Unfair Park from p4 “It would be really, really bad and morally wrong of all of you to go to prolifewhistle- blower.com and send in an anonymous tip that is fake,” she said, her tone dripping in sarcasm. The internet answered her call. Soon, Texas Right to Life’s whistleblower website was flooded with fake tips, includ- ing some that seemed like they could be credible. But other pranksters got a bit more creative, submitting text like “Greg Abbot’s [sic] butt stinks” and links to Shrek porn. “It’s almost beautiful because it’s a very Gen Z thing to do,” Julianna said. Within three days, she added, the whis- tleblower website had crashed. (Seago dis- putes this claim, saying the site was successful until it was booted by their web host.) Since SB 8 passed, other states across the country have attempted to enact similar leg- islation, Julianna noted. In March, South Dakota further limited residents’ ability to access abortion via medication. If Roe v. Wade is overturned, proposed legislation in Ohio trigger law would criminalize the pro- cedure, including in instances of rape and incest. “Texas took the first step to push that leg- islation through and show them that it is possible and that the Supreme Court’s not going to overturn it,” Julianna said. “Texas is always willing to take the first shot.” D estiny Herndon-De La Rosa got pregnant at 16 and was conceived when her own mom was 19. She credits her ability to raise a kid at such a young age to the fact that she had a support- ive family and a roof over her head. Abortion “wasn’t an option” for her, but Herndon-De La Rosa says she was terrified all the same. She understands what would push someone to seek the procedure, the de- spair that would drive that decision. Even though she identifies as a pro-life feminist, Herndon-De La Rosa doesn’t be- lieve that abortion bans are necessarily the answer. The Texas Legislature may have cut off the supply, but they haven’t done nearly enough to address the demand for social and financial resources. Herndon-De La Rosa is the founder of an organization called New Wave Feminists, which touts the goal of making abortion needless and unthinkable. She’s critical of the state’s supposed “pro-life” leadership and is quick to point out lawmakers’ short- comings. Certain anti-abortion organizations have claimed that scores of unborn lives had been saved since SB 8 took effect. Texas Right to Life, for instance, estimated in January that at least 10,000 fetuses had already been res- cued. Later that same month, another group put that number at 22,000. But Herndon-De La Rosa isn’t so sure. She said those assertions can’t be proven un- til more data is gathered about the increase in births. Plus, many of those would-be moms may have aborted via medication or by traveling to another state. It doesn’t help to just limit the procedure 66 without doing anything to alleviate women’s desperation, she argued. “I think we’ve saved Mike Brooks a lot of politicians,” Herndon-De La Rosa said. “Do I think we saved a lot of babies? No. I think that a lot of this was political theater.” Earlier this month, The Texas Tribune re- ported that more than 25% of Texas women of childbearing age are uninsured, which is the highest rate nationwide. The state’s so- cial safety net is nowhere near ready for the potential spike in births, with experts warn- ing that the abortion ban will create more generational poverty and disproportionately target Texans of color. The Lone Star State also has one of the highest maternal mortality rates in the country, regularly landing in the bottom 10. The nation’s rate is the highest in the indus- trialized world. SB 8 technically provides an exemption for maternal life threats, but Horvath, the OBGYN, notes that it’s overly simplistic. Medicine isn’t black and white. Doctors of- ten have to consider a range of potential out- comes and think in terms of probabilities. “You have to ask yourself, ‘Well, what constitutes that threat?’” she said. “Is a 1% risk of dying enough? Does it have to be 5%? Does it have to be 50%?” Texas doesn’t offer exceptions for fetal anomalies, meaning that some women will be forced to give birth to babies who won’t survive outside the womb, Horvath said. It’s not hard to imagine the emotional and psy- chological toll that would take. Laws like SB 8 will also usher in a deep loss of skills, she said. If medical profession- als who provide that care are moving else- where to practice, it will lead to a lack of legacy training for the next generation of residents. In one recent case, Horvath had a sec- ond-trimester patient who was hemorrhag- ing blood and wound up receiving an abortion. But she fears that laws like SB 8 will force physicians to consider the legality of such care. “It was absolutely lifesaving and the right thing to do for this patient,” she said, “but you can see where some folks would cer- tainly pause.” Herndon-De La Rosa believes that if Roe v. Wade is overturned, the question of abor- tion’s legality will return to the states. She worries it’ll also mean that resources for Destiny Herndon-De La Rosa became pregnant at 16 and is pro-life. women in crisis