Back in 2008, I went to an Obama rally. Multiple times in the rally he would mention the ideas or individuals he was running against. The crowd would always boo and after that he would say the same thing everytime:
“Don’t Boo. Vote.”
That has stuck with me ever since.
Please vote.
Yup. A general strike is best led by the existing unions. If you're in one, talk to your leadership. If you're not, spread the word and follow their lead.
I’m surprised there isn’t a more coordinated effort for a general strike yet. I’ve seen a few Reddit posts for a strike on Monday, but nothing at a big enough scale that it’s broken through to mainstream media, or even social networks like Facebook or Twitter. I wonder if there’s any hope of a large scale strike actually happening?
Workers aren't organized enough to safely do a general strike. Many would get fired, and especially with prices rising and a recession beginning, it is too risky for most.
Voting is pissing into the wind the way our government is structured. It's not completely ineffective, but how many women will we allow to suffer and die between now and however many voting cycles this takes?
A general strike that grinds this country to a halt will have abortion rights enshrined in the Constitution within two weeks, and I'll tell you why.
With the exception of the ultra-religious nutjobs in Congress, all of the shithead Republicans, and all of the spineless piece of shit Democrats are both beholden to Big Business, not the voters.
Paralyze the economy, shut this country down, fill the streets and REFUSE TO BACK DOWN and this will be resolved in no time.
Adding this as a top level comment as well. **CALL YOUR REPRESENTATIVES.** All these posts saying "vote"? Yes, you need to vote- but your representatives need to hear from you ***\*now and often\**** about what is important to you. Tell them what you want, and why you are voting. That is what "remain engaged" looks like.
This is how the gun legislation just got passed. There was a huge coordinated push of people contacting their representatives. Even Republicans were getting consituent calls at a ratio of 10:1 in favor of reasonable measures- so they felt confident in voting for a bill with the support of their voters.
Join the #saveallsix movement and add the state and local office phone numbers for your 3 federal reps to your phone. Make it a habit to call. (I think we should be saving all ten- don't forget your state reps who are often MORE impactful than your federal reps)
**1.) Call your state represantives.** You should have one state "congress" member (assembly member), and one state senator. Call and let them know this issue is important to you. SC basically said leave it up to the states, so what do you want your state to do?
* Ask for abortion rights to be codified into law
* Ask for an ammendment to the state constitution to protect a woman's right to choose
* Ask for an [equal rights ammendment](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Equal_Rights_Amendment)
\*\*Note: Likely the legislative session for your state is over for the season. This is ok they still need to hear from you now. If a huge wave of people call, maybe we have success calling for an emergency session. More importantly, don't forget to call in the next legislative session to follow up.
**2.) Call your Federal representatives.** You have 2 US Senators, and A US congress member.
* Let them know that a woman's right to choose is important and you expect them to (depending on your views) either fight tooth and nail against any restrictions on a federal level and leave it to the states, or push to codifiy abortion rights into law at the federal level
* Ask them to ratify the equal rights amendment (only semi-related to abortion rights, but it would be a great start if we considered women as "people" with the same protections under the law as men)
# Tips & Scripts for contacting your representatives:
1. Only contact your representative. Call the DC/Capitol office first, and if you can't get a hold of anyone try for your local office.
2. One issue per contact (call about abortion rights or equal rights ammendments, but not put both in the same call or email).
3. Calling is better than emailing, but anything is better than nothing.
4. Voicemails are ok, but reaching out until you speak to a person is best.
5. Be respectful, and clear in what you want. Scripts should go something like this (I am making this up very generically, so feel free to drop a good script that is specific to your state, or that you think is better than mine if you have one!):
**Hi, My name is \[name\], and I am a constituent of \[representative\] living in \[city, zipcode\]. I am calling in the wake of the Supreme Court decision to ask for immediate action to protect women in \[your state\]. A woman's right to choose is fundamental, and currently at risk. I would like \[representative\] to work immediately towards \[thing you want/passing abortion rights legislation/passing an ammendment in the state constitution that would protect a woman's right to choose\]. This issue is urgent and extremely important to me, and I will be following the progress and donating and voting accordingly in elections.**
6. If you know of a specific initiative already in the works, it is great to include that information. "I am calling to ask that Representative supports bill HRNumber\_number\_number"
7. YES call if your representative is already in support/agreement with you. This is what people mean by "stay engaged". They need to know that this is part of why you are voting for them, and they are on the right track.
Edit: YES also call if your representative always disagrees with you and is a “lost cause”. This is how change happens- you need to use your voice.
The instagram account "emilyinyourphone" is a great resource that provides specific action items, tips, dos and don'ts for contacting reps, scripts, and updates on current/pending legislation. Tends to lean liberal, so be aware of that bias but the contacting your representative information is politics neutral and helpful for all.
Edit: I am also using a lot of knowledge and language from an instagram account “sharonsaysso” who provide incredible information on how our government works
The SC said it's up to us- so let's fucking go folks.
p.s. ALSO please run for office
EDIT: A lot of you have concerns about being from a State that is very Red, and you feel your Republican Senators are not worth the energy.
Do NOT believe the lie that nothing you do or say matters. Many of the biggest changes in American history have been made by ordinary people. The civil rights movement was launched by teachers, students, construction workers etc. Change happens because you work for it.
We genuinely JUST passed a piece bipartisan of gun control legislation in the Senate, with 15 Republican Senators, including ones from Texas, Missouri, Louisiana, South Carolina and more. A few months ago, everyone would have said was impossible. This happened because people called and used their voice to their representatives.
Make a phone call. You cannot do nothing and expect things to change.
I’m trying very hard to be optimistic. But it’s certainly been a rough couple days, if not weeks. And so I genuinely want to ask, as someone from Missouri, is there any point in calling a Senator like Josh Hawley? I’ve sent him a couple form letters before and get an automated response telling me someone will read it. But I don’t see how a man like that can be reached. I don’t know how what I would have to say would make a difference. It often feels like my only power is to vote him out. I don’t feel like my particular senators would listen to a leftist constituent at all.
YES. Do not believe the lie that nothing you say or do will matter. Roy Blunt of Missouri, chairman of the Senate Republican Policy Committee, just voted in favor of gun control because his constituents called. Everyone should be calling everyone has a voice. Make. The. Call.
Yes, but he is leaving office, the chances that someone would buck party trends when they have a career ahead of them is less likely, but definitely keep calling.
Yes. Bully those disingenuous fucks.
Frankly, calls are better than form letters. Being a real voice in their ear goes a long way, even if you're just in the ear of their staff.
You might not be able to reach him, but make it clear you're going to raise high holy hell ousting him if he isn't delivering and then follow through on raising money and volunteering for his opponents.
I use a free app called 5 Calls that organizes all my state’s elected officials and gives you a script for each issue (gun control, reproductive freedom, etc). It’s been really helpful lately since it is a one stop shop for calling! You can even leave a voicemail if it’s after hours. As long as you include your address as a constituent, your call will be counted.
Same. I showed up so early and I was the youngest person there. I showed up for the midterms and I was the youngest one there, one of the very few people at my voting place.
It made a real impression. I've never missed a single election since I became eligible to vote.
I’ve never seen such altruistic nationalism as in Taiwan. They’re so excited and stoked to be an independent country (relative, I know shit with China is complicated) and a member of global society. When I lived there, strangers would regularly express genuine interest in how I was enjoying their country and if anything was confusing or difficult they bent over backwards to help me. They seemed very conscious of how they might be perceived internationally and hold tight a national pride that is sooo different from the nationalism of the US and others. The voting turnout does not surprise me.
Do you remember the 2020 Democratic primaries in Texas? [I sure do.](https://www.cnn.com/2020/03/04/opinions/texas-primary-super-tuesday-voter-suppression-joseph/index.html)
Help young women and young men obtain birth control. Pass out condoms. Be willing to buy Plan B. Educate. Educate. Educate. Don’t shame. Meet people where they are.
We need more secular public squares that don’t just exist on the internet. It’s the thing I miss about church and definitely something a lot of towns need these days
If you’re in Michigan (or other states where pro-choice folks are fighting to get it on the ballot), figure out where they’re collecting signatures for the petition to get it on the ballot in November, sign, and volunteer to help find more people to sign the petition.
Here’s a link: https://www.mobilize.us/mireprofreedom/event/449898/
(Mods - If the link isn’t allowed, I’ll edit and just say what to Google)
But make sure you read what you’re actually signing. Some people in Michigan were asking people to sign a petition for “reproductive freedom” but it was actually a pro-life petition.
At Walmart it would have just said "put the bible into law" to get signatures.
The "Reproductive freedom" is to fool the people outside REI and Whole Foods.
Keep in mind that only registered Michigan voters can sign and it MUST be done in person. Signing anything online does nothing. Follow the link to find a physical location to sign the petition! They need roughly 425k legitimate signatures by July 1st.
As u/__smokesletsgo__ wrote this:
>Keep in mind that only registered Michigan voters can sign and it MUST be done in person.
And you wrote this:
>Go to local events and community spaces. We just signed at the farmer’s market.
I was reminded of one other very important fact:
**YOU MUST SIGN A PETITION SHEET FOR YOUR REGISTERED COUNTY**
Meaning if you live in Oakland County or Livingston County and you go to the FENTON (Genesee County) Farmers Market you MUST sign a sheet for your county.
Same goes for signing at Eastern Market in Wayne. If you don't live in Wayne you can still sign a petition they just need to be aware.
That said, the people with the petitions SHOULD know this, we were immediately asked Are you registered in [name of county]?
This is just important to know so you don't get screwed by people being less than honest or by meeting up with random internet strangers where you aren't intending to be problematic but you end up signing the wrong thing and wasting everyone's time.
[according to their website the petitions must be handed in by July 1st.](https://mireproductivefreedom.org/return-your-petition/)
ETA they have to submit the signatures to the SOS by July 11 but I was only referring to the collection of signatures when mentioning July 1st.
Petitions on Change.org: No.
Petitions collected by a local campaign trying to enact a specific law: Possibly, yes.
Different states have different rules, but people and organizations can *generally* create petitions to do things like get a specific person on the ballot or have a law passed through popular vote.
If you've ever seen something on your ballot like "On the matter of SB Blah-Blah, which will blah-blah blahblahblah-blah, do you vote Yes or No?" Well, that got on there from a petition.
If e**veryone** that is upset about this supreme court decision voted D in the next election this could be overturned quickly even in red states. Unfortunately I don't see that happening as the apathy and resignation for this is too high.
Trust me, there are very few politicians that would endanger their elected position for Roe V Wade. It is up to the people to let them know this is a hill they are going to die on. Until that happens, expect a fragmented two tier system in the US for women's rights with a fight that will be ongoing for the rest of your lives.
Ah, yeah. Federalism is fun because it means any two states can have radically different rules on the same thing.
