We can revive the economy, but we cannot revive our fellow Ohioans from the dead:
A very well written editorial from Ohio House Minority Leader Emilia Strong Sykes.
I couldn’t have said this any better.
COLUMBUS, Ohio -- It never ceases to amaze me how the so-called “pro-life” argument pushed by my Republican colleagues only exists if it is politically convenient.
In my first House floor speech as a state representative, I called Republican lawmakers out on this double talk. While debating the state budget and an amendment that would remove a program giving low-income women access to prenatal care, I pointed out the replicas of fetal footprints many members wore on their lapels. These “precious feet” were to supposedly remind them to protect human life at all stages, and I was struck by their blatant, unapologetic show of hypocrisy.
As I sprung to my feet that day to deliver my speech, I let my voice rise. For it wasn’t only my voice in that moment. It was the voice of the generations of women before me who they had silenced; it was the voice of other black Ohioans whose pleas for equality they repeatedly ignored; and it was the voice of the thousands of babies born into a world where the system is already rigged against too many and where lawmakers who claimed to care for them in utero now care much less for them outside the womb.
This wasn’t the first or the last time I would see this pretend pro-life narrative play itself out.
Five years later, I am reminded of that speech because, once again, these so-called “pro-life politicians” are showing their actual indifference to human life. And once again, I feel called to point out their hypocrisy.
Now I’m using my voice for the essential grocery store clerk who needs us to wear a mask to keep them safe; for the hospital workers who want to keep the surge low so each patient has a well-rested provider with the tools necessary to keep patients alive; for the black Ohioans who are contracting coronavirus at a disproportionate rate through no fault of their own but the fault of inequitable policies pushed from the right; and for the older Ohioans most at risk to this virus.
In recent days, I have listened in disbelief as my Republican colleagues have rushed to reopen the state in the midst of a pandemic, despite the warnings of public health experts, cavalierly suggesting that vulnerable Ohioans should sacrifice their lives for a haircut. While it is true that the economic impact of this crisis could be just as harmful as public health implications, we should, and can, figure out a way to manage both. Because we can revive the economy, but we cannot revive our fellow Ohioans from the dead.
More:
https://www.cleveland.com/opinion/2020/05/we-can-revive-the-economy-but-we-cannot-revive-our-fellow-ohioans-from-the-dead-emilia-strong-sykes.html
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