Maggie Collins
Senior Staff Writer
On September 2nd the SB 8 law was put into effect in the state of Texas. SB 8 allows anyone to sue a person for $10,000 who has aided or supported someone in getting an abortion after about 6 weeks‒ when a heartbeat can be detected by an ultrasound; yet, many women don’t even know that they are pregnant until long after 6 weeks.
What has a number of people stirred up is that this law applies to any pregnancy, including those that are the product of rape. As well as this, women feel that they are losing their voice and ability to do what they want with their own bodies. There are a number of reasons that women get abortions including: not being able to financially support the baby, being raped, or not taking proper precautions.
However, like every argument, there is another side that believes this law can have a positive effect. They believe that killing something that is alive and has a heartbeat is inhumane in the first place. They will mostly say things such as “If you can’t afford a baby, then use protection” or saying that the procedure is murder. Some can see these sayings as reasonable and others see them as completely unfair or not true.
Despite the many beliefs that citizens have surrounding abortion, this law has still been passed. From this point, those who disagree with its terms can only try to fight back, as many women have. There have been protests and many other ways that people have attempted to fight back this law.
While I have opinions that put me in the middle of both sides, I believe that women’s voices are being silenced. We now do not have a say in what can or can’t happen to our own bodies. I have heard many stories of women being raped and ending up pregnant; if you only become aware of your pregnancy after 6 week,s then you are forced to carry the pregnancy all the way through in Texas. To have a child is seen as a blessing, but to have one from someone who gave you one against your will can take away the joy of the pregnancy.
While the law doesn’t allow the person getting the abortion to be sued, anyone helping or encouraging that person can be prosecuted. This ranges from the doctor doing the procedure himself to the person who drove the patient to the appointment, or even a family member who might have just said “I think it will be best for you to get an abortion.” Because of this, many see this new law as completely unfair and out-of-bounds.
This law and many others like it seem to be taking away the freedom that we thought we had. It can be difficult to think that we live in a free country when we can’t even choose what to do with our bodies. I believe that giving everyone the freedom to choose what they want to do will be the most equal and fair thing to do.
While not everyone makes the right decisions, there seems to be no “better” way than to allow people to have the freedom to choose. Everyone should have freedom and a right to speak for what they want, and the government shouldn’t be allowed to take that away.
THE CAROLINIAN 
I always return the conversation to the real. It’s about a baby, a human being needing our protection. The smallest, the most innocent, the most precious. As adults, our responsibility is to protect them, always. Of course, if a mother’s life is in danger, we attempt to save both. And yes, there are other circumstances, but not the norm, and in all cases, there is always the beautiful baby, born and unborn, waiting to experience life as we have life. **If there is counter and anger towards, this, I can only ask why wouldn’t we all protect the most innocent. We can choose how we live, but we can never choose death for babies. Killing babies doesn’t fix any political or social right. The way is to be responsible for ourselves, teach responsibility to our children so they make better decisions as they grow up, then in the “difficult” situations, the baby can be given for adoption that other couples may have children.
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