Roe v Wade – A Love Letter to All Women

This will not break us.

This letter is for Gerri Santoro. An American woman who died in a motel room after an unsafe abortion in the days before Roe v Wade. She died alone, abandoned by her lover, and hunched over a blood-soaked towel – she was 28 years old. She was forced into that motel room by laws aimed at stripping her right to exercise control and choice over her own body. Gerri and her lonesome, terrible death became a symbol for the pro-choice movement, but she is more than a symbol. She was a woman, a person full of life, and love, and fear and hope. The landmark ruling of Roe v Wade effectively enshrined American’s right to access abortion, regardless of which state they lived in. Nearly 50 years later, it has now been overturned. Every single one of us have woken up today with less rights than we had yesterday.

This letter is for the truth-seekers. It is important that we tell the truth of what is going on and tackle the myth that this ruling is somehow about babies, or children, or life. The same individuals who claim to be protecting life also fight against universal health care, universal childcare, and life after birth. Let us not forget that the decision makers who overturned Roe v Wade are the same individuals who claim to protect the lives of children weeks after 19 children and 2 teachers were killed in the Ulvalde school shooting. Who does this ruling protect? No one. Overturning Roe v Wade puts every single one of us at risk.  

This letter is for democracy. Let us also remember that this decision was made by a Court with most Justices having been appointed by a party that has not won the popular vote of a presidential election for over 30 years, with their decisions ruling against the majority of Americans. Let me be clear in that we are in a very dangerous moment of history – not just for women, or LGBTIQ+ communities, or all of us – we are in a dangerous moment in the world because this is not just about the right to choose, but about rule of law and democracy, and who is a full person in the eyes of the law.

This letter is for our brothers. This is not just a women’s issue – let yesterday’s events radicalise you to stand up in the battle to restore abortion rights and achieve gender equality in the aftermath of this ruling. No woman should be the only voice in the room. This is what allyship looks like. This is what, frankly, doing the right thing looks like. If not for men, laws like this would not exist. As our brothers, friends, fathers, partners, and sons – stop allowing a violent and consistent onslaught on the autonomy of women’s bodies, on women’s rights, on women’s mind, on our hearts and on our souls. We need you to show up and make your voices heard, whether that’s in the workplace, in stadiums, with your families, or how you choose to vote. This is not a women’s issue. We did not do this to ourselves. It is everyones issue.

This letter is for our sisters. I have always admired and been inspired by women – women are leaders, women are lovers, and women are fighters. There has not been a moment in history where we have tired from fighting. Every day I wear a silver band on my wrist that reminds me of this – it says, “Still I rise, raising my voice”. It is what has given me strength these last few days, and I hope it brings you strength as well. It’s what women have always done, risen from challenges again and again and again. Today is no different. We will rise, together in solidarity, raising our voices in chorus as we continue our battle for freedom. Young women in America will now come of age with fewer rights than their mothers and grandmothers had. This moment is difficult, but our stories do not end here. It may not feel like we are able to do much right now, but we can. And we must.  

This letter is for all of us that are watching yesterday’s events unfold in fear, in anger, in rage, in distress – one thing for me is steady, that we will not stop fighting until this is fixed.

We are not going away. We stay, we fight, we push, and we will not be silenced.

Today we send our love, solidarity, spirit and strength across the globe.