Written by the Y-WE Board of Directors
The recent ruling from the court contradicts the fundamental values we believe in at Y-WE. It disenfranchises people with uteruses by taking away their right to make deeply personal decisions about their own lives and compromises their rights to healthcare and privacy. While the grave effect of this decision cannot be overstated, we also want to share three thoughts on a way forward:
Next Steps Beyond the Protest – Many of us are furious and heartsick at the state of our politics, that power is concentrated in the hands of a few and that our political representatives are failing to protect our rights. But anger alone does not make change happen. We must channel our energies and passion to commit to regain what has been lost and make things better. We must commit to organizing and to working together to ensure that the rights of people with uteruses are equitably represented in every field. So, decisions like these can never be taken without representing the true interest of all instead of just a powerful few.
Progress takes persistence – It took over 70 years for women to secure the right to vote after the Seneca Falls convention in 1848. But it did happen. And in 2018 a record 102 women from various walks of life were elected to the House of Representatives. It took decades of toil and organizing to pass the Equal Pay Act and to gain the right to use contraception, the right to equal pay – and so many more. Yet with dedication and persistence, these rights are still ours today. So, it is essential that in this dark moment we don’t take our eyes off of the progress we have made thus far and instead draw inspiration from it. We must continue the work of hundreds of thousands of courageous women who have gone before us.
The only way to lift ourselves up is to lift each other up – As Maya Angelou once said, “I come as one, but I stand as ten thousand.” The Y-WE community is rooted in the principals of creating a society where all of us have agency over our own bodies. We must now be there for each other as we navigate through the times ahead. And we must continue to build the next generation of leaders and changemakers – leaders who are confident, empathetic and compassionate towards all. Leaders who will stand up and use their voices to make change happen.
Make no mistake, the challenge ahead of us is great and the stakes could not be higher, but all of us on the Y-WE board stand firm with our youth and our community to take action to build the just and equitable future we all deserve.
With much love,
Y-WE Board Members