circumstances. There is no way to shield women from the stigma that comes along with pregnancy. Men have the luxury of externalizing this anxiety. Women do not have that luxury.

Not only do you want to take away women’s right to choose, but keep women down through your sexist maternity leave plan. Your plan for paid maternity leave calls for only six weeks of paid maternity leave for new mothers, not fathers, which ends up hurting women by keeping them from the workforce.

It is also unclear whether your policy includes single mothers, a vulnerable demographic in society. According to the Washington Post, the maternity leave policy has a marriage requirement cited on your campaign’s website, Mr. Trump.

Gov. John Kasich of Ohio signed the “Senate Bill 127,” which bans abortions after 20 weeks of pregnancy, making no exception to victims of rape or incest. Of the 16 states that ban abortions after 20 weeks, only Arkansas has made an exception for rape or incest.

Women across the country held their breath as the Heartbeat Bill was passed by lawmakers in Ohio. This new bill called for the banning of abortions after only 6 weeks of pregnancy (with no exception for incest or rape) which is before most women even know that they are pregnant.

Thankfully, Gov. Kasich vetoed the bill, but the prospect send shivers across the country.

Mr. Trump, you claim that you want to “Make America Great Again.” But last time I checked, women have been celebrating the right to choose for 44 years, and that’s been pretty great.

Forcing religious beliefs onto a nation by taking away their right to choose goes against the very essence of America, land of the free. Americans got hung up on a few e-mails and Hillary Clinton lost the election, and the threat to basic women’s rights is collateral damage. I have a hard time accepting a president who participates in and openly condones sexual assault, and based a campaign on repressive legislation just to get himself elected.

I am highly doubtful that any movement will be made towards limiting the ability of men to obtain Viagra, but what do I know? Trump would say, I’m just a “nasty woman.”