I don't remember a time where we didn't have access to abortion rights, but many women do — including my mother.

Before Roe v. Wade, my mom worked as a social worker. She told me of a bright, young Black woman she met who had dreams of college, but found herself pregnant. This young woman knew that in order to achieve the future she’d worked for, she would need to have an abortion. My mom worked tirelessly to find her a doctor who would perform a safe abortion, but she couldn’t find a single one. The young woman died due to complications from a back alley abortion. My mom’s fear then, as is mine now, is that we are moving back to that time, and that Black women will be disproportionately impacted by these unconstitutional bans and their dangerous implications.

Safe access to abortion goes to the heart of personal self-determination because it is tied to people’s right to control their lives and destiny. This is the same right that the proponents of the seven new abortion ban laws say we are all born with. Yet, this “right,” along with our bodies, are no more than political pawns being used to sure up the power and control of men. We know this “right” only applies to certain individuals who are deemed worthy of bodily autonomy, and Black women have never been on the list.

I am deeply concerned about the effect this will have on all people who might find themselves in need of access to abortions; however, I am most concerned about Black women. With everything we know about Black women — our mortality rates and the vast inequity in our healthcare system — everyone who cares about women, and freedom, should be concerned for Black women in this moment.

It seems incredulous to me that white men are so concerned about Black women and their bodies. But a good friend reminded me there can be no discussion about America without centering Black women’s bodies. Our bodies have long been commodified for the financial and political gain of men and are literally shackled to the foundation of the United States. This country wouldn’t exist and it wouldn’t be the superpower it is today if it were not for the labor of Black women, including their ability to bring forth life.

Georgia and Alabama are two of the most recent states to sign into law some of the most restrictive legislation regarding abortion. It shouldn't be lost on us that Georgia and Alabama have high populations of Black women, and that they’re slave states still holding on to their Jim Crow roots.These are states that profited off the bodies of Black women for generations, so we shouldn’t be surprised that they’re the first to enact laws that strip them and others of fundamental rights, yet again. Georgia has ranked last in national infant mortality rates, and we also know that Black women lead in deaths due to childbirth.

This ban is not just about access to safe abortions, it is about the need to control women — Black women — which is rooted in patriarchy and white supremacy. There is a “deep concern” about unborn Black children when these same lawmakers make it clear time and time again that they do not care about our children. The excuses and justifications lawmakers hold for Black deaths that are sanctioned by the state don’t hold up to this decision to now make laws concerning Black life and births.

Since the abolition of slavery, white men have been fighting to retain control and power over Black bodies, especially Black women’s bodies, and this is the their latest attempt. The sexual and reproductive health of African American women has been compromised due to multiple experiences of racism, including discriminatory healthcare practices from slavery through the post-Civil Rights era. These unconstitutional bans still confirm the same and we must be aware of the history that these decisions are rooted in if we’re going to undue them.

Michele K. Rayner, Esq.

Writing since August 2018 · 2 stories contributed