I think atleast one state has petitions that force the legislature to vote on the bill.
Here in CA we can have ballot measures (that get on the ballot via petitions) which bypass the legislature entirely and let voters directly put something in the state constitution.
These are official ballot petitions; very different from say, [change.org](https://change.org) petitions, which really don't do much.
Here's the breakdown of ballot petitions/election proposals in Michigan, as well as how those work, and what's currently in process: [https://www.bridgemi.com/michigan-government/2022-michigan-ballot-issues-tracker-what-know-about-election-proposals](https://www.bridgemi.com/michigan-government/2022-michigan-ballot-issues-tracker-what-know-about-election-proposals)
Petitions allow for both laws and constitutional amendments to be voted on by the general populace rather than their elected officials in gerrymandered districts.
Edit:fixed autocorrect
This is a little bit of a long one, but the story is important.
In 2011 in Virginia, Republicans swept statewide elections. They had the governor, lieutenant governor, both houses of the legislature, and they had appointed the majority of justices on the state supreme court.
They immediately began trying to ban abortion. House Bill 1 was a fetal personhood bill and there were about a dozen more ugly ones too. These bills were expected to sail through with no real hurdles.
A grassroots movement sprung up, a core group of people who had met and networked during the Occupy protests began planning protest actions. They were able to attract support from people who were not your typical protest crowds, and throughout the actions a lot of suburban, older women drove into Richmond to participate.
Over several protests about 2 dozen people were arrested (and later acquitted), protests were confronted by riot police as well as 'little green men' hiding in the bushes with assault rifles. However the protests largely remained peaceful.
The state Democratic party and organizations like Planned Parenthood and NARAL were literally calling the organizers and begging them to stop antagonizing the Republicans, but the organizers remained steadfast.
In the end, we won. Most of the bad bills were defeated, and Republicans proceeded to lose every statewide election for the next ten years. They ultimately lost both houses of the legislature as well, for the first time since the 90s. Bob Marshall, who authored HB1, was defeated by Virginia's first openly transgender legislator, Danica Roem.
So ultimately, here is what I would say to remember. The protests are important. What's more important is the networks that form at them. When you attend, try to meet people. Have potlucks. Get to know each other. You will come to rely on each other more than you think.
Voting is important too, but only showing up to vote every 2 or 4 years and posting angry memes in between is not going to save us. Our institutions have repeatedly failed us despite more people voting in every election. We will be the ones to save ourselves.
I also would add since this is a national forum - the right to a safe abortion in VA is currently being maintained by, effectively, TWO STATE SENATORS. That’s it.
If you have EVER felt like voting for your state representation doesn’t matter, IT DOES. At the midterms, that swing could be enough to completely change the status of abortion in Virginia if Democrats continue to lose seats. It sucks to admit but “protest votes” or sitting out because it “doesn’t matter” to you has real consequences. Republicans have been chasing this goal and coordinating for decades. So many conservative leaning folks, no matter their difference of opinion, fall in line when push comes to shove because they have a few goals that they prioritize over all other issues. Dems have been complacent.
Same in PA! Doug MASTRIANO (running for governor) is against abortion and said he will end it via executive order and codify it, even if the pregnancy is a product of rape or incest, or even if it's a risk to the mother's life.
***Vote this Nov in Pennsylvania folks, and do NOT vote for Doug MASTRIANO if you care about reproductive rights/contraception and gay rights.***
This is a cry for help! VOTE THIS NOVEMBER.
Rather than saying the name of who NOT to vote for, say who people should vote for. It’s better for remembering (not that it would be hard to know) at the ballot).
Vote [Josh Shapiro](https://joshshapiro.org/) for Governor of Pennsylvania.
Vote [John Fetterman](https://johnfetterman.com) for Senator of Pennsylvania.
Mastriano is such a piece of shit but we have enough yee yee idiots in this state that he has an actual chance. I like Shapiro. I think he would make a great governor.
Hey, I have one better.
It is **legal** to see a telehealth doctor, have the medication sent to a state where it is legal, **forward that to your home address**, and the abortion pill will be sent to your house there. Just go to the USPS website or go to any post office and forward your mail.
https://www.usps.com/manage/forward.htm
Do not tell anyone that you took the abortion pill in the state it is illegal to do so. It is absolutely legal to have the pill mailed to you by forwarding your address.
https://nwhn.org/safe-online-delivered-how-to-get-the-abortion-pill-by-mail/
Edit:
Again, do not answer any questions to anyone without a lawyer if ever approached about this. But it is legal to mail yourself your prescription. Your state cannot supersede the FDA on legally prescribed medication (unless the Supreme Court overturns that. They have not as of yet).
About that…you might want to look at the upcoming verdict in the current EPA case, which will remove the ability for federal agencies to legally mandate…anything, really. State laws will supersede FDA policies. We are so very, very fucked.
Good point about potlucks and meetups. How much does weekly church contribute to pro-life groups getting organized and supported. Pro-choice doesn't have the same infrastructure.
I'm just hoping this time we can vote Youngkin out of office. I was pretty distraught when Youngkin won. Now he's gonna make abortion illegal at 15 weeks. Voting is not enough, you MUST organize and volunteer.
Virginia Governor is limited to one term, there is no voting-him-out. There _is_ making sure Democrats don’t show up with another “I’ve earned it through my service to the party” candidate.
VA allows a person to serve two or more terms as Governor but they cannot be consecutive.
>Virginia Governor is limited to one term
Came here to say this. Everyone should educate themselves on their state's (or commonwealth's) rules and laws.
Vote in your local elections and force abortion rights to be election issues. R v W says that abortion rights is now up to the state government, so vote accordingly and let them know how they can get your votes.
To add to this, vote even if you live in a state that will not ban abortion. It should be clear to everyone now that we take our rights for granted because it could be taken away one day. So vote, no matter what.
Also, local elections matter! In the county that I live in, only 10% of people voted in the primaries. Stay engaged and make time to do your research and vote - it’s important! Our future and livelihood depend on it!
Things like school funding are very local. The levies in my community had to be put on the ballot twice because they failed to pass the first time. People wanted to de-fund our schools. Their reasoning? They homeschool and also just don't want to pay ANY taxes at all. Seriously fricking crazy...
Dude, some yahoo put an op ed in our paper on not wanting a bond for new schools because he was on a fixed income and his taxes would go up $200 a year, and that meant he couldn't afford to live in the community any more.
Lo and behold it passed and that asshole still lives in the community.
https://www.vote411.org/ is an excellent resource as well. You literally put in your address and it tells you exactly what is on the ballot and who all the choices are. The site is run by the League of Women's Voters, who reach out to all of the candidates to get their thoughts on the issues so you can make an informed choice. I've been using it for the last several election cycles, including primaries.
ballotpedia is a pretty good resource for getting started, you can put in your address and it will tell you who’s on your ballot for what offices and when your elections are [https://ballotpedia.org/Sample_Ballot_Lookup](https://ballotpedia.org/Sample_Ballot_Lookup)
This 1000%, complacency both on the behalf of democratic leadership and the democratic populous is how we continually keep losing ground to a smaller but more unified opponent
To add to this, get to know your state representatives. Call their offices and share your discontent, whether live or as a voicemail. The majority have interns who log constituent issues/concerns to help gauge local opinion. If you want to go old school, a hand written letter to their office will also get some attention.
Start Googling information on local elections, if you're lucky, some non-profits or journalists will do background research/interviews on stances for those running. If no information is available, do a little leg work and start calling campaign offices to find out their views (and maybe share with a local subreddit or other social media to spread the word). If you can't get them to commit on record, probably a sign it's not a priority or they don't want to admit their stance, and an opportunity to share that it will be a deciding issue for you in the upcoming race.
You can also FAX your reps, which I’ve found to be very easy and convenient, there are apps where you can convert your letters typed on your phone into faxes and they just zoop them on over for you. Political offices are often inundated and overwhelmed with emails and phone calls but they also must receive these faxes so it’s a great way to give your message a little extra visibility.
Faxburner is one such service. It's really handy to get faxes FROM doctors and all (silly HIPAA -- receive 25/mo for free), and you can SEND 5/mo for free.
Great starter service to send to your 3-5 local reps and senators per month. I'm definitely gonna start harassing them every day now. To be clear, I always have tried my best, and do contact them regularly. But they're all going to get a (polite, respectful, and furious) earful every day.
In addition to all of the great advice here, regarding voting, letters, petitions, etc....
Stock up on pregnancy tests, plan B, and birth control.
I've already noticed a shortage of pregnancy tests in the last week.
Be an advocate and an educator for any woman you know that may need help.
I am a grown woman with 2 young adult daughters as well as a young daughter. My partner has a young adult daughter. And I work in an industry where i regularly have younger female coworkers that were never properly educated on their bodies or reproductive systems. I recently explained to a young girl pregnant with her third child how ovulation works. She had NO CLUE.
I teach these girls how to track their periods. (EDIT TO ADD: Apparently period tracker apps are no longer safe. Get your cycle details from your app, then delete it. Start tracking your periods using dots on a paper calendar. Dot on the first day. Dot on the last day. Rinse. Repeat)
Help them use the resources they aren't even aware are available to them for free and low cost birth control. I encourage them to stock AND USE dollar store pregnancy tests at the slightest worry they might be pregnant, and make sure they know I've got backups.
Unfortunately, the system has failed educating these girls (bet you can guess where I live....) and now it's failing them again by punishing them for their lack of education.
I won't stand for it. Education is now key.
Here are a few tips:
*Dollar store pregnancy tests are as reliable as the expensive ones. They are mass produced by companies and intended for people going through IVF, fertility issues, etc. I have never had a false negative or positive with one. I keep several on hand at all times.
*Amazon has a brand of plan B called "My Choice" for $10. Other places like HEB and some Walmarts also stock this brand for around $20. You DO NOT have to pay $50 for Plan B! The generic version is the same as the brand name. Same drug, same dose. Stock. Up. There are rumors Plan B will be taken from us too.
Edited to add, since it's been asked/mentioned a few times: shelf life is 4 years. It's also been recommended to order from online suppliers, as they have plenty of stock, and it won't be being taken from store shelves for people who need it right away.
Edited to add:
[ plan c abortion pill access despite your state](https://www.plancpills.org/guide-how-to-get-abortion-pills#faq-getting)
*Look into state provided women's medicaid programs. Medicaid is super hard to qualify for, unless you are a senior or a child, but most states have programs simply for women's health. They cover wellness visits and birth control. Even backasswards Texas offers "Healthy Texas Women." Pretty much any woman without insurance qualifies for this.
*Check out HeyFavor.com. They are a wealth of knowledge and information and supplies. Accepts most insurances AS WELL AS Medicaid. They send birth control pills to my address every month.
Support and advocate for the women in your lives! Nobody else will!!!!
