Betsy Snow White Bibliophile

Tag: Politics

  • A New Dawn…?

    Today is the inauguration of Joe Biden as our 46th President. I have never been happier to see a President voted out of the White House than I am to see 45 go. And yet, I am still trepidatious about what is to come. I think there is a feeling that this leadership change will fix all of the ills in this country and that is such a fallacy.

    There is so much work to be done in America toward equality and equity. America’s health care system needs to be gutted and overhauled. White Supremacists and Fascists need to be routed out and shown that there is no place for them in our country.

    I will go into this new administration with hope for tomorrow, but cautious optimism. I will absolutely celebrate our first female Vice President, Kamala Harris. I will try to be the face of change in my world. We have work to do, but hopefully this is a step in the right direction.

  • On Choice, Birth Control, Pride and Being Afraid

    On Choice, Birth Control, Pride and Being Afraid

    In my home state of Ohio the rights of women are under attack. The Heartbeat Bill that has been passed by our state legislature and signed into law by our backward facing heel of a Governor is a disgrace, and has left me feeling scared and occasionally powerless. The even more draconian bills that are following would make many birth controls, including the one I am currently using (Mirena IUD) illegal in the state of Ohio.

    I am trying to keep myself grounded and remember that this and similar laws in other states are unconstitutional based on the ruling Roe v. Wade, but with the most recent additions to the Supreme Court I feel like there is a very good chance that Roe v. Wade could be overturned.

    I have personally never had to make the choice to have an abortion, but I have been on birth control since I was 15. I have known almost since that time that I did not want to have children. I have been blessed that my birth control has never failed, but I was always reassured that if the worst (for me) happened I had the freedom to seek an abortion. Having that taken away from me, and my husband who also does not want children, is so upsetting.

    The whole situation has me wanting to quickly having tubal ligation, or a salpingetomy which is what my little sister recently got, so that I don’t have to worry as much about the possibility of losing access to birth control and getting pregnant. I called today to make an appointment to have my IUD removed because it is time and to discuss my options. I am 38 year old so I am hoping that I don’t run into the same push back I received when I was younger.

    My mother, sister and I are planning to walk this year in the pride parade for Planned Parenthood of Ohio to lend our support to a super important organization in our community. When I was 15 I had my very first gynecological exam at the Planned Parenthood in Newark and got my very first birth control. The doctors there were lovely, and so non-judgmental. I will always support them for that reason.

    I will also always fight for LGBTQIA rights. I have always considered myself to be bisexual as I find myself sexually attracted to both men and women, though nowadays I might consider myself closer to pansexual. My being currently in a heterosexual monogamous relationship does not change this, but does make it so that I am not personally effected by homophobia, etc. I am painfully aware of it happening, though, and its effects. Until this is no longer an issue I will continue to fight.

    I am planning to attend some rallys and protests as well around these issues, and to become more active in local politics to try to encourage change. How do you get involved? Would you run for local political office? Why or why not?

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