Pro-choice must make voices heard

Pro-choice must make voices heard

Jan. 22 marked the 40th anniversary of Roe v. Wade, the U.S. Supreme Court decision that legalized abortion.

Medically safe, legal abortion has had a profound impact on American women and their families.

The right to make childbearing decisions has enabled women to pursue educational and employment opportunities that were once unthinkable, but are now considered essential to our nation’s economic well-being.

In 1992, the Supreme Court noted that “the ability of women to participate equally in the economic and social life of the nation has been facilitated by their ability to control their reproductive lives.”

Justice Blackmun, who wrote the Roe v. Wade decision, called it “a step that had to be taken as we go down the road toward the full emancipation of women.”

If the Supreme Court soon revisits and reverses the decision on abortion, women’s last bastion for the right to choose will be their state legislatures. It is extremely important for every pro-choice citizen of Illinois to vote for pro-choice candidates in every primary and general election. The consequences of voter apathy in this regard will be disastrous for women and for Illinois’ economy.

Sheila Feeney

Algonquin