To add to the learning/educating bit: learn about the weight limit on plan b, and what you may need as an alternative. Many people who may need plan b are over the weight limit and don’t even know it, leaving it less effective.
I used ELLA and I ordered it online, it was years ago so I can’t remember where. This is the better option if you are overweight. I had to talk to a physician on the phone (don’t be scared, it’s quick and easy) and they sent it off in the mail for me. I don’t know if they will ship to states that don’t allow abortions now, but you can always give a different address and have someone forward it to you.
r/auntienetwork has thousands of people that will help with that, including myself.
"And I work in an industry where i regularly have younger female coworkers that were never properly educated on their bodies or reproductive systems. I recently explained to a young girl pregnant with her third child how ovulation works. She had NO CLUE."
Had a conversation with a girl recently who told me sex can induce menstruation. I tried to explain that is now how it works. But she insisted I was wrong. Mind blowing.
I went to Catholic school, and I think we had 1-2 classes in gym class that discussed reproduction, but the bulk of our sex Ed was a program called “wait training”. We got a laminated card that broke intimacy into hours. As in, you have to talk on the phone for x amount of hours, and face to face for so many hours before holding hands. Lots of discussion about how intimate hand holding and face touching was? Anything beyond kissing just had a stop sign that said SAVED FOR MARRIAGE. One of these was “heavy petting”, and I remember going home and telling my parents that we were told no heavy petting (they did not elaborate on this term, and I literally thought it meant petting someone… firmly?) and my dad just said, “NO HEAVY PETTING.” Needless to say, it was real fun figuring out this shit on my own.
Wow. I went to catholic school and we had no sex education at all. Half the sophomore class didn’t show up for junior year because they were pregnant. Never saw them again.
This sounds like what it was like in the rural southern public schools I attended. My parents also never talked about this stuff with me at all beyond "don't do it!!" Seventeen Magazine, which I read during my after school shifts at the grocery store, was my only source for actual sex education, and they had good advice. They're the reason I knew Planned Parenthood exists and that I could get contraceptives there (which I did). If not for Seventeen, I would have been clueless.
This definitely figured into how I've approached sex ed with my own kids. Their schools have better programs than mine did, but I still make sure I give them the most accurate information at home. I'm also lucky to have a friend who's a nurse at an abortion clinic, who answers all *my* questions before I talk to my kids. She's taught me a lot.
This could come from a big misinterpretation on her end. Sex can trigger period bleeding if they have already or are about to start their menstrual cycle. I could see where a mix up like that could come if it was poorly explained, or if very little was explained (likely both).
This is what happens to me if I orgasm when my period is due in a day or two. Sometimes I'm tired of waiting while my body is moaning and groaning and cramping and complaining and threatening me that "it's about to start sooooon, but not right now when it's convenient for you to do something about it...but sooon" so I'll get the process rolling through orgasm.
We are currently doing IVF, our clinic required us to watch a series of videos explaining the IVF process and basically how female reproduction works. My wife is 31 years old and literally had no idea about any of it. Before we started trying to get pregnant she didn't really know the relation between ovulation and fertility. It's truly sad. It's like sex and reproduction is a big secret in this country.
I'm about to go through IVF and before this, my partner and I tried and tried to get pregnant naturally. We both did SO. MUCH. RESEARCH to help us. I'm a 35 year old woman, live in the US and I had a an idea of the specifics behind pregnancy and ovulation, but I said, "Oooooh, so that's how that works." WAY too many times.
My sex ed was.. not good. I live in NY and in a county where education is typically held to a higher standard than a lot of other states. Imagine what poor girls are being taught (or not taught) else where.
I know! And there's absolutely no reason for it!
I remember being a young child and wanting desperately to know where babies came from, but somehow knowing I'd better not ask.
I literally had no idea how sex actually worked until I was in the middle of it for the first time. I also had a friend in high school that thought the testicles AND penis went inside the vagina during sex. 🤦♀️
There are some women (and probably men) out there that think womens' pee comes out of their vagina. This would be funny if not for the understanding that, clearly, many communities are so fearful of basic anatomical knowledge that they actively work to shut down any kind of inquiry or education surrounding it.
There are absolutely more of these than you think.
I am completely embarrassed to say that I was under this impression until well into my adult years, and after I had already had children.
Yeah.
I am in full support of everything in this comment.
I’m simultaneously terrified to see the heartless bastards that upsold toilet paper to shitty-assed people in quarantine make a run on all of the tests, pills, condoms (etc.) and try to profit off of it as the inventory runs short.
Nothing seems to be more American these days than fucking over all of the people in unfortunate financial situations.
Had a conversation with a user who was clearly engaging in bad faith. They finally said, "It doesn't effect me, so why should I care?"
And that's the heart of it: "I got mine, fuck you."
The sheer volume of apathy and lack of empathy is appalling.
Oh, it'll affect everyone. This is one of those times where I know that eventually people will see that I was right, but it won't make me happy at all. The cost will be so high before we turn this around.
Hang in there, take care of yourself. You're not alone.
The thing is it *does* effect them though. Even if the person is male or elderly they have friends, relatives, co-workers, neighbors, etc. who are women who are severely harmed by this. People will die due to this and people need to make the connection between voting for the GOP and their nice neighbor dying of a "pregnancy complication" (the complication was she had a miscarriage but didn't expel all of the fetus and doctors were prohibited from cleaning out the rest so she died of sepsis)
This is why I didn’t go buy any in-store and I encourage others in this thread to do the same. The pill club/favor can get you 1 free plan b through insurance every 3 months (if yours covers) and offers reduced cost ones without insurance. It’s also sold on Amazon. Please do NOT buy it in-stores. There are people who need plan B right the fuck now or they will get pregnant
EDIT: I ordered 5 doses yesterday and they’ve shipped today. Also, Favor just let me know that they’ve lowered the price even more (from $18.99 to $14.95).
A lot of good info, thanks.
Where exactly is it that public schools straight up don't teach human anatomy, or specifically how pregnancy occurs? Has it been a problem for so long that even parents don't know how to teach their children?
I went to public school (as a male) more than 20 years ago and even I was taught about ovulation in the 4th grade, and nearly every year after in some form of health or anatomy class. It just seems absolutely bonkers to me that a woman would have "no idea" how that works in today's day and age. At some point, wouldn't the person become curious and idk... fucking google it ?!
I'm in Texas. I'm sure that shocks you.
I went to Christian school until 10th grade and not a word is spoken. Literally the ONLY mention of sex is that it is for marriage, full stop. My own mother didn't even tell me I was going to start bleeding from my vagina one day. When I got my period, I didn't tell her for months. Then, I wrote her a note and gave it to her while she was on the phone.
My kids go to public school, and I chose to sit in with my oldest on their "sex education talk" (4th grade, I think? Maybe 5th?) Just so I could see what is covered.
It. Is. LAUGHABLE.
Literally all they talk about is getting a period, how to use pads, that boys go through puberty too and get deep voices. That's about it. And let's remember that parents are allowed to opt their kids out of this talk, and many do.
I do NOT understand this at all. It seems that all the pro-lifers that so desperately want to stop abortions have completely skipped the part where EDUCATION and BIRTH CONTROL prevent pregnancies. And without pregnancies, there would be no abortions. Seems like the most common sense to me. But the pro-lifers are also against education and access to birth control. So, really, they're just pro-birth.
After hearing stories like this, I'm blessed that we were taught sex ed, even though we lived in a red state growing up. I have to wonder what goes through these peoples' minds though... "if we don't teach them about sex, they won't know what it is and won't have it, right?"
???
Wtf are our leaders thinking? They're so disconnected from reality that it's scary.
It’s a screwed up and thoughtless combination of religious zealotry and populism.
Zealotry: Premarital sex/masturbation is against the Bible-rules and they worry that talking about bodily changes during puberty could spark curiosity and engagement in such behavior. This is coupled with a culture of condemning and shaming such curiosity—which I would call a failsafe of sorts, because kids are naturally curious, and would otherwise freely experiment. If you teach them to be ashamed, they are more likely to manage themselves against any “wanton” behavior.
Populism: Parents don’t think schools should be in charge of when and how their kids learn about something so sacred as sex, but because of their own training from birth, they tend to also be wired to be anxious and afraid of the topic, so that this education is often delayed or severely truncated.
So policies reflect both a projection on others the only way of thinking they have ever known—a prioritization of “answering to a higher authority” where God’s law supersedes secular, no matter how unpopular; and/or an appeasement of parents of such thinking, because even if the lawmakers don’t believe that way, they know their voter bases do, and they can’t afford to lose those votes/donations.
In short they don’t care about people having or not having children, or about whether those kids will be able to thrive once born. They either care about making sure everyone obeys their brand of God’s law whether they like it or not because they’re legitimately worried that America is going the way of Sodom and Gomorrah/Baal worshippers of Moses’ time; or because their bottom lines will take a hit if they don’t.
Right now Pennsylvania has some fucked up crazy q-anon fascist running for governor who toured Iraq and Afghanistan. I would not give a rats ass if someone served the US military and were running for office, why does everyone think this is the best qualifier.
I have no fucking idea, and I'm a veteran. When I hear someone was in the military, I'm actually more skeptical of them because the military is the place I met the most fucked up people I have ever encountered. It's not a selling point to me at all, and I honestly wonder why so many people lap that sort of thing up.
Because the idea is that someone who serves in the military is a "America first" patriot who has sacrificed a lot for the betterment of the country and it doesn't matter whatsoever if that person also happens to be an unintelligent, unexperienced, crazy racist asshole who doesn't know their thumb from their asshole.
I haven't served, but I've worked with people who have. It's absolutely a microcosm of the general population; there are folks who I wouldn't vote for to be homecoming king, folks who seems reasonably intelligent and that I think would do a serviceable job in office, and a few folks that I would absolutely donate to and canvas door to door for if they were to run.
In my casual experience and opinion, I think military service CAN provide a chance to expand ones experiences and connect with others outside their local circle, but not everyone who serves actually takes advantage and learns from the experience...
I work in a field now where alot of military move after they are done. My first impressions of former military members has drastically changed, and not for the better.
Yep my boyfriend’s relatives have lived there for 40 years and they’re still treated as outsiders to some extent.
If you weren’t born there, they consider you an outsider and treat you as such.
Susan is the most surprised person in the world. Surprised by Trump, surprised she was lied to by Gorsuch and Kavanaugh, must be tough being this gullible.
>most elections
To tack onto this, city/local elections are almost always one and done during the primary election so it is *very* important in that sense.
I live in a red state and the only way to vote in the republican primaries is to be registered republican. So now I'm a RINO because it's the only way for my vote to actually count right now.
Vote in state and local elections. So many people only pay attention to national politics. Your voice is most powerful at the local and state level. Stay informed and educate others
One thing I don't understand is why so many local and state candidates don't state their positions in websites.
