Where’s Governor Charlie Baker on Reproductive Justice?
By: Jessie Steigerwald
Tags: Reproductive Rights, Reproductive Justice, Abortion, Roe V Wade, Abortion Rights

Boston Red Cloaks have used the imagery of Margaret Atwood’s novel, A Handmaids Tale, to advocate for passage of pro-choice legislation in Massachusetts that, if passed, would remove outdated language from state laws and expand access to abortion.

Where’s Governor Charlie Baker on Reproductive Justice?

For the past 23 months, residents across MA have made the trek— virtually or in person — up Beacon Hill to call for passage of the ROE Act, a commonsense piece of legislation to improve access to affordable abortion care for all.

Yet, Governor Baker’s stand on reproductive justice remains unclear.

From the ROE Act’s introduction in January 2019, through March 2020, we participated, from attended the hearing to lobbying in person. Since quarantine, we continued through socially distanced measures: from virtual office hours, publications, petitions, podcasts and postcards to TikTok.

Both the House and Senate voted overwhelmingly in favor of reproductive freedom, leaving one final appeal: will Governor Baker join us, finally, in standing for improvements to our outdated laws? We haven’t heard any affirmative statements supporting the ROE Act, and his silence when it comes to reproductive justice speaks volumes. COVID hit, Justice Ginsburg died, and our Governor still had nothing to say about the urgency of dismantling barriers to abortion.

We can only guess where Governor Baker stands today based on his prior public comments. Back in 2019, he said he supported the current state of abortion law, as “it’s worked well for decades for women and families here in Massachusetts.” We disagree.

Fiscal 2021 budget Amendment 40, though a weakened version of the ROE Act, addresses legislative barriers that have presented hurdles, challenges and created harmful situations for pregnant people in Massachusetts. That’s what we support.

Has Baker listened to testimonies of those who suffer under the current law? Women who received a fatal fetal diagnosis later in pregnancy, and had to leave our state to receive compassionate healthcare? Women given the same diagnosis, but who couldn’t afford to leave the state, and were forced to continue a pregnancy when their fetus could not live outside the womb? Has he heard medical practitioners balk at the legal barriers to taking care of patients here, in a state recognized for its medical resources? Has he read the studies that demonstrate disparate health outcomes for our most vulnerable teens, who are sent to court like criminals to get permission from a judge to receive abortion care rather than to their doctors?

Our legislators have listened.

Governor Baker has criticized the process of “putting policy in the budget.” Inclusion in the budget is not an attempt to sneak in policy — every amendment is effectively a decision about policy. The session was extended precisely to address urgent issues exacerbated by the pandemic.

Reproductive healthcare is essential. Even more so during the pandemic, with higher incidences of domestic abuse, restricted out-of-state travel, curtailed access to doctors and courthouses, and economic pains that constrain pregnant people’s decisions.

If the Governor wants state laws to work well for women and families, now is the time. Our wellbeing has been restricted by anti-choice barriers baked into the laws in 1974 by an earlier generation of reactionary male legislators upset by Roe v. Wade.

This process has underscored how difficult it is to converse about abortion. Mired in decades of social stigma, we have hidden our abortions; many find it challenging to discuss with close friends, never mind legislators. But silence is not an option. In fact, the next generation’s approach will help more people thrive: campaigns like #shoutyourabortion and Viva Ruiz’s anthem “Thank God for Abortion.”

We’re not asking Governor Baker to join the pro-choice floats in the feminista parade. We wish the legislature had taken up the entire ROE Act. We wish they had removed the offensive language referencing ‘live births’ in conjunction with abortion; it is a fiction. And we wish they would eliminate the onerous parental consent law entirely; most of our neighboring New England states don’t have this barrier. Still, we are proud of our legislature for moving us forward to a brighter future where people able to become pregnant will be better able to access their right to control their bodies, act on their conscience, and thrive.

We invite readers to join the call for Governor Baker to stand up for reproductive freedom for all in Massachusetts.

Jessie Steigerwald, MarthaLeticia Valencia, Kamala Raj, Karyn Rose, Boston Red Cloaks

Lora Venesy, Co-Chair of Advocates for Women’s Empowerment

Carrie N. Baker, President of the Abortion Rights Fund of Western Massachusetts

Janet Joakim, Cape Cod Women For Change

Indivisible Mass Coalition

Indivisible Acton Steering Committee

Kate Kavanagh, Founder Concord Indivisible

Concord Indivisible Steering Committee

Laurie Veninger, Indivisible Outer Cape

Judy Eskin, Pam Poindexter, Greater Andover Indivisible

Indivisible MA-06 Coalition

2. https://www.bostonredcloaks.com/petition-1

3. https://www.gazettenet.com/Baker-column-36885413

4. https://wbznewsradio.iheart.com/content/boston-red-cloaks-handmaids-tale-protest-state-house-abortion-rights/

5. https://www.bostonredcloaks.com/red-cloaks-radio

6. https://commonwealthmagazine.org/health/house-passes-abortion-access-budget-amendment/

7. https://commonwealthmagazine.org/opinion/senate-amendment-reinforces-a-womans-right-to-privacy/

8. https://www.bostonglobe.com/2020/10/25/metro/women-red-cloaks-march-state-house-advocate-reproductive-freedom/

9. https://www.wbur.org/news/2019/04/02/baker-later-term-abortion-bill

10. https://www.boston.com/news/politics/2020/11/13/charlie-baker-abortion-access-budget-amendment

11. https://www.bostonglobe.com/2020/11/12/metro/house-votes-expand-abortion-access