Photo Cred: E! Entertainment (Getty)/ Startraksphoto.com/ Taylor Hill (Getty)
Abortion Ban by 25 White Men – Celebs Speak Out
By Ash CMay 17 2019, Updated 7:54 p.m. ET
As you may already know, on Tuesday 25 white male Republicans in Alabama voted to ban abortion at every stage of pregnancy, with the small exception that the mother’s physical or mental health is in jeopardy. On Wednesday, governor Kay Ivey signed the near-total abortion ban, putting in place one of the nation’s most restrictive abortion laws.
Alabama is one of a dozen states that have passed or attempted to pass stricter abortion legislation this year. Earlier this month, Georgia passed a “foetal heartbeat” law that would criminalise abortions once a foetus’s heartbeat has been detected. Exceptions are only allowed in cases where the foetus isn’t viable or the mother’s health is in jeopardy. In the more extreme cases rape and incest, exceptions can be made but a police report has to be on file.
Women and men of Hollywood have spoken out against the abortion ban. Actress and talk show host Busy Phillips has just started a #YouKnowMe campaign on social media. Revealing her own past abortion, Phillips is encouraging women to come forward to tell their stories in order to counter the abortion ban.
A 2017 analysis by the Guttmacher Institute says that 23.7% (one in four) of women in the US will have an abortion by the age of 45. In an interview earlier this month, Phillips told USA Today that “I can not sit idly by while women’s rights are stripped away. […] I had an abortion when I was 15 years old and I’m telling you this because I’m genuinely really scared for women and girls all over this country.”
“Resident Evil” and “The Fifth Element” actress Milla Jovovich took to Instagram to disclose that she went through an emergency abortion 2 years ago. She continued,
-“Abortion is a nightmare at its best. No woman wants to go through that. But we have to fight to make sure our rights are preserved to obtain a safe one if we need to. I never wanted to speak about this experience. But I cannot remain silent when so much is at stake.”
“Abortion is a nightmare at its best. No woman wants to go through that. But we have to fight to make sure our rights are preserved to obtain a safe one if we need to. I never wanted to speak about this experience. But I cannot remain silent when so much is at stake.”
Rihanna shared a photo of the 25 male legislators on Instagram and Twitter, singling out Kay Ivey, the female governor who signed the Alabama bill into law Wednesday.
“The Good Place” UK-born actress Jameela Jamil, who has also been an avid feminist and activist, posted a thread of tweets to push against the abortion ban. She too has had an abortion.
In a statement to CBS News earlier this week, Dr. Leana Wen, President of the Planned Parenthood Action Fund said that:
-“In a state that has some of the worst health outcomes for women in the nation-such as the highest rate of cervical cancer — Alabama is putting women’s lives at an even greater risk. Politicians who say they value life should advocate for policies to solve the public health crises that are killing women, not dismantle what little access to health care Alabamians have left.”
“In a state that has some of the worst health outcomes for women in the nation-such as the highest rate of cervical cancer — Alabama is putting women’s lives at an even greater risk. Politicians who say they value life should advocate for policies to solve the public health crises that are killing women, not dismantle what little access to health care Alabamians have left.”