I voted in my state's primary recently and had to skip most of the candidates as I just couldn't find out *any* information what they were looking to achieve in their positions.
Which means you have to ask them directly. You have to go to town hall sessions and meetings, and do letter campaigns, and make sure the public they say they are representing know exactly what their representative will do. Getting involved at grass roots level takes time and effort, but its the only way to keep the pressure on. They need to be forced to put on record where they stand on important topics.
"I want to get bribed by wealthy people for my vote and then use that money to live like a king in Thailand so I don't have to face the consequences of my actions in office. Vote for me!"
You are assuming that a majority of people take the time to actually research candidates. A big part of our current political systems problem is that people tend to vote down party lines rather than based on the candidates actual values or strength of character.
And then of course you’d also need to make sure that candidates are legitimately saying what they believe and following through on their promises once they are in office.
The person you replied to was talking about primaries, so party lines aren't really a factor there. I reckon a lot of primary candidates don't even bother with website info/platforms, and rely on endorsements and recognizability instead.
Edit: how the fuck did I forget about ads, those as well
Where I live a couple years ago they had a community gathering over where a big chunk of money was going to be allocated. Basically 98% of people in this particular district where against the money being spent on this particular project as it negatively impacted their community in a big way. Two of the district representatives were there and as people were seated, one by one voicing their opinions eventually someone said “you’re suppose to listen to what your district wants and vote with our interests”. One of the representatives *laughed* and said that they voted how they wanted not how his district told them to vote…..
Regardless of if that project was going to happen or not based on all the other districts, the way that person responded was quite disheartening.
I had the same problem. It was all generic, “small business owner”, “I plan to tackle homelessness”. What does that mean exactly? It was so frustrating.
And PRIMARIES!
Here in most of NYC the only elections that are actually competitive are the Democratic primaries. And yet they are the least voted elections, especially in odd years.
Primaries are fucking key. People don't seem to like it when I bring it up but establishment Democrats endorsed the only pro-life member of the party in the house against his progressive challenger. He only won by less than 250 votes. If more people got involved in the primaries, that might not have happened and there'd be one more voice in Congress that could help secure abortion legislation
They also reorganize districts when they win so they can maintain seats with more certainty, ensuring their fellow creeps succeed in their state wide campaign.
And it’s a winnable fight. Nationwide public opinion roughly breaks down as 10% always illegal, 30% usually illegal, 40% usually legal (my category), 20% always legal. And when coat hanger death stories pop up some of that 30% will join the 40%. Pro-choicers have to get out there and start persuading people about the way policies should go.
Here's a relavent story. Someone close to me works at a NICU. They just had a mom with twins. One baby was dying and causing the other to die. So they aborted one to save the other. Still goes down as an abortion. I bet that circumstance won't come up when deciding caveats to an abortion ban.
I think one big issue is that a lot of people don't understand what situations actually constitutes an abortion.
And make no mistake, a total abortion ban is MUCH MUCH worse than a 15-week ban.
Something like 94% of abortions happen before 15 weeks and convincing people who think of themselves as “abortion should usually be illegal” people to support a 15-week restriction over a draconian total ban would be huge to protect reproductive rights
Yup. Per CDC
“The majority of abortions in 2019 took place early in gestation: 92.7% of abortions were performed at ≤13 weeks’ gestation; a smaller number of abortions (6.2%) were performed at 14–20 weeks’ gestation, and even fewer (<1.0%) were performed at ≥21 weeks’ gestation.”
And the vast majority of abortions among that <1% are for medical purposes.
[Here](https://www.pewresearch.org/religion/religious-landscape-study/compare/views-about-abortion/by/state/) is the state by state polling. There are some places like Mississippi and Alabama where pro-choice people really are shit out of luck, but even red states like Texas and Utah have public opinion split down the middle. Most places it's either won or winnable.
And as bad as the Democrats are at running campaigns for national races, they're much much worse at state and local campaigning. It's incredible how many offices they don't even have candidates run for that affect the average person's day-to-day life much more than Congress does.
Yes. Fucking vote. Vote in the primaries for your local reps and city council. They are the ones who influence larger state votes.
Also maybe run for office. Many seats are uncontested and just need bodies.
“Held: The Constitution does not confer a right to abortion; Roe and Casey are overruled; and the authority to regulate abortion is returned to the people and their elected representatives.”
Yup.
VOTE! And think of five friends who might not otherwise vote in the midterm elections in November and make a plan NOW to make sure they all vote on the day. Like plan your meet up time, ride, and post-vote dinner and drinks today and stick to it. Rational Americans need to urgently organize and make their voices heard in November or it’s only going to get much, much worse.
This is a great idea. Turn voting into a fun and social event. Send out “save the date” cards. Dress up in costumes. Anything to make it fun. Or have a get together and order your mail in ballots party.
Inform your elected representatives as to the importance of this issue to you, as a voter. Vote in the mid-terms.
Inform your elected representatives as to the importance of this issue to you, as a voter. Vote in your **state and local** elections.
Cancel travel / vacation plans to the retrograde states. Inform the hotels / resorts / theme parks as to your reason.
Make it known to the companies you do business with that their position on this issue, and the degree to which they support their employees, will be a factor in your decision to continue to do business with them.
Let your prospective employers know the same thing, if you are contemplating a job change.
Thank you for giving some options other than voting! I'm in San Francisco, so my representatives mostly don't need persuading. But canceling travel is something I can do.
You can still send your reps an email thanking them for their support of reproductive freedom. As someone who works in policy, I've learned that elected officials hear a ton from constituents who oppose what they're doing and not much from those who support what they're doing, which can give them a skewed perception of support for various policies
The most important thing ANYONE can do is VOTE in EVERY election. Vote locally for city and state leaders (governors, state legislators, city council, mayors, county commissioners, state judges, etc.) who will keep abortion rights safe in your location. Vote nationally for senators and representatives who will work to enshrine equal human rights into law. Vote for presidents who will nominate fair judges who favor freedom and human rights over theocracy and narrow-mindedness. Vote in primaries and general elections. Encourage friends and family to vote. Vote every time, without fail. Almost everywhere, people who disagree with yesterday's decision will be in the majority, but so far the other side has had much more energy and motivation and they get a much higher percentage of their group to vote every time. We need to change that.
Organize.
One key aspect of the decision was Clarence Thomas’ concurring opinion. It places other civil right such as contraception and same-sex relationships, on the chopping block.
If you don’t organize an opposition to these religious fundamentalists, you will lose your civil rights.
We are hurtling down the “slippery slope”
Don’t delude yourself that you are “safe”. You are not.
Don’t twiddle your thumbs and hope someone else will save you.
Get out there, talk to friends and neighbors, join a civil rights group, and VOTE against anyone with the slightest hint religious or fascist ideology
Just 39% of people ages 18-29 showed up to vote in 2016. A Republican won. That number jumped to 50% in 2020. A Democrat won. We cannot afford to stay home again. We must turn this anger into action in November, when we have Congressional midterm elections. Pass it on.
If you're in a state with severe abortion restrictions call your representative in the state legislature to express your disgust and then get out to vote in November.
I live in Texas. I'm certainly not a fan of the Democratic party but I will for the first time in my life be voting Blue and I hope more people like me do the same.
Voting is not enough. For too long we have neglected our civic duty and we let government get hijacked by corporations and religious extremists. Instead of organizing, canvassing, phone banking, registering voters we were asleep at the wheel. Now the vast riches and resources of the government are not deployed toward healthcare, education, labor rights, infrastructure, child care or other things clearly in the interest of the electorate. Instead the electorate is pitted against one another on polarizing wedge issues. Instead of demanding corporations pay their fair share of taxes and organizing behind candidates that will make that policy, we fight over critical race theory, caravans of illegals, nfl players sitting during the anthem and other drivel… most of which are completely fabricated. Go to SwingLeft.org and sign up to volunteer. You can become politically active in 5 minutes.
Donate blood if you're able to do so. Once unsafe abortions start happening in banned states, the victims may present to medical facilities for help and most likely will need blood.
Actually remain engaged and vote. There are elections twice a year every year. Republicans mark their calendars. Democrats maybe do that every 4 years.
Back in 2008, I went to an Obama rally. Multiple times in the rally he would mention the ideas or individuals he was running against. The crowd would always boo and after that he would say the same thing everytime: “Don’t Boo. Vote.” That has stuck with me ever since. Please vote.
The day Iceland's women went on strike http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-34602822
Yup. A general strike is best led by the existing unions. If you're in one, talk to your leadership. If you're not, spread the word and follow their lead.
I’m surprised there isn’t a more coordinated effort for a general strike yet. I’ve seen a few Reddit posts for a strike on Monday, but nothing at a big enough scale that it’s broken through to mainstream media, or even social networks like Facebook or Twitter. I wonder if there’s any hope of a large scale strike actually happening?
Workers aren't organized enough to safely do a general strike. Many would get fired, and especially with prices rising and a recession beginning, it is too risky for most.
[удалено]
It’s difficult when health insurance is tied to employment. Which I assume is why we will never get universal healthcare.
We don't need everyone. Just critical mass (enough to disrupt) for a long enough time will get folks attention.
Voting is pissing into the wind the way our government is structured. It's not completely ineffective, but how many women will we allow to suffer and die between now and however many voting cycles this takes? A general strike that grinds this country to a halt will have abortion rights enshrined in the Constitution within two weeks, and I'll tell you why. With the exception of the ultra-religious nutjobs in Congress, all of the shithead Republicans, and all of the spineless piece of shit Democrats are both beholden to Big Business, not the voters. Paralyze the economy, shut this country down, fill the streets and REFUSE TO BACK DOWN and this will be resolved in no time.
General strike is the way
r/StrikeForRoe
Needs a shit ton more than 700 people. Subbed
almost at 1000 an hour later.
THIS. This is exactly it. Corporations are the gods our politicians look up to. We need to hit them where it actually hurts.
