Published in the Idaho Press, Letters to the Editor
It’s an election year in Idaho, and that means abortion care is on the chopping block again. You may have heard about Representative Heather Scott’s latest abortion criminalization proposal. It’s definitely unconstitutional and not going to get far, but still, yikes. Abortion seems to be the one topic politicians can dangle and be guaranteed votes and praise without having to actually do anything that benefits their constituents.
Idaho legislators keep fighting the wrong battles. How about addressing how millennials are the first generation in American history to be worse off than their parents? Or understanding why the risk of maternal mortality is rising in the U.S? Why is it that so many people do not have health insurance? What are we doing to mitigate the climate crisis that already threatens our quality of life?
The same legislators that wouldn’t enact medicaid expansion without a ballot initiative, that are denying climate change, that won’t raise the minimum wage, are telling us that banning abortion will somehow save the american family. Last year I watched Heather Scott vote against addressing the maternal mortality rate, in which Idaho ranks 31st in the country.
Abortion is not a problem to be solved. Abortion is a much needed option in a world that is chaotic, unpredictable, and often cruel. Folks who have had and will need abortions are normal people. We live in Idaho. We pay rent. We’re underinsured. We VOTE. And we are watching.
So why doesn’t our government focus on creating policy that actually allows families to grow in healthy, loving, and sustainable communities and in that way, preserve life and dignity for all.