With near-total bans on abortion in 14 states, the laws on miscarriage are vague – stoking fears of criminal consequences and leaving women desperate
For a long time after her miscarriage, Rebecca sat on the toilet, trying to figure out what to do.
“I thought about fishing it out of the bloody water,” she said. “I didn’t really want to hold it in my hand. I also didn’t know what I would do with it afterwards. Am I gonna put it in the trash? Am I gonna dig a hole in the backyard? What the hell am I supposed to do? I had no idea.”
It was around 3 or 4 in the morning; her husband was trying to get some sleep before work. She was exhausted and in shock.
“Ultimately, I flushed it. I didn’t want to,” Rebecca said. As she thought about it all again, she kept repeating herself: “I didn’t know what I was supposed to do.”
Rebecca, who is from Ohio, experienced that miscarriage in fall of 2014. Nine years and one supreme court decision later, another distraught woman would also miscarry into a toilet in Ohio – but after she tried to flush, she would have a very different experience. Her case would ultimately land a national spotlight on the anguish, uncertainty and even danger that millions of women, like Rebecca, have experienced in the minutes and hours after a miscarriage.
The ambiguity and potential legal threats around getting pregnant are the worst part. There’s no clear process and the law will be applied selectively, usually to hurt people. This whole thing is so messed up.
There’s no clear process and the law will be applied selectively, usually to hurt people.
This is what the conservatives steering the country to fascism don’t understand. The country they want is where the people they don’t like get selectively punished.
But when it’s done through selective enforcement of inhuman laws, as all fascist states operate, those people will eventually live in the same fear and anxious uncertainty that they are now so enjoying inflicting on their moral enemies.
First they came for the … shit, who did they go after first?! They’re such hateful little troglodytes…
All this is happening while the older generation screeches at us to have children. No thank you, I’d rather not spend time in jail and who knows how much on court costs just because my body decided to miscarry.
Women will stop going to the doctor at all to make sure there’s no record of their pregnancy, just in case
Yup these laws are about punishing women for being imperfect vessels. To the pro birthers, If a women has a miscarriage it’s obviously she did something wrong and needs to be punished. These people also believe miscarriages only existe because feminism, roe v wade, and women not accepting their place below man. Flee pro birth States! If you live in a pro choice state help those who are not get out.
The lesson learned here is " the only way to win is not to play". The rise in DINKS has already begun and I’m sure will accelerate in response to this nonsense. Soon the ratio of wanted children to unwanted will tip and violent crime will rise. There is a great section in freakonomics about this. I’m putting my money where my mouth is and partner is getting fixed tomorrow!
I’m sorry, but that’s a shit take. If someone wants to have kids, they shouldn’t worry about legal trouble in the case of miscarriage. Full stop.
No one should be okay with the government having this much overreach.
I don’t think you two are disagreeing on that lol
I don’t think you two are disagreeing on that lol
I know it’s the epitome of privledge to say this and I know it can be impossible for a lot of people for any number of reasons…
But…
If you are a woman of childbearing age and are, or even plan to be pregnant, run as fast as you can away from these states.
There was a time, not long ago, when birthing children was potentially dangerous or even fatal without modern medical care. By outlawing that care, you’re taking a hard dive right back into those medieval conditions. Woman can, will, and are dying because of these laws. It’s horribly, horribly, horribly wrong, and I hope it gets reversed soon.
But until then? Run.
That’s actually so fucked up that it’s basically illegal to have a miscarriage.
How to run a state like a moron.
- Make it hard to human…
So much more women would take another look at vasectomy in that situation.
