By Summer Boxer

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The new Arizona state laws on abortion has had a deep effect on my heart. This is an opinion piece that others may not agree with.

Dear the ones in position,

My name is Summer Boxer and I am a 15 year old in high school. I question the world I live in because of people who are in control. I worry and wonder what life will be like for the future. Decision making is tough for both sides but what about the ones it affects? At a young age I know the rights I deserve to have and I know the rights that have been taken from me. I have little cousins who I adore, I love to babysit, children are such a joy to be around. But as a girl, I know how terrible the world is. I know how bad people can be. And I know that people use their power too much. If a 12 year old girl gets raped by someone that she thought she could trust, how can we help her?  She could be in a room with her uncle (someone she trusts) and her night may end in trauma. Instead of saying how can we help her? The world shamed her. If she gets pregnant they want her to go through the pregnancy. She will return to school with people laughing at her and mocking her and making her life harder. She will be a 12 year old girl who has to deal with more stress besides mean girls and algebra homework. She decides to give the baby to adoption and more people shame her. The baby goes into an adoption center and either gets adopted by a happy family or lives their life in misery living in the adoption center. Lives have been ruined, the 12 year old girl has to pay for years of therapy, and the Uncle works his 9-5 coming home to a beer and a home cooked meal from his wife. At 12 years old I was jumping in the pool playing mermaids, braiding my friends’ hair, worrying about mean people at school, and asking my mom for help on my essay. How can we help those 12 year olds? How can they live a happy life? You see, those 12 year olds used to be in the wombs of their mothers being protected by the government. Why can’t they be protected when they get out?  If people care so much about helping the baby, why do we no longer care about them when they need diapers, need childcare, grow up, and feel sad. As a 15 year old I have experienced pain and sadness. I have seen others suffer and I have also looked in a mirror to see me suffer. Why make lives harder? Why make decisions for other people? Why involve ourselves in the decisions that make people’s life already hard? My strength is compassion and I wish most people had that. What I have seen so far has scared me of what the future has in store. It is not helping the baby, it is controlling women. The world is already a tough place. Why make things harder? I ask people to be curious, ask questions, wonder, express themselves, and consider the lives of others before making big decisions.

Process

I looked on my instagram to see the news on the Arizona state law on abortion and felt that I should write my feelings about it. I wrote this piece on a 45 minute car ride to school and decided that I wanted other people to see this.