LEADERSHIP
Paxton Smith We Cannot Stay Silent TIN A VE NNE G A A R D
Eighteen months after the world came to a grinding halt, we are still grappling with the profound changes brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic, including the psychological effects of extended quarantine. In times like these, we search for things in our lives that offer stability and safety: Family, close friends, daily routines and – on a societal level – protections offered by the Constitution and the law. Yet, here in America, basic freedoms many have come to take for granted are under vicious attack. This is no coincidence. People in positions of power have taken advantage of confusion and distractions as a strategy for pushing through their political agenda since before Rome was a republic. As I write this essay, the ‘heartbeat’ law is taking effect in Texas. The most restrictive abortion law in the United States to date, the Texas senate Bill law signed into law last May by Republican Governor Greg Abbott prohibits doctors from performing or inducing abortions if they have detected a fetal heartbeat, usually around six weeks into a woman’s pregnancy. The Bill makes
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RELEVANCE REPORT 2021-22
no exceptions for rape, sexual abuse or incest. It also empowers any private citizen to file a civil lawsuit against anyone who provides abortions or “aids or abets” them after the detection of a heartbeat with the ability to yield at least $10,000 in “statutory damages” per abortion. Despite an emergency appeal from activists, our current conservative majority Supreme Court made no move to block its enforcement and the Texas law took effect on September 1. Waves of protests nationwide culminated in a September House Oversight Committee hearing where members of Congress shared personal accounts that made national news headlines. Meanwhile, other conservative states such as Mississippi saw an opportunity to push for legislation designed to make access to abortion more difficult. Less than two weeks after Governor Abbott signed Senate Bill 8, Lake Highlands, Texas high school valedictorian Paxton Smith made her own headlines. Her voice trembling with emotion and anger, she
