Decades
have passed since the height of the women’s liberation movement and the 1973
landmark Supreme Court case Roe v. Wade.
The latter legalized abortion, making it clear that women in the United States
should have control over their own bodies. In the ensuing decades, the ruling
class has taken aim at women’s struggle for reproductive choice. The assault on
women was most recently ramped up with the passage of repressive laws in
Oklahoma on April 27 and in Kansas on May 3.
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The Oklahoma legislature overrode the veto of Governor Brad Henry
to enact two anti-abortion laws. HB 2780 mandates that women be required to
view an ultrasound one hour before having an abortion. The
law requires that doctors use a vaginal probe to conduct the ultrasound, which
is a highly intrusive procedure. The vaginal probe also provides a clearer
image of the fetus than a regular ultrasound. The doctor is required to
verbally describe the fetus in detail, including its dimensions, whether arms,
legs and internal organs can be seen and whether
there is a heartbeat. The law also requires that doctors turn the screen with
the ultrasound images toward the woman, forcing her to view it.
Oklahoma’s attorney general
agreed May 3 to temporarily block enforcement of HB 2780 after the Center for Reproductive Rights filed a lawsuit against
the state, arguing that the bill represents an unconstitutional invasion into
privacy.
The
other bill, HB 2625, protects doctors who lie to patients about the health of
the fetus, if they believe that the information will encourage the patient to
choose to abort. This law threatens to dismantle the trust between a patient
and her doctor. Allowing doctors to withhold this information circumvents
women’s right to make decisions about their bodies.
Kansas attacks late term abortion
On May 3, Kansas
legislators overturned the governor’s veto of a bill intended to further
restrict so-called late term abortion (after 21 weeks of pregnancy). An
existing law in Kansas allows abortion after 21 weeks if the woman’s life is in
danger or if she would experience “irreversible impairment of a bodily
function.” The new law requires doctors to submit an exact medical diagnosis
for each late term procedure.
The Kansas law
also allows family members of abortion patients to sue the provider if they
believe a late term abortion violated state law. There have been no late term
abortions provided in Kansas since the murder of Dr. George Tiller last year in
Wichita. This law appears to be aimed at discouraging any other doctor from
establishing a new practice that includes late term procedures.
A
bill in Missouri has passed the state Senate and is ready for debate in the
House. This bill requires the patient have the opportunity to view an
ultrasound and listen to any heartbeat. In addition, the law requires that women be informed
about the possibility of the abortion causing pain to the fetus and hear more
information on fetal development. a A number of convincing medical studies show
that a fetus cannot experience pain before the third trimester at the
earliest—well past the time at which most abortions are performed.
It
is becoming increasingly clear that women’s right to choose is being chipped
away, state by state The bourgeois movement for reproductive rights has
established a strategy of electoral support for the Democratic Party, primarily
based on the alleged importance of the composition of the Supreme Court for
preventing the overturn of Roe v. Wade.
However, as attention has focused on President Obama’s latest opportunity to
appoint a Supreme Court justice, Obama has said that he will not administer a
“litmus” test for nominees regarding support for Roe v. Wade.
Capitalist
courts and politicians did not “give” women the right to choose; women fought
for this right with a mass movement in the streets. The truly decisive factor
in defending women’s gains and for pushing back the most recent attacks would
be the resurgence of a militant united movement in the streets.
