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Jameela Jamil still doesn’t give a flying f**k what you think about her abortion story
6 years ago
“I had an abortion when I was young, and it was the best decision I have ever made,” says Jameela Jamil.
Jameela Jamil recently revealed that she “had an abortion when I was young”, and “it was the best decision I have ever made.”
On Twitter, The Good Place star went on to state that this decision wasn’t just right for her – it was also the right one “for the baby I didn’t want and wasn’t ready for, emotionally, psychologically and financially.”
Commenting on the new heartbeat bill in the US state of Georgia, which bans abortion as soon as a heartbeat can be heard, Jamil added: “So many children will end up in foster homes. So many lives ruined. So very cruel.”
In a separate tweet, Jamil added: “Call me whatever you like. I’m not sorry about my abortion. Contraception failed me and I did what was best for my mental and physical health at the time. And I would do it again if I had to. I don’t feel at ALL ashamed, and if you had one too, for any reason, neither should you.”
Naturally, people had a lot to say about Jamil’s very personal decision about her reproductive rights. Naturally, there were those who felt compelled to shame her for her past choices. Naturally, there were those who decided to use this as an opportunity to cite their pro-life beliefs. And, naturally, Jamil wasn’t here for it.
Responding to the backlash on Instagram, she said: “I DON’T GIVE A FLYING FUCK WHAT YOU THINK OF MY DECISION. MY BODY. MY CHOICE.
“This anti-abortion law in Georgia is so upsetting, inhumane, and blatantly demonstrative of a hatred of women, a disregard for our rights, bodies, mental health, and essentially a punishment for rape victims, forcing to carry the baby of their rapist.”
Jamil continued: “I’m so stunned that our world is not only behind, it’s moving backwards. This hurts my heart in so many different ways, and in particular as a rape victim. I can’t imagine having fallen pregnant and being FORCED BY LAW to carry his baby to term, and see someone who looked like him every day, otherwise I can get the death penalty?!
“How do we help the women of Georgia? And Northern Ireland where this nightmare is ongoing.”
Across America, six states have now signed what are being termed as ‘heartbeat bills,’ which heavily restrict abortion after five or six weeks of pregnancy, despite most women not even realising they’re pregnant until around four or five weeks.
Last week, Georgia became the sixth state to sign such a bill – joining Iowa, Kentucky, Mississippi, North Dakota and Ohio.
The ban means that, once a doctor is able to detect a foetal heartbeat (something which usually occurs at five to six weeks of pregnancy), they will not be allowed to perform an abortion. If they do, they could face up to 99 years in prison.
However, as Stylist has already underlined in a previous report, research has consistently shown us that restricting access to safe abortions does not lower abortion rates: rather, women will be forced to seek more dangerous termination methods. Indeed, botched abortions cause about 8 to 11% of all maternal deaths in countries where abortion is illegal, according to the Guttmacher Institute.
This amounts to around 30,000 each year.
To combat this, several of Hollywood’s biggest (including Alyssa Milano) names are taking a stand, and the heads of three major production companies have also sworn not to produce anything in Georgia until the legislation is reversed.
Mark Duplass, the man behind Wild Wild Country and Co-Ed, tweeted: “Don’t give your business to Georgia. Will you pledge with me not to film anything in Georgia until they reverse this backwards legislation?”
You can find out more about how Hollywood is taking a powerful stance against anti-abortion legislation in America here.
Image: Getty
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