This post is part of our "What Does Choice Mean to You?" series [3] commemorating the 37th anniversary of Roe v. Wade.
On the 37th anniversary of Roe v. Wade, when I envision a world where women and men have true freedom of choice, I see a society that believes that a woman is smart and capable enough to decide what is best for herself and her family. And, because every woman has a different reality, the notion of choice includes the acknowledgment that the right choice will not look the same for every person.
True freedom of choice includes women's ability to access safe, legal abortion services, but it does not end there. The concept of choice-the legal right to an abortion-is not meaningful to a low-income woman who cannot afford one or whose insurance will not cover it. Choice to me also embraces the ability for women and men to be able to delay pregnancy by ensuring access to affordable and reliable contraceptive methods. This includes funding for research and development of more options for male birth control, consumer-protective measures to ensure timely access to emergency contraception, and health insurance reform that doesn't allow insurance companies to charge women more than men for coverage. Choice is the ability to choose whether to get the HPV vaccine regardless of immigration status [6]. Choice also includes access to comprehensive sex education that teaches students the truth about sex and sexuality, sexually transmitted infections, and pregnancy, and educates kids on relationship violence, sexual violence, and respect in relationships. We know that when we lie to kids about sex, they engage in riskier behaviors, and that kind of education does not encourage responsible decision-making or foster true choice.
Choice includes the support and resources necessary to parent the children we may already have. And, women who choose to give birth have the right to give birth with dignity-whether that choice includes a physician, midwife, or doula; a hospital or a home birth; and so on. Thus, choice includes the ability for the woman giving birth to choose the type of birthing conditions most suitable to her.
Choice to me includes the ability for everyone to marry the partner of their choosing, and support for their chosen family formations. While it is unacceptable that most states don't provide the same legal protections to same-sex couples as they do straight couples, it is unthinkable that some states actually ban gay couples from fostering or adopting children.
Reflecting on the Roe anniversary reminded me of something that was said in the aftermath of the Stupak abortion ban passing in the House. Someone told me, "Well, you just can't have it all." Translation: we can't have health care reform, and protect women's rights and reproductive rights, and treat immigrants fairly, and so on. To which I said: That is ludicrous. Of course we can have it all. And we won't stop until we do.