Celebrating the anniversary of Roe v. Wade

“In New York and cities across the country, women marched.”

This is a quote from “Makers: Women Who Make America,” a 3-part documentary that I just watched on YouTube. I highly recommend it. The quote is from the 1970s.

Let’s look at how long the battle for women’s right has been going on, shall we?

On October 11, 1972, Sarah Weddington, a 26-year-old lawyer from Texas with very little experience, argued Roe v. Wade before the Supreme Court. At that time, the Supreme Court was made up of nine white men.

Forty-four years ago today, on January 22, 1973, Roe v. Wade was decided. I celebrate that day.

The Equal Rights Amendment was first proposed in 1923. It wasn’t until 1972 that it passed both houses of Congress. But in the end, the states wouldn’t ratify the ERA, partially due to the advocacy work of white, religious women. It was a backlash against Roe v. Wade and the women’s movement. And then Reagan was elected president. Reagan used his high-profile, government position to advocate against abortion, helping to stop the women’s movement in its tracks.

I don’t know why anyone would think that the potential life of a fetus is more important than the life of the mother. That’s like saying that the woman’s life doesn’t matter. That she’s not allowed to make her own health care decisions. That her body is not her own. That the most important purpose of a woman’s body is reproduction.

I wonder how men would feel if we treated their bodies in the exact same way. Where every single sperm was considered potential life, and men had to constantly fight for the right to control their reproductive health care.

There is nothing more important for a woman than to have control over her own body. Men have total control over their reproductive organs, and so should women. And when I talk about control, I’m not just talking about reproductive rights. I’m talking about all kinds of health care.

Male or female, as adults, we should have complete control over our own bodies, including the choice of medical treatments. Our own health care decisions should not be taken away from us by the government, insurance companies, or doctors.

I should not have to experiment with one drug just because it’s cheaper, when more successful drugs are available. My access to certain drugs should not be restricted just because I see one doctor over another. Just because one doctor believes that certain reproductive health care options (or treatments for pain or addiction) are sinful and against their beliefs. That’s not practicing medicine. That’s forcing your beliefs on your patients.

One of the reasons I watched this documentary was in the hope of finding some clues on how pain patients can fight for their rights. Media attention was important back then, just as important as it is today. It appears that pain patients have lost the media war. But I was just wondering… Have we already lost the opioid war?