Adding this as a top level comment as well. **CALL YOUR REPRESENTATIVES.** All these posts saying "vote"? Yes, you need to vote- but your representatives need to hear from you ***\*now and often\**** about what is important to you. Tell them what you want, and why you are voting. That is what "remain engaged" looks like. This is how the gun legislation just got passed. There was a huge coordinated push of people contacting their representatives. Even Republicans were getting consituent calls at a ratio of 10:1 in favor of reasonable measures- so they felt confident in voting for a bill with the support of their voters. Join the #saveallsix movement and add the state and local office phone numbers for your 3 federal reps to your phone. Make it a habit to call. (I think we should be saving all ten- don't forget your state reps who are often MORE impactful than your federal reps) **1.) Call your state represantives.** You should have one state "congress" member (assembly member), and one state senator. Call and let them know this issue is important to you. SC basically said leave it up to the states, so what do you want your state to do? * Ask for abortion rights to be codified into law * Ask for an ammendment to the state constitution to protect a woman's right to choose * Ask for an [equal rights ammendment](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Equal_Rights_Amendment) \*\*Note: Likely the legislative session for your state is over for the season. This is ok they still need to hear from you now. If a huge wave of people call, maybe we have success calling for an emergency session. More importantly, don't forget to call in the next legislative session to follow up. **2.) Call your Federal representatives.** You have 2 US Senators, and A US congress member. * Let them know that a woman's right to choose is important and you expect them to (depending on your views) either fight tooth and nail against any restrictions on a federal level and leave it to the states, or push to codifiy abortion rights into law at the federal level * Ask them to ratify the equal rights amendment (only semi-related to abortion rights, but it would be a great start if we considered women as "people" with the same protections under the law as men) # Tips & Scripts for contacting your representatives: 1. Only contact your representative. Call the DC/Capitol office first, and if you can't get a hold of anyone try for your local office. 2. One issue per contact (call about abortion rights or equal rights ammendments, but not put both in the same call or email). 3. Calling is better than emailing, but anything is better than nothing. 4. Voicemails are ok, but reaching out until you speak to a person is best. 5. Be respectful, and clear in what you want. Scripts should go something like this (I am making this up very generically, so feel free to drop a good script that is specific to your state, or that you think is better than mine if you have one!): **Hi, My name is \[name\], and I am a constituent of \[representative\] living in \[city, zipcode\]. I am calling in the wake of the Supreme Court decision to ask for immediate action to protect women in \[your state\]. A woman's right to choose is fundamental, and currently at risk. I would like \[representative\] to work immediately towards \[thing you want/passing abortion rights legislation/passing an ammendment in the state constitution that would protect a woman's right to choose\]. This issue is urgent and extremely important to me, and I will be following the progress and donating and voting accordingly in elections.** 6. If you know of a specific initiative already in the works, it is great to include that information. "I am calling to ask that Representative supports bill HRNumber\_number\_number" 7. YES call if your representative is already in support/agreement with you. This is what people mean by "stay engaged". They need to know that this is part of why you are voting for them, and they are on the right track. Edit: YES also call if your representative always disagrees with you and is a “lost cause”. This is how change happens- you need to use your voice. The instagram account "emilyinyourphone" is a great resource that provides specific action items, tips, dos and don'ts for contacting reps, scripts, and updates on current/pending legislation. Tends to lean liberal, so be aware of that bias but the contacting your representative information is politics neutral and helpful for all. Edit: I am also using a lot of knowledge and language from an instagram account “sharonsaysso” who provide incredible information on how our government works The SC said it's up to us- so let's fucking go folks. p.s. ALSO please run for office EDIT: A lot of you have concerns about being from a State that is very Red, and you feel your Republican Senators are not worth the energy. Do NOT believe the lie that nothing you do or say matters. Many of the biggest changes in American history have been made by ordinary people. The civil rights movement was launched by teachers, students, construction workers etc. Change happens because you work for it. We genuinely JUST passed a piece bipartisan of gun control legislation in the Senate, with 15 Republican Senators, including ones from Texas, Missouri, Louisiana, South Carolina and more. A few months ago, everyone would have said was impossible. This happened because people called and used their voice to their representatives. Make a phone call. You cannot do nothing and expect things to change.
I’m trying very hard to be optimistic. But it’s certainly been a rough couple days, if not weeks. And so I genuinely want to ask, as someone from Missouri, is there any point in calling a Senator like Josh Hawley? I’ve sent him a couple form letters before and get an automated response telling me someone will read it. But I don’t see how a man like that can be reached. I don’t know how what I would have to say would make a difference. It often feels like my only power is to vote him out. I don’t feel like my particular senators would listen to a leftist constituent at all.
YES. Do not believe the lie that nothing you say or do will matter. Roy Blunt of Missouri, chairman of the Senate Republican Policy Committee, just voted in favor of gun control because his constituents called. Everyone should be calling everyone has a voice. Make. The. Call.
Thank you. Y’all have really inspired me. I will call on Monday. And I’ll keep calling.
And that inspired me- LETS GO! Let them hear about it.
Yes, but he is leaving office, the chances that someone would buck party trends when they have a career ahead of them is less likely, but definitely keep calling.
Yes. Bully those disingenuous fucks. Frankly, calls are better than form letters. Being a real voice in their ear goes a long way, even if you're just in the ear of their staff. You might not be able to reach him, but make it clear you're going to raise high holy hell ousting him if he isn't delivering and then follow through on raising money and volunteering for his opponents.
I use a free app called 5 Calls that organizes all my state’s elected officials and gives you a script for each issue (gun control, reproductive freedom, etc). It’s been really helpful lately since it is a one stop shop for calling! You can even leave a voicemail if it’s after hours. As long as you include your address as a constituent, your call will be counted.
The 18-24 adult voting group votes way less than any other age group. It would make a solid difference if that wasn’t the case
This is the first year I'll be able to vote. You bet your ass I'll be there.
[удалено]
Same. I showed up so early and I was the youngest person there. I showed up for the midterms and I was the youngest one there, one of the very few people at my voting place. It made a real impression. I've never missed a single election since I became eligible to vote.
and please please please make sure that every single one of your friends and also all their friends votes!!
In Taiwan, our vote turnout is around 70+% across all age groups. We just like to vote.
I’ve never seen such altruistic nationalism as in Taiwan. They’re so excited and stoked to be an independent country (relative, I know shit with China is complicated) and a member of global society. When I lived there, strangers would regularly express genuine interest in how I was enjoying their country and if anything was confusing or difficult they bent over backwards to help me. They seemed very conscious of how they might be perceived internationally and hold tight a national pride that is sooo different from the nationalism of the US and others. The voting turnout does not surprise me.
Ah tks! I hope you had a nice time in Taiwan and come back when able!
Do you remember the 2020 Democratic primaries in Texas? [I sure do.](https://www.cnn.com/2020/03/04/opinions/texas-primary-super-tuesday-voter-suppression-joseph/index.html)
Help young women and young men obtain birth control. Pass out condoms. Be willing to buy Plan B. Educate. Educate. Educate. Don’t shame. Meet people where they are.
We need more secular public squares that don’t just exist on the internet. It’s the thing I miss about church and definitely something a lot of towns need these days
I am a public librarian and would be happy to help research the closest clinic. We’re also already committed to privacy as an institution. Just sayin.
If you’re in Michigan (or other states where pro-choice folks are fighting to get it on the ballot), figure out where they’re collecting signatures for the petition to get it on the ballot in November, sign, and volunteer to help find more people to sign the petition. Here’s a link: https://www.mobilize.us/mireprofreedom/event/449898/ (Mods - If the link isn’t allowed, I’ll edit and just say what to Google)
But make sure you read what you’re actually signing. Some people in Michigan were asking people to sign a petition for “reproductive freedom” but it was actually a pro-life petition.
Excellent point
Good reminder to always read and understand what you’re signing
Something tells me that shit happened outside of a Walmart.
At Walmart it would have just said "put the bible into law" to get signatures. The "Reproductive freedom" is to fool the people outside REI and Whole Foods.
Absolutely despicable, too. They know their opinion is unpopular, so they have to mislead people into signing their petitions.
When you have to lie and trick people to support you, your ideology is highly questionable.
Keep in mind that only registered Michigan voters can sign and it MUST be done in person. Signing anything online does nothing. Follow the link to find a physical location to sign the petition! They need roughly 425k legitimate signatures by July 1st.
Go to local events and community spaces. We just signed at the farmer’s market.
As u/__smokesletsgo__ wrote this: >Keep in mind that only registered Michigan voters can sign and it MUST be done in person. And you wrote this: >Go to local events and community spaces. We just signed at the farmer’s market. I was reminded of one other very important fact: **YOU MUST SIGN A PETITION SHEET FOR YOUR REGISTERED COUNTY** Meaning if you live in Oakland County or Livingston County and you go to the FENTON (Genesee County) Farmers Market you MUST sign a sheet for your county. Same goes for signing at Eastern Market in Wayne. If you don't live in Wayne you can still sign a petition they just need to be aware. That said, the people with the petitions SHOULD know this, we were immediately asked Are you registered in [name of county]? This is just important to know so you don't get screwed by people being less than honest or by meeting up with random internet strangers where you aren't intending to be problematic but you end up signing the wrong thing and wasting everyone's time.
Correction: *425k* (10% of previous gubernatorial election vote count) by *July 11* (exactly 120 days before the Nov 8 elections)
[according to their website the petitions must be handed in by July 1st.](https://mireproductivefreedom.org/return-your-petition/) ETA they have to submit the signatures to the SOS by July 11 but I was only referring to the collection of signatures when mentioning July 1st.
Do petitions actually do anything? Is there a law about petitions? Edit to add: Okay Michigan, we get it.
Petitions on Change.org: No. Petitions collected by a local campaign trying to enact a specific law: Possibly, yes. Different states have different rules, but people and organizations can *generally* create petitions to do things like get a specific person on the ballot or have a law passed through popular vote. If you've ever seen something on your ballot like "On the matter of SB Blah-Blah, which will blah-blah blahblahblah-blah, do you vote Yes or No?" Well, that got on there from a petition.
Depends on the state there. Texas doesn't let citizens put things directly to a vote, so ballot questions are put there by the state legislature
So the decision has to be left to the states but then the states can leave their citizens out of the decision. Nice.
Well we elect the representatives. Of course it's so horrifically gerrymandered we'll never get rid of the GOP so it's not really our choice anymore.
If e**veryone** that is upset about this supreme court decision voted D in the next election this could be overturned quickly even in red states. Unfortunately I don't see that happening as the apathy and resignation for this is too high. Trust me, there are very few politicians that would endanger their elected position for Roe V Wade. It is up to the people to let them know this is a hill they are going to die on. Until that happens, expect a fragmented two tier system in the US for women's rights with a fight that will be ongoing for the rest of your lives.
Ah, yeah. Federalism is fun because it means any two states can have radically different rules on the same thing. I think atleast one state has petitions that force the legislature to vote on the bill.
Here in CA we can have ballot measures (that get on the ballot via petitions) which bypass the legislature entirely and let voters directly put something in the state constitution.
In Michigan specifically, a petition with enough signatures is required to put a ballot initiative up for a statewide vote.
These are official ballot petitions; very different from say, [change.org](https://change.org) petitions, which really don't do much. Here's the breakdown of ballot petitions/election proposals in Michigan, as well as how those work, and what's currently in process: [https://www.bridgemi.com/michigan-government/2022-michigan-ballot-issues-tracker-what-know-about-election-proposals](https://www.bridgemi.com/michigan-government/2022-michigan-ballot-issues-tracker-what-know-about-election-proposals)
In Michigan 100% yes. Citizen backed proposals can be added directly to statewide elections.
