Phoebe Bridgers shares her abortion experience following Supreme Court draft decision

4 May 2022, 13:42

Kamala Harris doesn’t hold back on Roe v Wade decision

By Katie Louise Smith

"I went to planned parenthood where they gave me the abortion pill. It was easy. Everyone deserves that kind of access."

Celebrities, including singer and songwriter Phoebe Bridgers, are speaking out against the Supreme Court of the United States' leaked draft aiming to overrule the 1973 landmark abortion ruling known as Roe v. Wade.

On Monday (May 2), Politico obtained a draft of a Supreme Court majority opinion written by Justice Samuel Alito that would strike down Roe v. Wade and affect the reproductive rights of people across the country.

The court has since confirmed the authenticity of the document, but it has also stressed that it was not the final decision. (Politico reports that the final opinion is not expected to be published until late June.)

The leak sent shockwaves across social media with politicians, celebrities and the public alike sharing their thoughts and condemning the leaked draft.

In response to the draft, Phoebe Bridgers decided to share her own personal experience, opening up to her fans and followers that she got an abortion while on tour last year.

In a post shared to both Instagram and Twitter, Phoebe wrote: "I had an abortion in October of last year while I was on tour. I went to planned parenthood where they gave me the abortion pill. It was easy. Everyone deserves that kind of access."

Alongside her post, Phoebe included a link for an article from The Cut which includes a list of resources where people can donate to abortion funds in each U.S. state.

Phoebe was met with an outpouring of support after sharing her experience. One Twitter user wrote: "phoebe bridgers just revealed something very personal about herself bc of what’s happening right now. so much respect and love for her. banning abortion isn’t right, safe, and doesn’t help anyone."

Another user added: "i love phoebe bridgers so much. women speaking about their experiences with abortion so candidly does so much to destigmatize the whole issue. we won’t get anywhere until we start speaking about abortion as a standard medical procedure rather than some secret taboo offense."

A third added: "Phoebe Bridgers sharing her personal experience of abortion on insta. Women shouldn't have to disclose private information, but we also need to appreciate how normal and routine abortion is, and how varied the reasons are."

Phoebe Bridgers is not the only public figure who has spoken out about the leaked draft, and recent state-specific abortion restrictions. Countless others, including Alyssa Milano, Mark Ruffalo, Pedro Pascal, Madelaine Petsch and Tracee Ellis Ross all shared posts on social media.

Billie Eilish has also shared her thoughts on the matter several times during her live shows and on social media. While performing in Austin, Texas, the singer gave a powerful speech regarding Texas' restrictive abortion law whilst the words "BANS OFF OUR BODIES" were displayed on a screen behind her.

"When they made that shit a law, I almost didn't want to do the show, because I wanted to punish this fucking place for allowing that to happen here. But then I remembered that it’s you guys that are the fucking victims, and you deserve everything in the world. And we need to tell them to shut the fuck up. My body, my fucking choice!"

What is Roe v. Wade?

Roe v. Wade was a landmark decision of the U.S. Supreme Court in which the Court ruled that "the Constitution of the United States protects a pregnant woman's liberty to choose to have an abortion without excessive government restriction."

Under the current law, the U.S. government cannot interfere with a women's choice to terminate a pregnancy before 23 weeks, when a foetus could live outside the womb.

What would happen if Roe v. Wade is overturned?

If overturned, as the leaked draft suggests, CNN reports that the opinion "would be the most consequential abortion decision in decades and transform the landscape of women's reproductive health in America."

The New York Times reports that abortion would not become illegal in the US, but individual states would be able to decide when and whether or not abortions would be legal. Some states will continue to allow them and will provide services to those in states where it's restricted, while others may put stricter abortion laws and bans into effect.

According to the Center for Reproductive Rights, 25 states are likely to ban abortion if they are allowed to.

Some states have already seen strict abortion restrictions and bans passed into law.

In 2021, Texas passed a law (Texas Heartbeat Act) that bans abortion once a fetal heartbeat can be detected. A heartbeat can be detected from as early as six weeks into pregnancy, which is earlier than when most people actually know that they're pregnant. If the pregnancy is the result of rape or incest, the law is still valid.

Oklahoma also recently banned abortion after six weeks of pregnancy, with that law coming into effect immediately. A ban on most abortions after 15 weeks of pregnancy is set to take effect in Florida on July 1st 2022.

Restrictive laws in both Idaho and Kentucky have recently been blocked temporarily within the states.

Read more:

• Billie Eilish rips into Texas' abortion law during performance in the state
• Billie Eilish says men who don't speak out about Texas abortion bill make her "sick"
• Teen goes viral with unauthorised graduation speech calling out Texas anti-abortion law
• People are spamming Texas anti-abortion tip site with Shrek porn memes
• Texas bans transgender girls from participating in female sports in public schools