Planned Parenthood is no stranger to terrorist attacks — the organization has endured “more than 300 acts of extreme violence, including arson, bombings, murders and butyric acid attacks,” according to CNN. Radical anti-abortionists have not yet realized that the violence they inflict on Planned Parenthood clinics is more destructive than the violence they are trying to prevent. The recent shooting at a Planned Parenthood clinic in Colorado is a testament. According to The New York Times, when shooter Robert Dear was arrested, he said, “no more baby parts” to investigators. While he was trying to save the baby parts, he inflicted mass violence on living beings, killing three people and injuring nine. Abortions do not equate to these murders. Tensions against Planned Parenthood have escalated since July when the Center for Medical Progress released manipulated videos of Planned Parenthood officials discussing selling tissues from aborted fetuses.
Amongst the Planned Parenthood shooting and Center for Medical Progress videos, women in the United States have been forgotten. When Robert Dear opened fire in a crusade to end abortion, he endangered women accessing birth control and women receiving treatment for STDs; he endangered women taking control of their health. Women in the U.S. should be able to access birth control without being targeted by anti-abortion efforts, and California and Oregon are attempting to do that in proposed legislation.
Laws initiated in the two states will allow pharmacists to administer birth control without a prescription from a doctor. Currently, contraceptives like pills, patches and rings require a prescription from a physician. This requires multiple doctor’s appointments that are inconvenient for many women, especially those of lower socioeconomic status. Many women in the U.S. cannot afford the current restrictions on contraceptives, and studies published by the American Congress of Obstetricians and Gynecologists conclude that these required appointments are unnecessary. In a study of females between the ages of 15 and 45, women were given a self-assessment on the best and worst treatments for their personal health. When these assessments were compared with those of health care providers, “392 of the 399 participants and health care provider pairs obtained agreement on medical eligibility criteria.” For this overwhelming majority of women, appointments and prescriptions are a waste of time and money.
Women can adequately make decisions about their health regarding birth control, and many women want to make these decisions. In the same report by the American Congress of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, more than two-thirds of women said they would utilize access to over-the-counter contraceptives. Based on the model Oregon and California propose, pharmacists can administer birth control after women fill out a brief questionnaire about their health and medical history. According to The New York Times, there are more pharmacies than doctor’s offices and clinics in many areas in the U.S. Additionally, pharmacies tend to have longer hours and more availability during the week. For women who work or have familial obligations during the day, this option is much more practical.
The governments of California and Oregon are progressing women’s health, but the federal government and other state governments foster inaccessibility to contraceptives. Politicians like Ted Cruz have made ignorant statements regarding birth control. According to CNN, during a Q&A the Cruz campaign held in Iowa, a citizen asked Cruz about “making contraception available to women who want to control their own bodies.” The presidential candidate asserted that “we don’t have a rubber shortage in America,” and that “anyone who wants contraceptives can access them, but it’s an utterly made-up nonsense issue.”
To a male in the United States, the issue of birth control may seem like nonsense. But birth control methods for males and females are completely different. Males who currently shape laws surrounding contraceptives do not understand that birth control improves the health of women. Birth control is one of the only treatments for endometriosis. It regulates menstrual and hormonal disorders that disrupt everyday life. It reduces acne. It is an alternative treatment to surgery for ovarian cysts. The lack of accessible birth control is not about condoms. It is about the hindrances women face in controlling their bodies. In California and Oregon, women will not have to worry about ignorant male politicians who think birth control is only about preventing pregnancy. Women will not have to worry about fabricated videos from anti-abortion groups jeopardizing their access to birth control. Women will actually be able to use contraceptives when they feel it is right for their body and that is more empowering than Ted Cruz can possibly imagine.