When Our Voices Aren’t Heard

Post Author: Rev. Merianna Harrelson

On Thursday, May 23, 2023, Governor Henry McMaster of South Carolina signed into law the “Fetal Heartbeat and Protection from Abortion Act.” In fact, Governor McMaster called a special legislative session just for this bill. This is significant because a near-total abortion ban was defeated three times in the South Carolina Senate during the 2022-2023 legislative session. Five female senators in South Carolina made national news when they introduced 1,000 amendments and filibustered the final attempt. They thought their voices had been heard until this special session was called. 

South Carolina isn’t the only state whose legislative year has been dominated with anti-abortion legislation. In the wake of Roe v. Wade being overturned, twenty-four states have introduced or passed anti-abortion laws. Even as anti-abortion legislation is being introduced and is in many cases, dominating legislative time and resources, recent polling shows that 85% of Americans support abortion rights. With this discrepancy between polling and legislation, it is difficult to feel like the majority of Americans’ voices are being heard. 

The Capital in Columbia, SC with the rising sun behind

The majority of the South Carolina Medical Affairs Committee is men or people whose physical bodies and health are not directly impacted by the legislation they are debating. The majority of this committee would not be personally impacted by the passing of anti-abortion law, and yet they have the deciding voice on whether the legislation makes it out of committee. 

What about the women on the committee? What about the women who have testified over the past year before the committee sharing their personal experiences with the gut-wrenching life or death medical care decisions surrounding abortion they have had to make? While the men on the Senate Medical Affairs Committee centered the debate on when life started and how they could monitor whether an abortion would be considered legal or illegal, these women’s voices were lost. For male senators, abortion was a legislative debate. For the female senators involved in this legislative decision, abortion is a deeply personal reality of fleeting autonomy of their physical bodies. 

When our representatives forget that the laws and legislation they pass or debate impact individuals throughout the state, they forget the voices they claim to represent. When our representatives are more concerned with their voting record on hot-button issues, they are only listening to their own voices rather than the voice of the people. 

When our voices aren’t heard, it’s easy to decide to give up. It’s hard enough telling your story once. Getting up and telling your story again when the odds are stacked against you is even more difficult. In states like South Carolina where those who would be physically and professionally impacted by the passing of more restrictive abortion legislation are grossly underrepresented, we have to keep sharing our stories and the impact of legislation on our own lives. We have to keep speaking even when it seems in vain. We speak up and speak out so that there will continue to be debate and so we don’t forget that no matter where we live, there is one more than one perspective.

The Fetal Heartbeat and Protection Abortion Act in South Carolina is being challenged and sent to the SC Supreme Court. Along with many advocates who support autonomy for those whose physical bodies and rights are being debated, I will continue to speak and raise my voice for those for whom this bill would be oppressive and devastating. As a pastor, I see participating in this conversation to be part of my ministry. Sometimes it looks like testifying as an expert clergy witness to try to help legislatures see how their decisions trickle down into the community. Sometimes it looks like protesting with advocates and partners. Sometimes it looks like buying a bus ticket for a homeless mom to receive prenatal care. 

You, too, can join this necessary work by financially supporting local state networks like WREN, a nonprofit whose mission is “to build a movement to advance the health, economic well-being, and rights of South Carolina’s women, girls, gender-expansive people, and their families.” You can challenge power by sharing your own story of the impact of restrictive legislation or by listening to others’ stories, especially when the powerful don’t adequately or fairly represent the voices of those people whom the debated legislation will impact. You can find out more about the danger and rise of unsafe abortions when restricted legislation is passed from organizations like Planned Parenthood and PAI. By joining our voices together, we help each other be heard.