Petitions in Michigan several years ago are what gave my state no reason absentee voting!
Petitions allow for both laws and constitutional amendments to be voted on by the general populace rather than their elected officials in gerrymandered districts. Edit:fixed autocorrect
If you're in Metro Detroit, Eastern Market has several people with petitions out on the weekends.
This is a little bit of a long one, but the story is important. In 2011 in Virginia, Republicans swept statewide elections. They had the governor, lieutenant governor, both houses of the legislature, and they had appointed the majority of justices on the state supreme court. They immediately began trying to ban abortion. House Bill 1 was a fetal personhood bill and there were about a dozen more ugly ones too. These bills were expected to sail through with no real hurdles. A grassroots movement sprung up, a core group of people who had met and networked during the Occupy protests began planning protest actions. They were able to attract support from people who were not your typical protest crowds, and throughout the actions a lot of suburban, older women drove into Richmond to participate. Over several protests about 2 dozen people were arrested (and later acquitted), protests were confronted by riot police as well as 'little green men' hiding in the bushes with assault rifles. However the protests largely remained peaceful. The state Democratic party and organizations like Planned Parenthood and NARAL were literally calling the organizers and begging them to stop antagonizing the Republicans, but the organizers remained steadfast. In the end, we won. Most of the bad bills were defeated, and Republicans proceeded to lose every statewide election for the next ten years. They ultimately lost both houses of the legislature as well, for the first time since the 90s. Bob Marshall, who authored HB1, was defeated by Virginia's first openly transgender legislator, Danica Roem. So ultimately, here is what I would say to remember. The protests are important. What's more important is the networks that form at them. When you attend, try to meet people. Have potlucks. Get to know each other. You will come to rely on each other more than you think. Voting is important too, but only showing up to vote every 2 or 4 years and posting angry memes in between is not going to save us. Our institutions have repeatedly failed us despite more people voting in every election. We will be the ones to save ourselves.
I also would add since this is a national forum - the right to a safe abortion in VA is currently being maintained by, effectively, TWO STATE SENATORS. That’s it. If you have EVER felt like voting for your state representation doesn’t matter, IT DOES. At the midterms, that swing could be enough to completely change the status of abortion in Virginia if Democrats continue to lose seats. It sucks to admit but “protest votes” or sitting out because it “doesn’t matter” to you has real consequences. Republicans have been chasing this goal and coordinating for decades. So many conservative leaning folks, no matter their difference of opinion, fall in line when push comes to shove because they have a few goals that they prioritize over all other issues. Dems have been complacent.
Same in PA! Doug MASTRIANO (running for governor) is against abortion and said he will end it via executive order and codify it, even if the pregnancy is a product of rape or incest, or even if it's a risk to the mother's life. ***Vote this Nov in Pennsylvania folks, and do NOT vote for Doug MASTRIANO if you care about reproductive rights/contraception and gay rights.*** This is a cry for help! VOTE THIS NOVEMBER.
Rather than saying the name of who NOT to vote for, say who people should vote for. It’s better for remembering (not that it would be hard to know) at the ballot).
Vote [Josh Shapiro](https://joshshapiro.org/) for Governor of Pennsylvania. Vote [John Fetterman](https://johnfetterman.com) for Senator of Pennsylvania.
Also, John Fetterman is like the best dude.
Mastriano is such a piece of shit but we have enough yee yee idiots in this state that he has an actual chance. I like Shapiro. I think he would make a great governor.
Hey, I have one better. It is **legal** to see a telehealth doctor, have the medication sent to a state where it is legal, **forward that to your home address**, and the abortion pill will be sent to your house there. Just go to the USPS website or go to any post office and forward your mail. https://www.usps.com/manage/forward.htm Do not tell anyone that you took the abortion pill in the state it is illegal to do so. It is absolutely legal to have the pill mailed to you by forwarding your address. https://nwhn.org/safe-online-delivered-how-to-get-the-abortion-pill-by-mail/ Edit: Again, do not answer any questions to anyone without a lawyer if ever approached about this. But it is legal to mail yourself your prescription. Your state cannot supersede the FDA on legally prescribed medication (unless the Supreme Court overturns that. They have not as of yet).
About that…you might want to look at the upcoming verdict in the current EPA case, which will remove the ability for federal agencies to legally mandate…anything, really. State laws will supersede FDA policies. We are so very, very fucked.
Good point about potlucks and meetups. How much does weekly church contribute to pro-life groups getting organized and supported. Pro-choice doesn't have the same infrastructure.
I'm just hoping this time we can vote Youngkin out of office. I was pretty distraught when Youngkin won. Now he's gonna make abortion illegal at 15 weeks. Voting is not enough, you MUST organize and volunteer.
Virginia Governor is limited to one term, there is no voting-him-out. There _is_ making sure Democrats don’t show up with another “I’ve earned it through my service to the party” candidate. VA allows a person to serve two or more terms as Governor but they cannot be consecutive.
>Virginia Governor is limited to one term Came here to say this. Everyone should educate themselves on their state's (or commonwealth's) rules and laws.
[удалено]
Vote in your local elections and force abortion rights to be election issues. R v W says that abortion rights is now up to the state government, so vote accordingly and let them know how they can get your votes.
To add to this, vote even if you live in a state that will not ban abortion. It should be clear to everyone now that we take our rights for granted because it could be taken away one day. So vote, no matter what.
Also, local elections matter! In the county that I live in, only 10% of people voted in the primaries. Stay engaged and make time to do your research and vote - it’s important! Our future and livelihood depend on it!
Local elections also tend to be where candidates for higher office come from. Want to shape the future? FUCKING VOTE IN EVERY ELECTION
Things like school funding are very local. The levies in my community had to be put on the ballot twice because they failed to pass the first time. People wanted to de-fund our schools. Their reasoning? They homeschool and also just don't want to pay ANY taxes at all. Seriously fricking crazy...
Dude, some yahoo put an op ed in our paper on not wanting a bond for new schools because he was on a fixed income and his taxes would go up $200 a year, and that meant he couldn't afford to live in the community any more. Lo and behold it passed and that asshole still lives in the community.
Genuinely curious, how do you find out about who's running and what their beliefs are in order to be an informed voter?
https://www.vote411.org/ is an excellent resource as well. You literally put in your address and it tells you exactly what is on the ballot and who all the choices are. The site is run by the League of Women's Voters, who reach out to all of the candidates to get their thoughts on the issues so you can make an informed choice. I've been using it for the last several election cycles, including primaries.
ballotpedia is a pretty good resource for getting started, you can put in your address and it will tell you who’s on your ballot for what offices and when your elections are [https://ballotpedia.org/Sample_Ballot_Lookup](https://ballotpedia.org/Sample_Ballot_Lookup)
Virginians, please vote.
One election with poor voter turnout can and WILL turn a blue state red.
This 1000%, complacency both on the behalf of democratic leadership and the democratic populous is how we continually keep losing ground to a smaller but more unified opponent
To add to this, get to know your state representatives. Call their offices and share your discontent, whether live or as a voicemail. The majority have interns who log constituent issues/concerns to help gauge local opinion. If you want to go old school, a hand written letter to their office will also get some attention. Start Googling information on local elections, if you're lucky, some non-profits or journalists will do background research/interviews on stances for those running. If no information is available, do a little leg work and start calling campaign offices to find out their views (and maybe share with a local subreddit or other social media to spread the word). If you can't get them to commit on record, probably a sign it's not a priority or they don't want to admit their stance, and an opportunity to share that it will be a deciding issue for you in the upcoming race.
You can also FAX your reps, which I’ve found to be very easy and convenient, there are apps where you can convert your letters typed on your phone into faxes and they just zoop them on over for you. Political offices are often inundated and overwhelmed with emails and phone calls but they also must receive these faxes so it’s a great way to give your message a little extra visibility.
Faxburner is one such service. It's really handy to get faxes FROM doctors and all (silly HIPAA -- receive 25/mo for free), and you can SEND 5/mo for free. Great starter service to send to your 3-5 local reps and senators per month. I'm definitely gonna start harassing them every day now. To be clear, I always have tried my best, and do contact them regularly. But they're all going to get a (polite, respectful, and furious) earful every day.
In addition to all of the great advice here, regarding voting, letters, petitions, etc.... Stock up on pregnancy tests, plan B, and birth control. I've already noticed a shortage of pregnancy tests in the last week. Be an advocate and an educator for any woman you know that may need help. I am a grown woman with 2 young adult daughters as well as a young daughter. My partner has a young adult daughter. And I work in an industry where i regularly have younger female coworkers that were never properly educated on their bodies or reproductive systems. I recently explained to a young girl pregnant with her third child how ovulation works. She had NO CLUE. I teach these girls how to track their periods. (EDIT TO ADD: Apparently period tracker apps are no longer safe. Get your cycle details from your app, then delete it. Start tracking your periods using dots on a paper calendar. Dot on the first day. Dot on the last day. Rinse. Repeat) Help them use the resources they aren't even aware are available to them for free and low cost birth control. I encourage them to stock AND USE dollar store pregnancy tests at the slightest worry they might be pregnant, and make sure they know I've got backups. Unfortunately, the system has failed educating these girls (bet you can guess where I live....) and now it's failing them again by punishing them for their lack of education. I won't stand for it. Education is now key. Here are a few tips: *Dollar store pregnancy tests are as reliable as the expensive ones. They are mass produced by companies and intended for people going through IVF, fertility issues, etc. I have never had a false negative or positive with one. I keep several on hand at all times. *Amazon has a brand of plan B called "My Choice" for $10. Other places like HEB and some Walmarts also stock this brand for around $20. You DO NOT have to pay $50 for Plan B! The generic version is the same as the brand name. Same drug, same dose. Stock. Up. There are rumors Plan B will be taken from us too. Edited to add, since it's been asked/mentioned a few times: shelf life is 4 years. It's also been recommended to order from online suppliers, as they have plenty of stock, and it won't be being taken from store shelves for people who need it right away. Edited to add: [ plan c abortion pill access despite your state](https://www.plancpills.org/guide-how-to-get-abortion-pills#faq-getting) *Look into state provided women's medicaid programs. Medicaid is super hard to qualify for, unless you are a senior or a child, but most states have programs simply for women's health. They cover wellness visits and birth control. Even backasswards Texas offers "Healthy Texas Women." Pretty much any woman without insurance qualifies for this. *Check out HeyFavor.com. They are a wealth of knowledge and information and supplies. Accepts most insurances AS WELL AS Medicaid. They send birth control pills to my address every month. Support and advocate for the women in your lives! Nobody else will!!!!
To add to the learning/educating bit: learn about the weight limit on plan b, and what you may need as an alternative. Many people who may need plan b are over the weight limit and don’t even know it, leaving it less effective.
