Georgia’s new controversial abortion law

Social media has blown up over the controversial ban on abortions in Georgia after a fetal heartbeat is present, which is usually at six weeks into the pregnancy. This ban has sparked much understandable uproar all across the nation.

According to ABC News, “ Georgia is the fourth state to pass such a law this year, after Kentucky, Mississippi and Ohio.”

Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp, who signed the bill into law Tuesday, has accepted the very possible legal challenge in-store.

“I realize that some may challenge it in a court of law but our job is to do what is right not what is easy,” Kemp said.

The definition of what is “right” is very unclear here. Everyday women are raped and molested or go through high risk complications due to pregnancy, which is something men, like Kemp, simply have no understanding of.

Is it right to make a teenager who was not properly taught sex education that she now must be responsible enough to raise a child?

This hits hard for many poor African-American women who don’t have the time or money to have access to proper healthcare. This directly increases the chance that they will remain under the poverty line.

These women then rely on government assistance to help feed and clothe their children.

The New York Times wrote, “By moving to limit the ability of states to issue waivers to people who say they cannot make ends meet under the requirements for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, the Agriculture Department found another route to create restrictions, bypassing Congress and drawing immediate criticism that the proposed rule was sure to harm American below the poverty line.”

Considering the ongoing #MeToo movement, which has exposed the extent to which women deal with sexual harassment and abuse, this new ban adds fuel to a fire that is already burning out of control.

Many, including myself, are enraged that so many men feel the need to control a woman’s body. They don’t know what could have led to an unwanted pregnancy.

The unintended pregnancy rate is significantly higher in the United States than in many other developed countries. In 2011, nearly half (45%, or 2.8 million) of the 6.1 million pregnancies in the United States were unintended.

It’s simple, the choice is the woman’s to make. Georgia enacting this law will only cause more chaos. Women should feel safe and protected not persecuted; it is ultimately a woman’s right to choose.