As a woman, I am scared. And saddened.

As a born-and-raised Ohioan, I am emboldened and angry.

On Tuesday, Ohio legislature passed a bill that, if put into law, would be the most heinously restrictive abortion law in the country.

At 6 weeks, women and girls would no longer have the option to abort their baby. Even if they were victims of rape or incest. Most states have laws designating 20 week limitations.

In graduate school in Cincinnati, I worked in a restaurant that shared a parking lot with an abortion clinic. Each day when I went to work, I was harassed by an older male protestor outside the parking lot. I always told him the same thing- we have a right to our own bodies.

I once supported a young neighbor by going with her to that clinic. She didn’t know she was pregnant until almost 8 weeks. She was terrified. She also didn’t know who the father was, had an opioid addiction, and had been drinking and smoking heavily over the last 2 months.

She wasn’t in any place to become a mother.

It was her right as a woman, a young girl really, to have an abortion.

This law banning abortion at the 6 week mark is unconstitutional. It is the beginning of a slippery slope. It smacks too heavily of religious belief influencing politics.

The separation of church and state is vital to our rights as humans and citizens of this country.

We have less than 10 days to tell Governor John Kasich to veto this “heartbeat” bill.

Please tell him that we will not stand for the restriction of women’s rights in the state of Ohio.

Once one state passes this law, others will follow. Once one right is taken away, others will be too.

The legislators said they felt now was the time to push this unconstitutional bill through because they have Trump and a conservative senate and house. This is a powerful statement. We can’t let this bill be a testament that personal opinion, no matter how bias, can now strongly influences legislature.

That would be dangerous for all of us as individuals. Whether you are pro-life or pro-choice, this is an issue that speaks more to our rights as free citizens than anything else.

But as women, I believe we have the right to our bodies. We have the right to make the decision to abort a pregnancy based on our own health, beliefs, and with the input of loved ones- NOT the input of government.

Please sign this petition and spread the word.

WOMEN’S RIGHTS= HUMAN RIGHTS