![Photo credit: DrKontogianniIVF [CC BY 2.0]](https://i0.wp.com/mombian.com/images/ivf_purple.jpg?fit=1024%2C538&ssl=1)
A bill introduced today aims to protect access to IVF for anyone who needs it to build their family–like my spouse and I did. The bill comes in the wake of the U.S. Supreme Court decision to overturn abortion rights, which many fear will lead to restrictions on other aspects of reproductive health care.
The only time in my life that I went on birth control was when my spouse and I were trying to have a baby. That’s why I’m celebrating Thanks, Birth Control Day today—because birth control matters to so many people in so many ways. Read on for my story.
The Massachusetts Parentage Act (MPA), which would update state parentage laws to better protect all children, including those with LGBTQ parents, did not make it through the legislative process before the session ended July 31. Advocates say they will continue fighting for it in the next session.
Abortion is health care, and children should learn about it in age-appropriate ways as they do other health topics. And with abortion rights making headlines right now, children may have questions about it. Here are three queer-inclusive books that may help them understand.
For many LGBTQ people, getting pregnant is done with planning worthy of chess masters. Yet LGBTQ people who have been pregnant are also more likely to have had unwanted or mistimed pregnancies and to need abortion services than cisgender heterosexual women—meaning the end of Roe v. Wade will have an immediate negative impact on LGBTQ people, whether or not it leads to the erosion of additional rights.
The Supreme Court has ruled there is no federal right to an abortion—casting doubt upon a host of other rights. Here are some resources for queer parents and prospective parents wondering what to do next both to protect their families and to fight back.
In 1989, I was part of the March for Women’s Lives in Washington, DC, as abortion rights were at risk of being overturned by the U.S. Supreme Court. I was still recently out as a lesbian, with no thoughts of parenthood yet on my mind, but the idea of the government forcing people to carry unwanted or life-risking pregnancies was as anathema to me as it telling me who to love.
You’ve likely heard the news: A leaked draft opinion indicates that the U.S. Supreme Court will soon abolish the federal right to an abortion. This in itself will impact queer people as much as it will anyone—but could signal a threat to other LGBTQ rights as well.
The Texas abortion ban that was just upheld by the U.S. Supreme Court is a hugely frightening development for anyone who can get pregnant and for anyone who cares about reproductive rights, including not only abortion access but also assisted reproduction. That’s enough to make it a queer issue—but it has even more possible ramifications for other civil and human rights issues, including LGBTQ rights.
The only time I’ve ever been on birth control was when my spouse and I were trying to have a child. This just goes to show the variety of ways that birth control is used—and why the Supreme Court’s recent decision allowing more employers to refuse to cover it is very much a queer issue.
