Recently, the Reproductive Health Act was passed in New York, causing reactions from both sides of the political aisle. The change in legislation has caused Auburn students to give their say. Though many have opposing views, all shared a passion about the issue.
The Reproductive Health Act changed a few stipulations in regards to New York’s abortion restrictions, one of the most prominent being that abortions could now be performed after 24 weeks. This action was restricted to protecting the mother’s health or in the absence of fetal viability.
Anti-abortion students from the Students for Life organization had just returned from the March for Life when the new law was passed. Conner Ettmueller, junior in professional flight, was in charge of organizing the trip and expressed the thoughts of the group after receiving the news.
“It feels like we go to this march and we’re excited to stand for something, and then we get slapped in the face, but that’s not the way I like to look at it,” Ettmueller said. “I like to look at it as an opportunity to show the students that were involved that this is a real-world thing, and this is something other people believe, and so long as we are able to love these people the same way we do anyone else and show them affection and show them we are with them in times of trouble.”
Auburn’s chapter of Students for Life holds strong anti-abortion views, a sentiment that was shown through the way Ettmueller discussed the movement.
“As an organization, we believe that life is valuable and precious and should be protected at any stage," Ettmueller said. “Whether that’s in the womb [or] at the point of conception, that’s where we believe life begins.”
While the Students for Life saw the passage as a bad thing, students in Auburn’s College Democrats believed the law to be very helpful for the women’s rights movement. Abbyleigh Jenkins, senior in political science, emphasized this excitement shared among many of her peers.
“I think it’s great because previously if women had health risks late term in their pregnancy, they would have to leave the state of New York to go get help, so I think it’s great that they are able to stay there and get the help they need,” Jenkins said.
With two very different takes on the legislation, there were also contrasting ideas on how a change to abortion legislation would shift the rest of the country’s view on the topic.
Ettmueller believed that the country may go two ways — there could be a stronger resistance to pro-abortion rights legislation or more states may begin to pass laws in favor of the pro-abortion rights movement.
“From a negation standpoint, I think it does set a legal precedent for other states to use the same logic and legislation,” Ettmueller said. “There are more liberal states ... that may follow the same legislation.”
The idea that family and moral issues should be left up to the states, which is a popular opinion held among the anti-abortion movement, was also discussed by Ettmueller. He emphasized how he believed that this legislation was almost a call to action for state legislators.
“Family and moral issues should be left up for state governments,” Ettmueller said. “It’s very difficult to sit back and watch a federal government made up of nine Supreme Court justices make the decision for an entire country on what the country stands for. Then, it basically becomes the United States of New York and California.”
The students in College Democrats noticed a swift change toward hostility on social media after the law passed. Ashley Henton, junior in apparel design and merchandising, shared her experience.
“Judging from what I’ve seen so far, it’s already sparking a huge uproar with the pro-life community," Henton said. "Everyone on my Facebook is coming out as pro-life, like it’s some controversial thing to be pro-life, and I’ve just heard nothing but a debate on abortion since it passed, so it’s really started a huge conversation."
With an issue as controversial as abortion, tensions inevitably rose during debates, creating a divide. Jenkins mentioned how she had a personal encounter with negativity on the subject.
“I’ve heard a lot of people within my church group saying, ‘Oh, well obviously you’re not a real Catholic since you are pro-choice,’ so I’ve seen a lot of division, especially among religious groups,” Jenkins said.
Though both sides have an opposing take on the subject, everyone can agree that something needs to be done to support women. Students from each organization have ideas on how to make a change, even in Auburn.
The Students for Life in Auburn are focused specifically on educating others on their views instead of responding with hatred and anger.
“As a young pro-life generation, I think there is a huge push on the realization and education on this issue for young people,” Ettmueller said.
Each year, the Students for Life go to the March for Life in Washington D.C. in order to take a stance on their position. They also hold an event once a year called Crosses on Cater, where an individual cross is placed on Cater Lawn to represent a certain number of abortions. The organization is hoping to bring speakers to campus in the future to further spread their message.
“No life is ours to take,” Ettmueller said. "Life is ours to value."
The College Democrats also expressed how they wanted to help raise awareness not through negativity but through helping those in need. Last year, the organization partnered with Alabama Coalition Against Rape, and this March, they will be hosting a fundraiser with the Rape Counselors of East Alabama.
“We aren’t encouraging women to get abortions; we’re not saying, ‘Oh, go get abortions.' We want to do everything we can to protect women to where they don’t find themselves in that situation because no matter how pro-choice we are, even we can agree that it’s a very emotional experience for a woman to go through,” Henton said.
Henton also said she believed a lot of people were misinformed on the issue.
“There is a lot of misinformation about the law so far," Henton said. "Most everything that I’ve seen people complaining about is how women are just casually going to decide at nine months that they don’t want a baby anymore and have an abortion, and that’s not the case. No matter what, they’ll always be saved for women with severe health risks.”
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