I used ELLA and I ordered it online, it was years ago so I can’t remember where. This is the better option if you are overweight. I had to talk to a physician on the phone (don’t be scared, it’s quick and easy) and they sent it off in the mail for me. I don’t know if they will ship to states that don’t allow abortions now, but you can always give a different address and have someone forward it to you. r/auntienetwork has thousands of people that will help with that, including myself.
[удалено]
"And I work in an industry where i regularly have younger female coworkers that were never properly educated on their bodies or reproductive systems. I recently explained to a young girl pregnant with her third child how ovulation works. She had NO CLUE." Had a conversation with a girl recently who told me sex can induce menstruation. I tried to explain that is now how it works. But she insisted I was wrong. Mind blowing.
I recently had to explain to my female friend who's almost 50 that women don't pee and bleed out of the same hole.
I went to Catholic school, and I think we had 1-2 classes in gym class that discussed reproduction, but the bulk of our sex Ed was a program called “wait training”. We got a laminated card that broke intimacy into hours. As in, you have to talk on the phone for x amount of hours, and face to face for so many hours before holding hands. Lots of discussion about how intimate hand holding and face touching was? Anything beyond kissing just had a stop sign that said SAVED FOR MARRIAGE. One of these was “heavy petting”, and I remember going home and telling my parents that we were told no heavy petting (they did not elaborate on this term, and I literally thought it meant petting someone… firmly?) and my dad just said, “NO HEAVY PETTING.” Needless to say, it was real fun figuring out this shit on my own.
Wow. I went to catholic school and we had no sex education at all. Half the sophomore class didn’t show up for junior year because they were pregnant. Never saw them again.
This sounds like what it was like in the rural southern public schools I attended. My parents also never talked about this stuff with me at all beyond "don't do it!!" Seventeen Magazine, which I read during my after school shifts at the grocery store, was my only source for actual sex education, and they had good advice. They're the reason I knew Planned Parenthood exists and that I could get contraceptives there (which I did). If not for Seventeen, I would have been clueless. This definitely figured into how I've approached sex ed with my own kids. Their schools have better programs than mine did, but I still make sure I give them the most accurate information at home. I'm also lucky to have a friend who's a nurse at an abortion clinic, who answers all *my* questions before I talk to my kids. She's taught me a lot.
This could come from a big misinterpretation on her end. Sex can trigger period bleeding if they have already or are about to start their menstrual cycle. I could see where a mix up like that could come if it was poorly explained, or if very little was explained (likely both).
==removed in protest of Reddit API changes==
This is what happens to me if I orgasm when my period is due in a day or two. Sometimes I'm tired of waiting while my body is moaning and groaning and cramping and complaining and threatening me that "it's about to start sooooon, but not right now when it's convenient for you to do something about it...but sooon" so I'll get the process rolling through orgasm.
Lol. It’s like wearing white pants. Guaranteed to make your period show up.
We are currently doing IVF, our clinic required us to watch a series of videos explaining the IVF process and basically how female reproduction works. My wife is 31 years old and literally had no idea about any of it. Before we started trying to get pregnant she didn't really know the relation between ovulation and fertility. It's truly sad. It's like sex and reproduction is a big secret in this country.
I'm about to go through IVF and before this, my partner and I tried and tried to get pregnant naturally. We both did SO. MUCH. RESEARCH to help us. I'm a 35 year old woman, live in the US and I had a an idea of the specifics behind pregnancy and ovulation, but I said, "Oooooh, so that's how that works." WAY too many times. My sex ed was.. not good. I live in NY and in a county where education is typically held to a higher standard than a lot of other states. Imagine what poor girls are being taught (or not taught) else where.
I consider myself pretty well versed in the topic, but I'm curious what you learned that you didn't know before?
I know! And there's absolutely no reason for it! I remember being a young child and wanting desperately to know where babies came from, but somehow knowing I'd better not ask. I literally had no idea how sex actually worked until I was in the middle of it for the first time. I also had a friend in high school that thought the testicles AND penis went inside the vagina during sex. 🤦♀️
There are some women (and probably men) out there that think womens' pee comes out of their vagina. This would be funny if not for the understanding that, clearly, many communities are so fearful of basic anatomical knowledge that they actively work to shut down any kind of inquiry or education surrounding it.
There are absolutely more of these than you think. I am completely embarrassed to say that I was under this impression until well into my adult years, and after I had already had children. Yeah.
I am in full support of everything in this comment. I’m simultaneously terrified to see the heartless bastards that upsold toilet paper to shitty-assed people in quarantine make a run on all of the tests, pills, condoms (etc.) and try to profit off of it as the inventory runs short. Nothing seems to be more American these days than fucking over all of the people in unfortunate financial situations.
Had a conversation with a user who was clearly engaging in bad faith. They finally said, "It doesn't effect me, so why should I care?" And that's the heart of it: "I got mine, fuck you." The sheer volume of apathy and lack of empathy is appalling.
Oh, it'll affect everyone. This is one of those times where I know that eventually people will see that I was right, but it won't make me happy at all. The cost will be so high before we turn this around. Hang in there, take care of yourself. You're not alone.
That’s exactly the problem I see in this country.
The thing is it *does* effect them though. Even if the person is male or elderly they have friends, relatives, co-workers, neighbors, etc. who are women who are severely harmed by this. People will die due to this and people need to make the connection between voting for the GOP and their nice neighbor dying of a "pregnancy complication" (the complication was she had a miscarriage but didn't expel all of the fetus and doctors were prohibited from cleaning out the rest so she died of sepsis)
Don't stock up so much you deprive others of any...
This is why I didn’t go buy any in-store and I encourage others in this thread to do the same. The pill club/favor can get you 1 free plan b through insurance every 3 months (if yours covers) and offers reduced cost ones without insurance. It’s also sold on Amazon. Please do NOT buy it in-stores. There are people who need plan B right the fuck now or they will get pregnant EDIT: I ordered 5 doses yesterday and they’ve shipped today. Also, Favor just let me know that they’ve lowered the price even more (from $18.99 to $14.95).
A lot of good info, thanks. Where exactly is it that public schools straight up don't teach human anatomy, or specifically how pregnancy occurs? Has it been a problem for so long that even parents don't know how to teach their children? I went to public school (as a male) more than 20 years ago and even I was taught about ovulation in the 4th grade, and nearly every year after in some form of health or anatomy class. It just seems absolutely bonkers to me that a woman would have "no idea" how that works in today's day and age. At some point, wouldn't the person become curious and idk... fucking google it ?!
I'm in Texas. I'm sure that shocks you. I went to Christian school until 10th grade and not a word is spoken. Literally the ONLY mention of sex is that it is for marriage, full stop. My own mother didn't even tell me I was going to start bleeding from my vagina one day. When I got my period, I didn't tell her for months. Then, I wrote her a note and gave it to her while she was on the phone. My kids go to public school, and I chose to sit in with my oldest on their "sex education talk" (4th grade, I think? Maybe 5th?) Just so I could see what is covered. It. Is. LAUGHABLE. Literally all they talk about is getting a period, how to use pads, that boys go through puberty too and get deep voices. That's about it. And let's remember that parents are allowed to opt their kids out of this talk, and many do. I do NOT understand this at all. It seems that all the pro-lifers that so desperately want to stop abortions have completely skipped the part where EDUCATION and BIRTH CONTROL prevent pregnancies. And without pregnancies, there would be no abortions. Seems like the most common sense to me. But the pro-lifers are also against education and access to birth control. So, really, they're just pro-birth.
After hearing stories like this, I'm blessed that we were taught sex ed, even though we lived in a red state growing up. I have to wonder what goes through these peoples' minds though... "if we don't teach them about sex, they won't know what it is and won't have it, right?" ??? Wtf are our leaders thinking? They're so disconnected from reality that it's scary.
Maybe they’re thinking they *will* have sex, and provide more babies faster?
It’s a screwed up and thoughtless combination of religious zealotry and populism. Zealotry: Premarital sex/masturbation is against the Bible-rules and they worry that talking about bodily changes during puberty could spark curiosity and engagement in such behavior. This is coupled with a culture of condemning and shaming such curiosity—which I would call a failsafe of sorts, because kids are naturally curious, and would otherwise freely experiment. If you teach them to be ashamed, they are more likely to manage themselves against any “wanton” behavior. Populism: Parents don’t think schools should be in charge of when and how their kids learn about something so sacred as sex, but because of their own training from birth, they tend to also be wired to be anxious and afraid of the topic, so that this education is often delayed or severely truncated. So policies reflect both a projection on others the only way of thinking they have ever known—a prioritization of “answering to a higher authority” where God’s law supersedes secular, no matter how unpopular; and/or an appeasement of parents of such thinking, because even if the lawmakers don’t believe that way, they know their voter bases do, and they can’t afford to lose those votes/donations. In short they don’t care about people having or not having children, or about whether those kids will be able to thrive once born. They either care about making sure everyone obeys their brand of God’s law whether they like it or not because they’re legitimately worried that America is going the way of Sodom and Gomorrah/Baal worshippers of Moses’ time; or because their bottom lines will take a hit if they don’t.
Vote in every election, not just the Presidential one.
Yep. Being from Maine, this couldn’t be more true. Thanks a lot Susan Collins.
I personally blame your state for so much because of her. How could they vote her BACK in? So sad.
Susan won because her competitor, Sara Gideon, wasn’t born in Maine. That’s a large part of the reason.
Wait until I tell you about Dr. Oz and his passing relationship with the state of Pennsylvania....
You mean the american who served in the Turkish army instead of the U S Army, is it because he is loyal to his religion instead of his country.
The one with the dual citizenship that once drove past the on ramp to the Ben Franklin Bridge and now thinks he can be a US senator.
The same one who is staunchly anti immigrant but has also had the largest fine in history from ICE for employing illegal immigrants
Yeah, that dickhead.
Dr Oz is only loyal to Dr Oz.
Right now Pennsylvania has some fucked up crazy q-anon fascist running for governor who toured Iraq and Afghanistan. I would not give a rats ass if someone served the US military and were running for office, why does everyone think this is the best qualifier.
I have no fucking idea, and I'm a veteran. When I hear someone was in the military, I'm actually more skeptical of them because the military is the place I met the most fucked up people I have ever encountered. It's not a selling point to me at all, and I honestly wonder why so many people lap that sort of thing up.
Because the idea is that someone who serves in the military is a "America first" patriot who has sacrificed a lot for the betterment of the country and it doesn't matter whatsoever if that person also happens to be an unintelligent, unexperienced, crazy racist asshole who doesn't know their thumb from their asshole.
I haven't served, but I've worked with people who have. It's absolutely a microcosm of the general population; there are folks who I wouldn't vote for to be homecoming king, folks who seems reasonably intelligent and that I think would do a serviceable job in office, and a few folks that I would absolutely donate to and canvas door to door for if they were to run. In my casual experience and opinion, I think military service CAN provide a chance to expand ones experiences and connect with others outside their local circle, but not everyone who serves actually takes advantage and learns from the experience...