pregnancies will skip places like Texas for those that are restriction-free, such as Colorado. In nature, female animals sometimes kill their young because of external stress, Herndon-De La Rosa said. She believes that most women have the instinct to protect their progeny, but when they’re facing sig- nificant hardship, abortion may seem like a merciful choice. Many who make the decision to abort do so because of deep-rooted financial con- straints, she said. The state could help by providing affordable child care and housing. Transportation is also a major factor: It’s dif- ficult for women to take public transit to doctor appointments if they can’t afford to take time off work, or if they have other kids. It’s important to aid women in crisis pregnancies by asking what they need and helping them devise a plan, Herndon-De La Rosa added. Look to areas of excess. If you have spare funds, donate to charities. If you have a spare room, offer it. “Stuff like that is ultimately what is going to make abortion unnecessary and unthink- able,” she said, “not these restrictive laws.” ▼ POLITICS TAKING THE LOW ROAD T LGBTQ GROUP: SANDRA CRENSHAW SHOULD APOLOGIZE FOR ‘HOMOPHOBIC ATTACK’ AGAINST RUNOFF OPPONENT. BY JACOB VAUGHN he Stonewall Democrats of Dallas group has endorsed Venton Jones in the race for Texas House District 100. Now, they’ve issued a warning to voters about his opponent, former Dallas City Council member Sandra Crenshaw, over comments in which she targeted Jones dur- ing a public meeting last week. As Dallas Voice reported, Stonewall Dem- ocrats felt Crenshaw’s remarks during the open speaker session at last week’s Dallas County Commissioners Court meeting con- stituted an anti-LGBTQ attack against Jones, who is running as an openly gay, HIV positive candidate. “What I find deceptive is the fact that my opponent, Venton Jones, announced to The Dallas Morning News that he wants to be the first Black, gay legislator living with HIV,” Crenshaw said during the meeting. “We have officials who are both drug addicts, al- coholics, [have] gambling disorders, but HIV does not have to be disclosed unless you want it to be.” She claimed none of Jones’ campaign lit- erature mentioned he was an openly gay man living with HIV. “Blacks have an opin- ion also. They have an opinion and they de- serve transparency,” Crenshaw said. Crenshaw then went on to mention an unre- lated news story from April about a trans- gender New Jersey prison inmate who apparently impregnated two other prison- ers. Jones was profiled by Dallas Voice after he made the runoff for the District 100 race. The headline read “The District 100 candi- date would become the first Black Texas leg- islator with HIV.” The same week, The Dallas Morning News ran a story in which it said Jones would be the first openly LGBTQ Black legislator, and “the first known to be openly living with HIV.” All this to say, his status as an openly gay candidate living with HIV isn’t a secret. “I am running because I want to make a difference in House District 100, a commu- nity that I care deeply about and the com- munity that raised me,” Jones said in a written statement to the Observer. “It’s unfortunate that Ms. Crenshaw con- tinues her attacks on my sexual orientation and HIV status as a political tool to promote fear mongering and hate,” Jones continued. “I will continue to focus my energy on what is important right now, the people and earn- ing their trust, support, and vote over this week of early voting and election day next Tuesday, May 24th.” Crenshaw told the Observer over the phone that she sees the situation differently. “I said nothing that was untrue,” she said. “I wasn’t ridiculing him. I wasn’t attacking. Do not get it twisted. I am not against gays.” On the fact that Jones disclosed his sexual ori- entation and that he’s living with HIV in The Dallas Morning News, Crenshaw said, “First of all, that’s a major newspaper that is rarely read by Black people.” She added, “I feel the gays should be of- fended that he didn’t own up to it to the Black community about it. I didn’t say any- thing wrong, and I stand by what I said.” She finished first out of four other candi- dates in the March 4 primary. She beat Jones by 728 votes, sending the two into a runoff election. Whoever wins this race will be up against Libertarian Joe Roberts in No- vember. Annise Parker, president and CEO of the LGBTQ Victory Fund, put out a statement the next day condemning Crenshaw’s “ho- mophobic attack” against Jones. The LGBTQ Victory Fund is a political action committee dedicated to increasing the number of openly LGBTQ public offi- cials in the U.S. Parker is the former mayor of Houston. “Crenshaw’s uninformed remarks — rooted in her own ignorance and ho- mophobia — reveal a candidate shamefully unaware of priorities in this district and clearly unfit for the challenges of the >> p8 MONTH XX–MONTH XX, 2014 MAY 26–JUNE 1, 2022 DALLAS OBSERVER DALLAS OBSERVER | CLASSIFIED | MUSIC | DISH | MOVIES | CULTURE | NIGHT+DAY | FEATURE | SCHUTZE | UNFAIR PARK | CONTENTS | CLASSIFIED | MUSIC | DISH | CULTURE | UNFAIR PARK | CONTENTS dallasobserver.com dallasobserver.com
