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A Woman’s Right to Choose and Access Abortion Services
By Mary Lawrence, Women in Negations facilitator and Prince George teacher
Delegates to the 2018 BCTF AGM made the momentous decision that we are a pro-choice union:
41.B.05—That the Federation support the right of women to:
1. decide whether or when to have children, and to make decisions about abortion without interference by the state or others. 2. freely access abortion-related medical services regardless of age, relationship status, or geographic location. 3. similarly access a full range of information, counselling, and other sexual health services in their communities. (81 AGM, p. 17) (18 AGM, p. 9)
Equitable access to health care has always been a focus of the BCTF, and with the inclusion of Policy 41.B.05, we cemented our commitment to ensuring that women across the country are able to choose abortion and abortionrelated medical services, not just legally, but in actual practice.
While the BCTF has been publicly in support of “reproductive freedom” in the past, this AGM decision made the important distinction of naming abortion specifically. This is a commendable choice—one that resists the anti-choice push to silence those striving for reproductive justice through the purposeful and malicious stigmatization of the language needed to express our rights and freedoms. The anti-choice movement has wielded language like a weapon. Physicians who provide abortion services are called “abortionists,” embryos are called “babies,” and patients labeled as “murderers.” In response to this stigmatization, advocates for abortion and increased access to abortion have blanketed their goals in language that seems more palatable to the public. The strategic stigmatizing of medical language, particularly the word “abortion,” has worked in favour of anti-choice organizations who know that we cannot advocate for what we cannot name. When this motion was passed and Policy 41.B.05 became the official position of the BCTF, we showed those intent on stripping women of their rights and autonomy that we will not be afraid to name what we are fighting for. We will not allow them to succeed in their attempts to stigmatize us into silence.
Abortion rights are necessary for everyone’s freedom. People who have carried unwanted pregnancies know that whispered myths, superstitions, and recipes for products that end pregnancy have been passed down orally through generations. Not only do those carrying a pregnancy tackle the physical and emotional repercussions of pregnancy and birth, they often become the principal caregiver. This means that they will be the one who carries the primary responsibility of parenthood and childrearing, and in doing so, absorb the social, physical, and professional repercussions associated with those roles. Family planning is thus a tool of liberation by allowing women to decide when and how they bring children into their lives and permitting them to shake off the constraints that come with social conceptions of motherhood and parenting. Safe and accessible abortion means more than ensuring that women have control over their bodies; it
Regulating abortion is a tool of control. For years, anti-choice advocates in the United States have been chipping away at Americans’ reproductive rights through Targeted Regulation of Abortion Providers (TRAP) laws. These laws work within the confines of Roe v. Wade—the 1973 US Supreme Court ruling that a woman’s right to choose an abortion without excessive government restriction is protected by the constitution—to slowly expand states’ ability to restrict abortion. In May 2019, anti-choice advocates took their campaign a step further, introducing sweeping abortion bans with the hopes of “challenging Roe v. Wade,” as Alabama state representative Terri Collins stated.
Since the first of these laws hit a state congress floor, prochoice advocates have fought back. The American Civil Liberties Union launched a legal challenge in Alabama, pro-choice protests have erupted in the affected states, and solidarity protests have taken place across the United States and Canada. While these laws have been challenged and halted in the courts, challenges are succeeding in pushing the issue closer to the Supreme Court, increasing the potential to overturn Roe v. Wade.
The recent passing of these American bills has incited Canadians to question their own relationship with reproductive justice. Canada decriminalized abortion half a century ago. Because of this relative stability in the legality of abortion, those who support women’s autonomy but may not be active advocates have grown comfortable in the absence of any substantial threat. Prochoice activists who fought for and attained legalization in 1969 often speak of the fight in the past tense.
While women’s legal right to choose is arguably one of the most important achievements for Canadian women of the 20th century, women in most areas of our province struggle to access this integral part of reproductive health care. Legal access is only the beginning of enabling Canadian women the right to choose because a choice that is inaccessible is no choice at all.
In Prince George, there is one doctor who provides abortions on a part-time basis, and her patients come to her from across northern British Columbia. Two days a month, she welcomes patients to the University Hospital of Northern BC (UHNBC) after explaining the procedure and counselling them on birth control options going forward. She struggles to find a medical team willing to perform the necessary tasks to ensure choice for northern women. Before her arrival, Prince George did not have a physician willing to perform abortions, and she does not know who will take over the work when she retires. I’ve lived in cities for most of my life and have spent most of my life knowing that the services I needed were right at my fingertips. That changed in 2014 when I moved to Mackenzie, a town two hours north of Prince George. I found out I was two months pregnant during my first month as a teacher. I had just gone through a crosscountry move and was starting a new career, so I chalked up my symptoms to stress and anxiety. I found myself on the opposite side of the country from my support network and a two-hour drive away from UHNBC. I had no car and was recovering financially from my move. Choosing to terminate that pregnancy was the easiest part of a long struggle.
