Today we celebrate the anniversary of Roe vs Wade. It’s been 45 years since this seminal moment, and yet the battle for women to maintain this basic right is far from over. While many of my campaign staff and many of my supporters have lived their entire lives secure with the right to choose, I remember when women were forced to seek back alley abortions.
I am dismayed when I see some Democrats call for the party to endorse candidates who do not support the fundamental right of women to control our own bodies. They have bought into the false notion that such a compromise is necessary in conservative areas. That’s simply not true.
When I ran for the Assembly, I was running to replace a conservative Democrat, Alister McAlister, who didn’t support a woman’s right to choose.
At the time, the Democratic Party leadership was afraid that my run as a pro-choice liberal woman would risk turning the seat over to a Republican. Willie Brown initially declined to allow me to speak before the Democratic Caucus for an endorsement vote. It was only with the help of four prominent women and two male allies that I was able to go before the caucus. I earned the Democratic caucus endorsement and won the election, even after Republicans rolled in the store to try to defeat me.
Let me be clear, standing up for core values and fundamental rights is a winning strategy.
I will never compromise on a woman’s right to choose. I know the horrors that befell women before we had this right, and I will not subject today’s young women to such danger, fear, or devastation. Never again will we allow others to make decisions about our bodies.
In solidarity,
Delaine
