We Are Being Oppressed Because We Are Powerful

Published by the Idaho Press Tribune on June 28, 2022

Here we are in our collective daze, wearily picking up our armor, we must resist, we must go back into battle. Our sisters are packing their bags to leave, our mothers sit frozen and crying, our grandmothers are rolling over in their graves. We’ve never had to worry about this in our lifetime. We never had to worry about this for our children. There is a quiet across the nation, there’s a somberness on the streets and in the coffee shops. Today we grieve and gather our combined strength. We all know that women can ‘sync – up’, we will sync up like the world has never seen before. We have been gaslit at a federal level, our grandmothers fought to claim our God-given rights, today we are robbed of our birthright.

One of our mothers called in tears to apologize for her generation taking away our freedom, undoing the work of our grandmothers.

Two of us have mothers who have never crawled out from under the weight of teenage motherhood.

One of us had to stand before a judge and get permission to end an unviable and dangerous, early pregnancy allowing her to escape a horrifically violent relationship.

These stories are not unique. We are everywoman and we will never stop standing together demanding recognition of our humanity, our rights, our freedoms. We will never stop acknowledging our sisters of color who’ve been oppressed in this way for centuries before us and are disproportionately impacted by this decision. This is systemic, federal control and overreach. This is the government in our beds, bathrooms, doctors offices and inside our bodies. This is them grabbing us by the pussy.

We must stop dehumanizing women. We have inalienable rights. It is our birthright to be in control of our own bodies and to make our own decisions. Without women there are no babies, no Supreme Court Justices, no legislators, or fathers. We are the mothers of humanity. Be careful, oppressing the mothers of humanity. Now more than ever we will stand up, engage, and show up. We will not be complacent, we will not allow this kind of brute dominance to go unchecked and without resistance. We will fight and help our sisters. We will continue to make our choices and take care of ourselves, as we always have. You will not stop us, you are simply making us angry and our righteous anger will drive us.

This CHOICE flies in the face of the majority of Americans, it violates the rights and freedoms of all women and as candidates and leaders, it now drives our work. Once again, we are pulled away from the everyday issues that are knocking down our doors, in order to re-address this longstanding and fundamental right that is necessary and in the best interest of all people. We are being oppressed because we are powerful! Do not forget it. We are coming for your seats, your titles, your power. We are organizing and strategizing and we will not be stopped.