I was conceived and born in the state of Tennessee, was raped in Tennessee, gave birth to my son who was conceived as a result of rape in Tennessee, and I’m raising my son here in Tennessee, so I have great interest in legislation being considered within my state.
Tennessee’s “Heartbeat Bill” passed in the House earlier this year and was sent to summer session by the Senate in order to “refine language.”
The bill, as it is written, would prohibit an abortion when a baby has a detectable heartbeat, which can be as early as the fifth week of pregnancy. It makes no exception for babies conceived in rape, which cases account for less than 1% of all abortions performed. But what percentage does our people group have to be before we are worth saving? Hint: even just a single person deserves equal protection.
Having spoken on the phone with the bill’s House sponsor, Rep. Micah Van Huss, and via email with its Senate sponsor, Senator Mark Pody, and being assured by both of them that they would not allow exceptions to be added
to the bill, I’ve been wondering exactly what language the legislature is planning to “refine.”
After Senate Majority Leader Jack Johnson’s recent interview with the Tennessean — Tennessee Heartbeat Bill: Senate Leader Anticipates ‘Rape, Incest’ Argument in Summer Study — it’s becoming clear that our bill, like similar Heartbeat bills passed in Georgia and Iowa, may soon be cheapened by the addition of a rape exception.
In the interview, Senator Johnson acknowledged the fact that abortions in cases of rape account for less than 1% of all abortions performed and describes himself as someone who believes all babies should be protected.
However, in the article dated May 31, he was quoted as saying, “I think this is more about something that can be considered by the Supreme Court. So the rape and incest exceptions are always part of the conversation.”
If the Tennessee Senate wants to have this conversation, women like me should be included since it personally affects us! Secondly, if they wish to examine whether or not a rape exception will help overturn Roe v Wade, I formally invite our senators to review Footnote 54 of the 1973 case ruling under the personhood discussion. There they will find an often overlooked note from the Justices who pointed out the ways in which exceptions and exemptions undermine an argument for personhood under the 14th Amendment.
The footnote begins:
“When Texas urges that a fetus is entitled to Fourteenth Amendment protection as a person, it faces a dilemma. Neither in Texas nor in any other state are all abortions prohibited. Despite broad proscription, an exception always exists.”
We know that pro-life legislation is more than capable of passing without a rape exception, and recent proof of this includes nearby states such as Alabama, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri and Ohio. So why, then, is there a conversation planned about amending our heartbeat bill to add such a discriminatory and dehumanizing exception?
Perhaps, when the Senate takes up the bill in mid-August, some of them incorrectly believe adding a rape exception will somehow benefit women in our state. Here’s the problem: Everybody wants to have a conversation about babies conceived in rape and what pregnant rape victims need, but they rarely ever want to speak directly to us and they make an awful lot of false assumptions.
I was conceived in rape. So was my 20-month-old son. As residents of Tennessee who are actually affected by the potential amendment of a rape exception, let me assure all members of our state’s legislature: we do not need or want a rape exception, which would essentially codify child sacrifice into our state’s law books.
My son and I were both born innocent and never deserved to be killed for the crimes committed by our biological fathers. The U.S. Supreme Court in Coker v Georgia ruled that rapists can’t be given the death penalty and in Kennedy v Louisiana, said that even for child molesters, it would constitute “cruel and unusual punishment.” Yet, our lawmakers are considering an exception which would allow the death penalty to be given to innocent babies conceived like me and like my son.
We don’t want or need the stigmatization of those in our people group that this sort of exception fuels. We don’t want or need children like us being sacrificed on an altar of political compromise and convenience.
My biological mother was giving a man a ride home who ended up raping her at knifepoint. I’ve never met the man who raped my mother, but I know he got to go on and live his life, so why shouldn’t I have had that right? My son was conceived when I was raped at gunpoint by two men. My child was innocent and did not deserve to die, regardless of the pressure from others for me to abort him, and regardless of whether I could have succumbed to that pressure. Loving my child was natural for me. However, it’s not about my choice, but his humanity. He deserved to live and he deserved his right to life to be legally protected!
If legislators are interested in helping pregnant rape victims and our children, there are actual steps which can be taken that don’t involve killing human beings who have their own unique DNA. Tennessee can pass the Rape Survivor Child Custody Act, which uses the clear and convincing evidence standard in order to terminate the parental rights of rapists. This is the same civil standard used for all other types of termination cases.
On paper, our state appears to offer protections for us in relation to child custody and termination of the rights of rapists, but our current law erroneously requires a rape conviction. According to RAINN, rapists are convicted in only 5 out of every 1000 cases. The reality is our state doesn’t have any practical protections in place. That lack of protection affects my family too, as neither of the men who raped me has ever been convicted of rape.
Tennessee can also address the disparity in access to programs such as Tennessee Assistance for Needy Families (TANF — Families First), which provides cash and employment assistance, among other things, to families in need. Because the state requires information about a child’s genetic father to be submitted before they will approve a family, many mothers from rape (including myself) are unable to receive assistance we should otherwise qualify for.
It would be a travesty if our senators added a rape exception to the Heartbeat bill, severely weakening that state’s argument against Roe, by denying a select group of people equal protection under the Fourteenth Amendment, under the pretense of concern for women who become pregnant from rape.
Tennessee can’t be pro-life and support the killing of babies too. “Pro-Life with exceptions” is an oxymoron.
Our senators will decide in mid-August just what kind of state this is going to be. I implore them to protect children like my son, who grow up to be adults like me.
Bio:
Paula K. Peyton is a writer and pro-life speaker for Save the 1. She was conceived in rape and is a mom of one — her son, who was also conceived in rape. She wants to make both abortion and stigmatizing people conceived in rape unthinkable.