Getting an abortion required three trips to Prince George. This meant 12 hours on the road, six greyhound bus tickets, three nights in a hotel, and three days of being unable to work. While the procedure itself was covered by the Medical Services Plan, accessing it cost hundreds of dollars that I did not have, forcing me to rely on the generosity of community groups and family. On the day of my procedure, sitting in the waiting room in a robe with crying women on either side of me, I was told by a nurse that I may not be able to receive their services that day because I did not have anyone to pick me up.
That was the only time I cried. I cried until the doctor, the only person in Prince George who could help me, sat with me, held my hand, and promised me that she would make sure that when I left the hospital I would no longer carry this worry on my shoulders. She fought to find me a bed in the hospital for the night so that I could recover under the care of nurses. I found out afterwards that I was at 12 weeks of gestation. If I had been one week later, I would have been forced to travel to Vancouver, which is the closest city where second trimester abortions are performed.
This is only one story among many. If you look at a map of abortion
providers in British Columbia, you will see two competing stories: that of Victoria, Vancouver, and Kelowna, where 91% of abortion providers are located, and that of the rest of BC, where the remaining 9% of providers support women in the vast geographic area that makes up the rest of the province. VANCOUVER VICTORIA KELOWNA THE REST OF BC 9% 91%
You will also notice an abundance of empty spaces. The top third of the map, as well as the central coast and western interior, are empty. This means long and difficult journeys for women where public transportation is limited and inconsistent, if it is available at all.
Ramifications due to distance and resulting travel disproportionately affect women from marginalized groups. Women with lower incomes are more likely to have to travel greater distances. Young women and girls are more likely to travel over 100 km to reach an abortion clinic and are more likely to report a difficult journey. First Nations and Métis women are almost three times more likely than non-Indigenous women to travel over 100 km to an abortion clinic. Sadly, the further a woman lives from abortion services and the further she must travel, the less likely she is to be successful in procuring an abortion. Also, for women with no provincial medical coverage, an abortion procedure can cost up to $1,300 in addition to travel expenses and lost wages.
Many northern providers wrestle with long waitlists, so women often have to travel to a more distant clinic because a closer provider cannot fit them in. There have been instances of women waiting so long that they enter the next trimester of their pregnancy, forcing them to travel even further to access more complicated procedures. Women living in northern BC are also less likely to have access to convenient modes of transportation. Since the closure of Greyhound bus services in the province, travelling between remote and rural areas and urban centres has become increasingly difficult, and infrequently scheduled trips create an increased need for accommodation and more time off work.
Fortunately, there is hope. In 2018, abortion providers and women’s health advocates in BC applauded the provincial decision to fund Mifegymiso, a drug used to terminate pregnancies in the first nine weeks of gestation. While those looking to access the drug must still undergo an ultrasound—which can be a significant barrier—the availability and coverage of the drug is an important step in attaining reproductive justice and equity across our province. When the BCTF passed the aforementioned motion, it showed that abortion care in BC continues to be out of reach for many women, especially those most vulnerable who feel the weight of inaccessible abortion care. While the legal right to decide what to do with our bodies was attained by our mothers and protected by us, we must remember that the fight has not been fully won. This battle is not a historic victory, but a daily struggle to ensure that British Columbians have access to the medical care they need regardless of their postal code.
This struggle is not a trivial one. When a student recently asked me why feminism is necessary in a country where gender equity is written into our constitution, I explained the divide between legality and practicality. This divide was recognized by our union at the 2018 AGM. I remain proud to be part of a union that recognizes that legal choice without affordability and accessibility is no choice at all.
The BCTF supports the work of Options for Sexual Health, a strong advocate for women’s sexual health rights. To support Canadian organizations working to defend the right of Canadians to abortion services, as well as those working to ensure that abortion is accessible to all, consider donating to the Abortion Rights Coalition of Canada, Maritime Abortion Support Services, or the Pro-Choice Action Network. Grassroots organizations that support abortion providers and patients in the United States include the Yellowhammer Fund in Alabama, Kentucky Health Justice Network, NARAL Pro-Choice Ohio, and Ohio-based Women Have Options. For more organizations doing on-the-ground work in affected states, check out Robin Marty’s Handbook for a Post-Roe America, which is available online.
