Oklahoma legislature votes to screw women

Imagine this scenario:

Your 15-year old daughter is running through the park when she's overpowered, yanked into the bushes and forcibly raped at knifepoint. She escapes with cuts, bruises, and a nasty case of PTSD, but being a good parent, you have the rape kit done, police report filed, and then take her home and set up the appointments to deal with the aftermath.

A few weeks later, she misses her period and has a positive pregnancy test. There's no doubt in her mind or yours that an abortion is the only option that makes sense. You schedule the appointment, and take her in for the procedure. She changes into the thin paper gown, the doctor comes in for a moment, and tells her to relax, it'll just be a moment for the ultrasound tech to come in for the required transvaginal ultrasound.

Say what? It's a D&C, not a well mother checkup. What the hell is going on here? Oh, wait. I forgot to add this part: You live in Oklahoma, and in Oklahoma, some of the most misogynistic, mean-spirited, man-birthed abortion laws have just been passed by the Oklahoma State Senate.

The Oklahoma Senate approved several bills Monday that opponents say would make it more difficult or uncomfortable for women to get abortions, including one that would require women seeking the procedures early in their pregnancies to undergo an invasive form of ultrasound.

The five bills, some of which will go to Gov. Brad Henry for consideration and others which will return to the House, were overwhelmingly approved by the Republican-controlled Senate. If given final approval, the bills would give Oklahoma some of the most restrictive laws of any state, an abortion rights group says.

One of the laws headed to the governor would require doctors to use a vaginal probe in cases where it would provide a clearer picture of the fetus than a regular ultrasound. Doctors have said this is usually the case early in pregnancies, when most abortions are done.

We just had a 15-month debate about health care reform. Part of that debate was all about letting doctors be doctors because we all know that a government takeover of health care is a BAD BAD THING. In fact, it was US Senator Tom Coburn (R-OK) who argued longest and hardest about how terrible it would be to have government "get between you and your doctor", right?

In the land of tea and whine-fests where conservatives live, it's only a bad thing when Democrats think of it. When Republicans decide that a more-expensive, invasive vaginal probe is something that will "provide as much information as possible" before they have the procedure, costs be damned.

I won't even address the sinister psychology of their stupid law. They'd spend a zillion dollars to marginalize women and prevent one abortion even if the kid starved in the street afterward, because Lord knows they hate entitlements of all kinds, especially in Oklahoma, where 20% of kids live in poverty.

But wait, there's more:

The other abortion measures would require women to complete a lengthy questionnaire before receiving an abortion, mandate certain signs be posted in an abortion clinics and prevent so-called "wrongful-life" lawsuits in cases where a parent might argue that a child with birth defects or other problems would have been better off aborted. Another bill would prohibit state insurance exchanges, created under the new federal health care law, from covering abortions.

And still more:

Another bill would require a woman seeking an abortion and her doctor to complete a 38-question form that asks, among other things, the woman's age, race, education, number of previous pregnancies and reason for seeking an abortion.

So, in Oklahoma, an old geezer with 18 kids and three wives can roll into the doctor's office and get a Viagra prescription, but a woman who has been raped or abused, or who has just exercised her Constitutional right to choice under the laws of this nation cannot receive medical treatment without a 38-question form invading her privacy, humiliation and judgment in the form of "mandatory signs", and an expensive vaginal probe?

Alrighty then. Got it. My advice would be to get the hell out of Oklahoma and don't look back if it were my daughter. That, and start making contributions to organizations like NARAL who will stand and fight in court to turn these idiotic, hateful laws back for good.

Oklahoma, Utah, Kansas, and other states contemplating laws that clearly discriminate against women know they discriminate. They want them to be challenged and they want a chance to re-litigate Roe v. Wade in the hopes of overturning it altogether with a Supreme Court more...conservative.

I hope President Obama chooses his Supreme Court nominee with these battles in mind. It's clear they're throwing whatever they can at the wall to see what sticks. Let's hope none of it does.

Comments

[Michelle M]

Ugh. Disgusting. It's nice how as a woman, I am still not trusted to make decisions about my own health. Ridiculous.

[jade]

I understand how difficult this can be especially when its rape but there is always the day after pill which would be way less taxing on someone physically, mentally and especially emotionally. As it is they are already facing enough with being raped let alone the weight of an abortion hanging over them for the rest of their life regardless if if the father was a rapist or not. Trust me, you count their birthdays even if they weren't born. The day after pill is a far better option despite men deciding on a woman's right to have an abortion.

[Karoli]

Hi jade,

I agree re: the day after pill, and I agree that it's taxing physically, emotionally and every other way no matter what. But let's face it -- the day after pill isn't something readily available, especially to women who may already be struggling with finances or other issues.

Isn't the point that it's still their choice? That's how the law stands right now. It's their choice to make, and throwing a lot of impediments in front of them isn't going to do anything but harm. it will either pile on the struggle they already have, or it will add to guilt they shouldn't have in many cases. Just taking this with rape and incest circumstances only makes my stomach turn. It re-victimizes someone who has already been victimized.

For the record, I would love for the word and act of abortion to be something in the past that women do not have to face or choose. But while we are where we are, inflicting violent psychological warfare on them after violence has been done is just flat wrong to me.

[annie]

A vaginal u/s certainly makes a point about just who is in charge, doesn't it? In the case where a woman has been raped, it's like raping her all over again.

[nonlineargirl]

Looks like the Governor agrees, he vetoed the legislation. He's no pro-choice campaigner, but he recognized that forcing women to go through the ultrasound/etc would revictimize women who had already gone through a lot.

[Karoli]

yeah, the Governor vetoed 2 of them, but...they're only one vote shy in the state senate of overriding it. overrides are a slam-dunk in the House. Senate needs 36 for override, they passed 35-11. Suppose they won't work to recruit that one extra vote?

[Melissa]

@jade. Just wanted to point out that emergency contraception isn't foolproof, isn't available to minors, and can be difficult to get.

Wal-Mart refused to stock EC until 2006 and until fairly recently you needed an Rx to get the medication.