That’s how Virginia Roberts Giuffre quotes Jeffrey Epstein’s misogny: “a woman is a life-support system for a vagina.” It’s an attitude I suspect many of the rich, influential men entering Epstein’s world of subordinate, controlled women would agree with. Probably many men beyond that, the same way they’d agree with neo-Nazi Andrew Anglin’s claim that women’s wombs belong to men.
This is patriarchy, the belief that any man outranks all women; no matter how much of a failure you are, you can always look down and see women securely under you. It’s the world of misogyny. Sexists believe (for example) that all women want to be tradwives; misogynists don’t care what they want, they’re going to force them into that role anyway. Anglin, for example, claims that as women don’t know they’ll be happiest as a submissive tradwife, men have to force them into it.
Another variation is Stephen Miller’s Katie Miller declaring that having multiple babies is biological destiny; having a womb defines women and women’s purpose in life. No, it doesn’t. The ability to have babies does not equate to an obligation or destiny to do so. Katie Miller, like so many female misogynists, is a special snowflake who has her own career, money and obviously doesn’t feel any qualms about Republicans making it ever more difficult for moms, whether it’s cutting off SNAP benefits or watching ob/gyns move out of red states.
Right-wing misogynists are increasingly open about how much they resent women who insist on being people rather than vaginal support systems. Jesse Watters of Fox News, for instance, dismissing Hilary Clinton as a woman who did a man’s job and in his opinion, badly. Though “opinion” implies he’s actually put some thought into it rather than spitting out whatever insult comes to mind.
For some in the forced-birth movement, women’s only value is, similarly, that they serve as incubators for the fetus. We know contraception reduces abortion rates; nevertheless, the Toddler Administration destroyed $10 million in contraceptives intended for USAID. Avoiding pregnancy is a sensible decision if you don’t want a baby but for Republicans it’s a sign you’re an irresponsible slut.
As they’re continuing to assert the right not to be pregnant, even after the Dobbs decision, enthusiasm for treating women who get abortions as murderers is growing among forced-birthers. It’s not something the entire movement agrees on — some disagree strongly, some merely see it as bad optics — but a lot of them would sooner see women dead than let them control their own bodies. And plenty of cops and prosecutors are already eager to prosecute women. And to cooperate with their abusers. As Jessica Valenti says at the link, it’s “the predictable outcome of living in a reproductive police state bent on surveillance and punishment.”
Women have turned themselves in for drug treatment when they learn they’re pregnant and gotten locked up instead. They’ve been arrested for being on legal prescription meds while pregnant, for drinking while pregnant (it’s legal), arrested for painting while pregnant (fumes might have hurt the baby!) and for getting shot in the belly while pregnant (she should have de-escalated the confrontation instead of putting the baby at risk!). In many cases, the victims of this persecution are POC. My apologies for not providing links, but you can find most of these examples in Undead Sexist Cliches, with footnotes.
As Jessica Valenti notes, until they can completely criminalize abortion and abortion pills, they’ll settle for little cruelties, like forcing women who have miscarriages or abortions to collect the blood and tissue and give it to a doctor. They’re also targeting websites that provide morning-after pills. And of course, harassing women. Even women with nonviable pregnancies, as noted at that last link. Georgia Republican Terry England, more than a decade ago, said it was no big deal if a woman carried a dead fetus to term — cows and pigs do it all the time! Ectopic pregnancies? Many forced birthers and doctors don’t support abortion for those either. The woman at the link lost her fertility as a result.
They’re also lying that the reason for the witch trials was to fight abortion. This fits into the speaker’s (Noleen Sedra) worldview — feminism is modern witchcraft! — but we have ample records of trials and accusations and no, that is not what the witch trials were about. She’s either ignorant or lying.
To end on an up note, sort of, here’s a great profile of an abortion clinic escort who’s not backing away despite forced-birther hatred.
