As Daily Kos has covered extensively, conservatives on the U.S. Supreme Court (and, frankly, Republicans in general) are doing their absolute best to dismantle reproductive health and basic rights for anyone in this nation who can become pregnant. As Daily Kos continues to highlight, it’s about federal abortion access, and it’s about making sure pregnant people in red states are actually able to access and afford abortions even while Roe is still here. Because while Roe is undoubtedly major and incredibly important, we do know that a number of people seeking abortions already face extreme barriers to care, including people in rural areas, people of color, and low-income folks.
With all of this in mind, the news cycle is grim—there is really no way around it. But as young people continue to show us, there is still hope and there are still people ready to join the fight. Students at Andover High School in Kansas, for example, bravely held a walkout and rally in favor of abortion rights outside of the school on Thursday afternoon, as reported by local outlet KAKE.
“We want to stand up for our right to privacy and our bodies,” student Alexis Brown, a junior at the school, told the outlet, adding that abortion bans “don’t work” and threaten people’s safety.
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Though many high schoolers (obviously) cannot vote, students at the rally stressed that they still want to raise awareness for the issue and encourage people who can vote to do so. In Kansas in particular, this is very relevant as an overturn of Roe could lead to a ban in the state. Right now protections in the state are strong, but thanks to anti-choice organizers, a vote is already scheduled for Aug. 2 to remove abortion protections in the Kansas state constitution.
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Students carried posters they made for the rally, which ultimately went off without a hitch. Per local outlet KSN, however, school principal Brent Reidy sent a letter to parents saying that while the school recognizes students have a constitutional right to participate, the absences from class will not be considered excused, and classes will continue as scheduled.
Reidy went on to say students may face disciplinary action in accordance with the no distract policy surrounding their absences for the protest. The letter also stated that school staff will not participate in the rally and that the school does not “endorse” or “promote” the demonstration or any others.
An anonymous student told the outlet (correctly) that taking away abortion protections doesn’t mean stopping abortion, but instead means “taking away personal control.” The student went on to say states shouldn’t be able to make decisions about a person’s “bodily autonomy” and that making abortion illegal only stops safe abortions.
Again: These are high schoolers talking. That’s pretty impressive and certainly very brave. These teens (and many others like them) are using facts, science, compassion, and empathy to argue their points and defend both their own rights and the rights of others. That’s more than most Republicans can say, and that’s being generous.
The youth are leading us in the right direction, but they shouldn’t have to.
You can catch some local footage from the protest below.
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