As the rights of women are increasingly under attack in the continuing “war on women,” an entire population deeply affected by this conversation continues to be largely ignored: immigrant women.
Thirty lawsuits have been filed by corporations challenging the HHS regulation requiring that most health plans cover contraceptives. A survey of these cases yields some useful information as to what the “religious freedom” debate is all about.
As family planning advocates, I think we need to remember that family planning is the means to an end, not an end goal in itself. Access to information and services is critical, but increasing the use of contraception starts and ends with supporting the broader goals and rights of women.
Maternal deaths caused by unsafe abortion are both devastating for the families involved and detrimental to their larger community. Guaranteeing access to safe, legal abortion— and removing barriers to access in countries where abortion is legal—is essential to saving women’s lives and reversing these tragic statistics.
The War On Women is a conflict over the very question of the value of women as full human beings with rights to freedom and self-determination and respect. In times like these we need to find our inner Shero. You can be one of them.
