Since the Roe vs. Wade court case in 1973, women have been granted the right to abortion. It wasn’t until the ’70s that women were given the opportunity to make their own decisions about their own body, and now in 2020, that freedom might be taken away. President Trump plans to defund Planned Parenthood, a nonprofit organization that provides reproductive healthcare to women around the world. This decision denies women their reproductive rights and contributes to the societal inequality and sexism women face on a regular basis.

On Sept. 3, President Trump announced in a letter that if re-elected, he will completely defund Planned Parenthood. He has constantly threatened all throughout 2019 and 2020 to dismantle America’s largest reproductive clinic. Trump claims that he does not want more innocent lives taken by abortions. However, research has proven that that is not at all what occurs.

Abortion is a medical procedure that removes an embryo from a uterus, according to Medline Plus. Furthermore, Medium stated that an embryo is not a human life, it is more or less a clump of cells. The right to an abortion is something that women should be able to exercise, or not exercise, on their own. No one should have to be forced to bear an unwanted child, especially as a result of factors such as rape, teen pregnancy and lack of access to contraceptives. A woman’s body comes along with the opportunity for them to decide what they want to do with it. Why should a man like Trump, who will never have to experience an unplanned pregnancy, be able to have an opinion on what a female can and cannot do?

What Trump and pro-life advocates are unaware of is that Planned Parenthood is so much more than just an abortion clinic. Planned Parenthood states that they grant service to 9.8 million people and provides STI testing, birth control, breast exams and sex education. The irony in banning this organization is that it can help prevent unwanted pregnancy in the first place. Planned Parenthood is a critical outlet that women can seek out for reproductive help and safety. 

Ever since the death of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg on Sept. 18, women’s hopes for several aspects of their rights have gone to shambles. RBG was a tenacious fighter for gender equality and worked tirelessly throughout her life for the position she ended up in. Because there is now an open seat on the Supreme Court, Trump has nominated his preferred replacement: Amy Coney Barret. 

Barret is a conservative candidate who could serve to undo everything RBG stood for. She believes abortion is “always immoral,” and opposes LGBTQ+ rights and the Affordable Care Act. The future for women is looking pretty dreary with Barret as a Supreme Court Justice. 

This is why at a time like this, voting is fundamental. We cannot have a leader like Trump, who is against reproductive rights for women, continue his presidency. Voting and advocating for women’s rights can help get Trump out of office, and further ensure that Amy Coney Barret does not take the seat as the next U.S. Supreme Court Justice.