I Live in the First US State to Ban Abortion

And I’m mad as hell

Photo by Tingey Injury Law Firm on Unsplash

Earlier today, the United States Supreme Court made a ruling that effectively overturns Roe v. Wade. That means that abortion is no longer protected by the United States Constitution. Now it falls to state law to determine when and if abortions are legal.

My home state, Missouri, was one of 27 states that had trigger laws in place. That means they had passed something that would only go into effect when and if the precedent set in Roe v. Wade was overturned.

Our Missouri Attorney General, who I imagine had some sort of bet in place with his counterparts in states such as Texas and Oklahoma, raced to enact the trigger law that makes abortions illegal in Missouri.

Author’s screenshot of Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt’s tweet at 9:16am central on June 24, 2022 announcing the enactment of a trigger law banning abortion in the state of Missouri.

As of today, in Missouri, any abortion is illegal, regardless of how far along the pregnancy is. The only exception allowed is for a medical emergency. I fear for the first few pregnant people and doctors who have to defend that one in court.

So what does it feel like to be a person with a uterus in Missouri today? Well, my experience is that I am facing a potent mixture of swirling emotions, none of them…