Women’s bodies and equal rights are again under assault. This week, the Supreme Court agreed to hear a case originating from a Mississippi law banning abortions after 15 weeks of pregnancy. On Friday, Texas governor Greg Abbott signed a law banning all abortions the moment a fetal heartbeat can be detected, which is about six weeks (at six weeks most women may not even realize they are pregnant). Tennessee and South Carolina passed similar bills. In Tennessee, the proposed bill SB 0494 would allow the father of an unborn child the right to obtain a court order forbidding the mother from getting an abortion, even in cases of rape or incest.
The Tennessee bill sponsored by state Republicans Sen. Mark Pody and Rep. Jerry Sexton would give a man complete veto power over a woman (assuming he is the one who got her pregnant) by allowing him to petition a court for an injunction against the abortion. Pody stated that he introduced SB 0494 after a constituent was concerned that under the current laws, fathers do not have any say in whether or not a mother can have an abortion. Pody says that this bill would ensure that the father has a right to make a decision about an unborn child.
Pody stated, “I believe a father should have a right to say what’s gonna be happening to that child,” Pody said. “And if somebody is going to kill that child, he should be able to say, ‘No, I don’t want that child to be killed. I want to able to raise that child and love that child.'” In short, forget about what the woman wants, it’s really the man’s choice.
Under Tennesee SB 0494, a judge would be able to grant a petition if the man can prove he’s the biological father of the unborn child, or if there is a “reasonable possibility” that the mother would want an abortion. If the woman acknowledges that the petitioner is the father, then DNA evidence would not be a requirement, but it would be up to the judge to decide if enough paternity evidence exists.
Over 60 bills have been introduced or passed in state legislatures this year to restrict abortions, and the proposed Tennesse bill is just one of many blatant assaults on women’s rights. SB 0494 demonstrates the inherent, patriarchal mindset that men should have control over women’s bodies, and regulate their reproduction. The bill makes no exception for rape or incest, and further demonstrates the view that a man has the ultimate power to make health care decisions for a woman. These bills restricting and banning abortions are setting a very dangerous precedent for the Supreme Court to revisit Roe v. Wade in the future.
The pro-life movement says it’s “pro-life,” but let’s be honest. It’s about controlling women’s bodies, not about protecting the lives. If the pro-life movement and its GOP champions are so concerned about the life of a fetus, why do they support denying healthcare coverage to people with pre-existing conditions? Why do GOP lawmakers seek to cut programs that feed hungry children, and support the separation of infants and toddlers from their parents at the border with no plans to reunite them? Why do these proponents of human life ignore rising maternal mortality rates, especially in Black women, and seek to strip affordable healthcare from millions of low-income citizens?
As I watch in horror as restrictive abortion bills gain momentum in several states, it’s clear that the right is hell-bent on controlling female sexuality. Women are not chattel, women are not things, women are not merely reproductive vessels or mere “baby machines.” Women are human beings and women’s rights matter.