Brunswick Beacon, 10.13.22
When she was born your heart was so full of love you thought it would burst. When she was a toddler, you saw danger in every sharp-edged corner. You strapped on her helmet, elbow and knee pads and nervously put her on her first bike. When she first boarded a school bus, you cringed because she was spending the whole day with strangers. Parenthood is forever having your heart walking around outside your body.
You would have done anything to stop someone from hurting her. So, what will you do now, when extremists are depriving her of a right your wife and sister had, the right to control her own body? What will you do to stop strangers from forcing your daughter to give birth against her will?
On June 24, five radical Supreme Court Justices overthrew 50 years of precedent, ended the right to privacy, and reversed Roe v. Wade. Suddenly, abortion became illegal in many states. Ohio immediately banned abortions after six weeks. Three days later, a 10-year-old Ohio rape victim was refused an abortion and forced to travel out-of-state for the procedure.
Desperate to downplay the cruelty of their actions, MAGA-Republicans called the story a hoax. It wasn’t. The rapist was indicted three days later. Still, some MAGA-Republicans insisted rape victims be forced to give birth! “Two wrongs don’t make a right,” said Ohio senate candidate J.D. Vance.
North Carolina Congressmen Ted Budd and David Rouzer cosponsored legislation banning abortion from “the moment of fertilization” without exception. If Frank Iler is reelected, North Carolina’s legislature will follow suit.
Your daughter could even be denied routine healthcare. A 14-year-old non-pregnant Arizona girl was refused a life-saving prescription drug she’s taken for years because it might interfere with a hypothetical pregnancy! The AMA says the problem is nation-wide and “significant.”
Dads, defend your daughters. Reject extremists Budd, Rouzer, and Iler on Nov. 8.
Eric Terashima
Leland