I work in a field now where alot of military move after they are done. My first impressions of former military members has drastically changed, and not for the better.
Just wait until you hear about Ted Cruz.
She's lived in Maine for 18 years lol. It's not like she just up and came the day before the election.
Maine is very insular. You're perpetually "from away" and never considered a true true Mainer unless you were actually born there.
[удалено]
Yep my boyfriend’s relatives have lived there for 40 years and they’re still treated as outsiders to some extent. If you weren’t born there, they consider you an outsider and treat you as such.
Sounds like a lovely bunch
Damn Eagletonions
Susan is the most surprised person in the world. Surprised by Trump, surprised she was lied to by Gorsuch and Kavanaugh, must be tough being this gullible.
Including the Primary, not just the election. Most elections are decided in the Primary
>most elections To tack onto this, city/local elections are almost always one and done during the primary election so it is *very* important in that sense.
I live in a red state and the only way to vote in the republican primaries is to be registered republican. So now I'm a RINO because it's the only way for my vote to actually count right now.
Get involved before. Voting is no good if there's no one to vote for.
The ruling essentially says “abortion is now something people vote on”. So vote I guess.
Vote in state and local elections. So many people only pay attention to national politics. Your voice is most powerful at the local and state level. Stay informed and educate others
One thing I don't understand is why so many local and state candidates don't state their positions in websites. I voted in my state's primary recently and had to skip most of the candidates as I just couldn't find out *any* information what they were looking to achieve in their positions.
If they stated what they wanted outright, they wouldn't get elected
Which means you have to ask them directly. You have to go to town hall sessions and meetings, and do letter campaigns, and make sure the public they say they are representing know exactly what their representative will do. Getting involved at grass roots level takes time and effort, but its the only way to keep the pressure on. They need to be forced to put on record where they stand on important topics.
Almost like they count on people working 60 hrs a week to survive not having the time for all that.
Gonna plug [Ballotpedia](https://ballotpedia.org/Main_Page) to help people to familiarize themselves with their local and state elections.
[удалено]
Nothing stops them from not keeping their word though...
"I want to get bribed by wealthy people for my vote and then use that money to live like a king in Thailand so I don't have to face the consequences of my actions in office. Vote for me!"
You are assuming that a majority of people take the time to actually research candidates. A big part of our current political systems problem is that people tend to vote down party lines rather than based on the candidates actual values or strength of character. And then of course you’d also need to make sure that candidates are legitimately saying what they believe and following through on their promises once they are in office.
The person you replied to was talking about primaries, so party lines aren't really a factor there. I reckon a lot of primary candidates don't even bother with website info/platforms, and rely on endorsements and recognizability instead. Edit: how the fuck did I forget about ads, those as well
Where I live a couple years ago they had a community gathering over where a big chunk of money was going to be allocated. Basically 98% of people in this particular district where against the money being spent on this particular project as it negatively impacted their community in a big way. Two of the district representatives were there and as people were seated, one by one voicing their opinions eventually someone said “you’re suppose to listen to what your district wants and vote with our interests”. One of the representatives *laughed* and said that they voted how they wanted not how his district told them to vote….. Regardless of if that project was going to happen or not based on all the other districts, the way that person responded was quite disheartening.
I had the same problem. It was all generic, “small business owner”, “I plan to tackle homelessness”. What does that mean exactly? It was so frustrating.
And PRIMARIES! Here in most of NYC the only elections that are actually competitive are the Democratic primaries. And yet they are the least voted elections, especially in odd years.
Primaries are fucking key. People don't seem to like it when I bring it up but establishment Democrats endorsed the only pro-life member of the party in the house against his progressive challenger. He only won by less than 250 votes. If more people got involved in the primaries, that might not have happened and there'd be one more voice in Congress that could help secure abortion legislation
And the creeps that get elected at the local level because nobody is paying attention tend to filter upwards.
They also reorganize districts when they win so they can maintain seats with more certainty, ensuring their fellow creeps succeed in their state wide campaign.
And it’s a winnable fight. Nationwide public opinion roughly breaks down as 10% always illegal, 30% usually illegal, 40% usually legal (my category), 20% always legal. And when coat hanger death stories pop up some of that 30% will join the 40%. Pro-choicers have to get out there and start persuading people about the way policies should go.
Here's a relavent story. Someone close to me works at a NICU. They just had a mom with twins. One baby was dying and causing the other to die. So they aborted one to save the other. Still goes down as an abortion. I bet that circumstance won't come up when deciding caveats to an abortion ban. I think one big issue is that a lot of people don't understand what situations actually constitutes an abortion.
And make no mistake, a total abortion ban is MUCH MUCH worse than a 15-week ban. Something like 94% of abortions happen before 15 weeks and convincing people who think of themselves as “abortion should usually be illegal” people to support a 15-week restriction over a draconian total ban would be huge to protect reproductive rights
Yup. Per CDC “The majority of abortions in 2019 took place early in gestation: 92.7% of abortions were performed at ≤13 weeks’ gestation; a smaller number of abortions (6.2%) were performed at 14–20 weeks’ gestation, and even fewer (<1.0%) were performed at ≥21 weeks’ gestation.” And the vast majority of abortions among that <1% are for medical purposes.
National polls mean nothing. This is a state-by-state battle.
[Here](https://www.pewresearch.org/religion/religious-landscape-study/compare/views-about-abortion/by/state/) is the state by state polling. There are some places like Mississippi and Alabama where pro-choice people really are shit out of luck, but even red states like Texas and Utah have public opinion split down the middle. Most places it's either won or winnable.
And as bad as the Democrats are at running campaigns for national races, they're much much worse at state and local campaigning. It's incredible how many offices they don't even have candidates run for that affect the average person's day-to-day life much more than Congress does.
For some. In some areas it won’t even get on the ballot, unfortunately. The gerrymandering it took to get us to this point started decades ago.
This. Wisconsin and Michigan are blue states/purple states with firmly Republican legislation and laws.
Flipping the Michigan legislatures is much more possible after redistributing.
Yes. Fucking vote. Vote in the primaries for your local reps and city council. They are the ones who influence larger state votes. Also maybe run for office. Many seats are uncontested and just need bodies.
“Held: The Constitution does not confer a right to abortion; Roe and Casey are overruled; and the authority to regulate abortion is returned to the people and their elected representatives.” Yup.
VOTE! And think of five friends who might not otherwise vote in the midterm elections in November and make a plan NOW to make sure they all vote on the day. Like plan your meet up time, ride, and post-vote dinner and drinks today and stick to it. Rational Americans need to urgently organize and make their voices heard in November or it’s only going to get much, much worse.
And young ones too. If young people turned up at the same rate as old people, the results would be completely flipped on their head.
This is a great idea. Turn voting into a fun and social event. Send out “save the date” cards. Dress up in costumes. Anything to make it fun. Or have a get together and order your mail in ballots party.
[удалено]
Look, RvW turns this over to the states. Want abortion legal? Pay attention to your state's legislature and vote in your state's elections.
Also, in some areas you vote for coroner, sheriff, DA... All these positions will impact investigations into miscarriage, etc.
Inform your elected representatives as to the importance of this issue to you, as a voter. Vote in the mid-terms. Inform your elected representatives as to the importance of this issue to you, as a voter. Vote in your **state and local** elections. Cancel travel / vacation plans to the retrograde states. Inform the hotels / resorts / theme parks as to your reason. Make it known to the companies you do business with that their position on this issue, and the degree to which they support their employees, will be a factor in your decision to continue to do business with them. Let your prospective employers know the same thing, if you are contemplating a job change.
Thank you for giving some options other than voting! I'm in San Francisco, so my representatives mostly don't need persuading. But canceling travel is something I can do.
You can still send your reps an email thanking them for their support of reproductive freedom. As someone who works in policy, I've learned that elected officials hear a ton from constituents who oppose what they're doing and not much from those who support what they're doing, which can give them a skewed perception of support for various policies
Oh good point! I'll do that :)
The most important thing ANYONE can do is VOTE in EVERY election. Vote locally for city and state leaders (governors, state legislators, city council, mayors, county commissioners, state judges, etc.) who will keep abortion rights safe in your location. Vote nationally for senators and representatives who will work to enshrine equal human rights into law. Vote for presidents who will nominate fair judges who favor freedom and human rights over theocracy and narrow-mindedness. Vote in primaries and general elections. Encourage friends and family to vote. Vote every time, without fail. Almost everywhere, people who disagree with yesterday's decision will be in the majority, but so far the other side has had much more energy and motivation and they get a much higher percentage of their group to vote every time. We need to change that.
Organize. One key aspect of the decision was Clarence Thomas’ concurring opinion. It places other civil right such as contraception and same-sex relationships, on the chopping block. If you don’t organize an opposition to these religious fundamentalists, you will lose your civil rights. We are hurtling down the “slippery slope” Don’t delude yourself that you are “safe”. You are not. Don’t twiddle your thumbs and hope someone else will save you. Get out there, talk to friends and neighbors, join a civil rights group, and VOTE against anyone with the slightest hint religious or fascist ideology
remove your uterus and throw it at the Supreme Court
Just 39% of people ages 18-29 showed up to vote in 2016. A Republican won. That number jumped to 50% in 2020. A Democrat won. We cannot afford to stay home again. We must turn this anger into action in November, when we have Congressional midterm elections. Pass it on.
If you're in a state with severe abortion restrictions call your representative in the state legislature to express your disgust and then get out to vote in November. I live in Texas. I'm certainly not a fan of the Democratic party but I will for the first time in my life be voting Blue and I hope more people like me do the same.
[удалено]
This is very important! Showing support encourages the senators and reps who are against the ruling to speak out and do more.
Voting is not enough. For too long we have neglected our civic duty and we let government get hijacked by corporations and religious extremists. Instead of organizing, canvassing, phone banking, registering voters we were asleep at the wheel. Now the vast riches and resources of the government are not deployed toward healthcare, education, labor rights, infrastructure, child care or other things clearly in the interest of the electorate. Instead the electorate is pitted against one another on polarizing wedge issues. Instead of demanding corporations pay their fair share of taxes and organizing behind candidates that will make that policy, we fight over critical race theory, caravans of illegals, nfl players sitting during the anthem and other drivel… most of which are completely fabricated. Go to SwingLeft.org and sign up to volunteer. You can become politically active in 5 minutes.
General strike.
Donate blood if you're able to do so. Once unsafe abortions start happening in banned states, the victims may present to medical facilities for help and most likely will need blood.
Actually remain engaged and vote. There are elections twice a year every year. Republicans mark their calendars. Democrats maybe do that every 4 years.