Last week, Melissa Carter with GAVoice, wrote an insightful piece on the proposed legislation that would restrict reproductive freedom in Georgia and why that issue should be important for the GLBT community. Here is an excerpt that gets to the heart of why this is a crucial issue for all,
[i]f this law passes, it is guaranteed to draw legal challenge and will ultimately arrive at the door of the U.S. Supreme Court. This time, with a Supreme Court growing more conservative, personal rights in this court could finally reach their end. And if that day comes, one way or another, all of us will suffer.
You limit a straight woman’s right to choose, you limit all of our right to choose — about anything. We can’t ask our straight sisters to defend our rights as gay women and men and not grant that same willingness to fight for their rights in return.
I find it fascinating to see the constant attention paid to politics when it is a presidential election year. What we all need to realize is the real power in our everyday lives falls in the hands of our local politicians. Often, they take advantage of the shadow cast upon them by the bigger names in Washington and attempt to pass laws, like the Personhood referendum, under our noses without much fanfare or opposition.
Melissa is right – this issue effects us all. It is happening as she says without fanfare, right under our noses and it crosses lines of gender, race, sexual orientation and age. More importantly it is about far more than abortion. It is also about birth control options and in vitro fertilization. It is about everyone’s right to make personal choices regarding their bodies and their families.