Abortion Should Never Be Criminalized — And This Is a Battle at the State Level
By Kieran Mailman
State-level organizing doesn’t just impact who is elected, but what legislation will get introduced. States with a majority of anti-abortion legislators tend to become the testing grounds for anti-abortion legislation that will later spread across the U.S. One example is laws mandating that abortion providers obtain admitting privileges at hospitals, an unnecessary hurdle to care because abortion is overwhelmingly safe, and hospitalization after abortion is incredibly low. [1] States that pass these laws tend to be located in the South and Midwest, where issues such as voter disenfranchisement and gerrymandering have deliberately disempowered people of color as well as the overwhelming majority of people who don’t want legal abortion overturned. Anti-abortion groups such as Americans United for Life specialize in creating anti-abortion legislative templates or model bills than can be applied across states, introducing harmful, restrictive anti-abortion legislation quickly and easily. [2] This trend in anti-abortion legislation should be especially concerning given the increase in “abortion abolition” bills being introduced in Southern and Midwestern states.
Even in anti-abortion circles, so-called abortion abolition is controversial. [3] Those who take the position that no abortion should be legal have divided the anti-abortion movement by advocating for both patients and providers to be charged with murder — which, in some states, means people who have abortions could face the death penalty for accessing abortion care. [4] Recent years have seen an uptick in “abortion abolition” bills: states such as Oklahoma, Arizona, and Mississippi have all seen these bills introduced for the 2021 legislative session. Even in cases where the bill does not contain explicit penalties for people who have abortions, vague language may still allow overzealous prosecutors and state attorneys general to impose charges on people who self-manage abortion. A recently failed initiative in Mississippi, House Bill 338, has an entire section devoted to criminalizing abortion pills, including the distribution of information about abortion pills. [5]
These “abortion abolition” bills have the support of not only anti-abortion activists, but also state and federal legislators. At a recent rally in support of Arizona’s abortion criminalization bill, Arizona state Rep. Walt Blackman (R-Snowflake) — the bill’s sponsor — told people who could become pregnant:
“Yeah, I am giving you a choice. I’m giving you a choice to stop murdering your baby or face the consequences.” [6]
In Arizona, the “consequences” of a murder charge could be the death penalty — a “consequence” other anti-abortion activists and legislators have expressed their support for, which Reproaction has documented in our Stop Prosecuting Abortion campaign.
State-level organizing gives us a clear path forward to keep fighting for a more just future, is critical to blocking anti-abortion bills from becoming law. State and local organizations have been leading the charge against the violence of anti-abortion legislation for years, and can only continue to do so with the support of their communities. By supporting state and local groups fighting anti-abortion cruelty, you are sending a firm message to the anti-abortion movement: Stop Prosecuting Abortion.
[1] https://www.vox.com/2014/8/12/5991167/abortion-admitting-privileges-supreme-court
[3] https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/feb/12/anti-abortion-activists-womens-rights
[5] http://billstatus.ls.state.ms.us/documents/2021/pdf/HB/0300-0399/HB0338IN.pdf
[6] https://www.facebook.com/watch/live/?v=499039717768122&ref=watch_permalink
