BY ROXY SZAL | For women in the U.S., this week is usually a cause for celebrating the date in 1920, when our right to vote was finally enshrined in the Constitution. But this year is marked by a cruel irony. On Thursday, laws in Texas, Tennessee and Idaho will take effect that either outlaw abortions entirely, or increase penalties for doctors who perform them. The very next day, the U.S. will commemorate Women’s Equality Day. You’ll understand if we don’t feel much like celebrating.
Abortion bans harm women—not only their health, but also by denying them equal opportunities in education, employment and politics. A report from the Institute for Women’s Policy Research estimates if all state-level abortion restrictions were eliminated, there would be over a half a million more women aged 15 to 44 in the labor force.
Before this week, total bans were already in effect in Alabama, Arkansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Oklahoma and South Dakota.
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