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ReportageIn this southern state of the United States, voluntary termination of pregnancy is now prohibited, even in cases of rape or incest.
Edith Romero never expected to get pregnant. The month of December 2021 had just begun. She had yet taken the morning after pill, after unprotected sex. The young woman, who arrived in New Orleans from Honduras eleven years ago on a scholarship, knows reproduction issues perfectly. She works in a free clinic, called Luke’s House, which provides medical care and support to the most vulnerable. His companion had remained in his country of origin. Aged 29, Edith did not hesitate long and decided to have an abortion. “If I had not had access to this procedure, I would have a child that I was not ready to assume physically, mentally and financially”, she summarizes. The specialized clinic’s waiting room was packed. We had to come back twice and go past the demonstrators outside, who were advising Edith to adopt Jesus and give up.
Seven months later, and after ten days of respite between two contradictory legal decisions, this clinic closed its doors. Like the other two in Louisiana, located in Baton Rouge and Shreveport. It will now be necessary to go to another state, hundreds of kilometers away, to undergo a voluntary termination of pregnancy. Provided you have the time and the means. “Women will suffer, probably die, Edith Romero Family violence will increase, poverty too, especially among Latino and black minorities. All of this comes from a backward, anti-woman, religion-based view. »
By reversing the historic Roe decision vs Wade (1973), on June 24, the Supreme Court abolished a constitutional right, returning to the States the task of deciding on the question of abortion. A dozen of them already had legislation ready to go, just waiting for this historic day to come into effect. This is the case of Louisiana. The law passed in 2006 prohibits abortion without any exception in cases of rape or incest, regardless of the age of the victim. Only extreme circumstances where the life of the mother is in danger are allowed. The elected officials of the State have even doubled the maximum sentence provided for those who practice the intervention, increased from five to ten years in prison. The use of telemedicine and the sending of abortion pills by post is also prohibited.
Reproductive rights organizations are engaged in a fierce battle in court to freeze enforcement of the law, the application and scope of which remain unclear. Demonstrations took place, on a small scale. At the premiere, 23-year-old Schuyler Kean cried profusely. Having just graduated from the prestigious Princeton University in medical anthropology, she feels “angry and frustrated”. “At least the Conservatives are telling you clearly that they intend to deprive you of your rights. Here the Democrats fuck you. » She thus refers to the Democratic governor of Louisiana, John Bel Edwards, who signed the law on abortion.
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