We all saw the story of the mother in Texas who sued to get an abortion, failed, and had to leave the state.
But, do you know about the Black woman who had a miscarriage , and is now arrested?
A Black woman was criminally charged after a miscarriage. It shows the perils of pregnancy post-Roe
By Julie Carr Smyth
Associated Press
Last Updated: Dec 16, 2023 at 12:08 pm
COLUMBUS, Ohio — Ohio was in the throes of a bitter debate over abortion rights this fall when Brittany Watts, 21 weeks and 5 days pregnant, began passing thick blood clots.
The 33-year-old Watts, who had not shared the news of her pregnancy even with her family, made her first prenatal visit to a doctor’s office behind Mercy Health-St. Joseph’s Hospital in Warren, a working-class city about 60 miles (100 kilometers) southeast of Cleveland.
The doctor said that, while a fetal heartbeat was still present, Watts’ water had broken prematurely and the fetus she was carrying would not survive. He advised heading to the hospital to have her labor induced, so she could have what amounted to an abortion to deliver the nonviable fetus. Otherwise, she would face “significant risk” of death, according to records of her case.
That was a Tuesday in September. What followed was a harrowing three days entailing: multiple trips to the hospital; Watts miscarrying into, and then flushing and plunging, a toilet at her home; a police investigation of those actions; and Watts, who is Black, being charged with abuse of a corpse. That’s a fifth-degree felony punishable by up to a year in prison and a $2,500 fine.
Her case was sent last month to a grand jury. It has touched off a national firestorm over the treatment of pregnant women, and especially Black women, in the aftermath of the U.S. Supreme Court’s Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization decision that overturned Roe v. Wade. Civil rights attorney Benjamin Crump elevated Watts’ plight in a post to X, formerly Twitter, and supporters have donated more than $100,000 through GoFundMe for her legal defense, medical bills and trauma counseling.
Whether abortion-seekers should face criminal charges is a matter of debate within the anti-abortion community, but, post-Dobbs, pregnant women like Watts, who was not even trying to get an abortion, have increasingly found themselves charged with “crimes against their own pregnancies,” said Grace Howard, assistant justice studies professor at San José State University.
“Roe was a clear legal roadblock to charging felonies for unintentionally harming pregnancies, when women were legally allowed to end their pregnancies through abortion,” she said. “Now that Roe is gone, that roadblock is entirely gone.”
Michele Goodwin, a law professor at the University of California, Irvine, and author of “Policing The Womb,” said those efforts have long overwhelmingly targeted Black and brown women.
UH HUH
UH HUH
You can’t think that she’s the only woman this has been happening to. It’s happening all across the country, and will only get worse.
This is the criminalization of women’s health.
Robert Cruickshank (@cruickshank) posted at 11:51 AM on Wed, Dec 20, 2023:
This from @brianbeutler is spot on – “applying the rules of democracy to the candidates themselves is essential to protecting it from cheaters.” If Trump remains on the ballot it will be a green light to future lawbreaking, cheating, and insurrection. https://t.co/gJ5Vo3QZhZ
(https://x.com/cruickshank/status/1737531143904534597?t=M12TRCQpsSKwlidiDUvnug&s=03)
The ENTIRE PHUCK!!!
Fifty Shades of Whey (@davenewworld_2) posted at 10:14 AM on Tue, Dec 19, 2023:
Police in St. Louis crashed into an LGBTQ+ bar and then arrested the bar owner for being pissed about it. The judge ordered that he be held without bond. Video from a bystander contradicts the police’s version of events.
https://t.co/a2jb5eRt5Z https://t.co/3iM2B8RH0c
(https://x.com/davenewworld_2/status/1737144501246865806?t=RSD7SvBk6yaP15P6_cnCYQ&s=03)
Chris D. Jackson (@ChrisDJackson) posted at 11:01 AM on Tue, Dec 19, 2023:
🚨
🚨 BIDEN RETAKES LEAD IN NEW NYT/SIENNA POLL
The press is already trying to bury this poll, but everyone should know that in today’s new NYT/Sienna poll, President Biden has retaken the lead over Donald Trump 47% to 45%.
Even better, the poll notes:
“Biden leads by six points among voters who participated in the 2020 election, while Mr. Trump holds an overwhelming 22-point lead among those who did not vote in 2020.
In our estimation, needless to say, 2020 nonvoters are less likely to vote in 2024, and that’s why we show Mr. Biden ahead among likely voters.”
As you know, the media likes to ignore anything positive for President Biden, SO PLEASE SHARE THESE RESULTS to help push back against their narrative!
https://t.co/vni48PvMwL
(https://x.com/ChrisDJackson/status/1737156190784692468?t=akoYK7D91IKYPHClNDLK3A&s=03)
Candidly Tiff (@tify330) posted at 10:04 AM on Tue, Dec 19, 2023:
How is this helping Palestine?
– ‘protesters’ bum rushed a private event
– punched a Black woman in the face
– stole joy from a holiday event
– scared & raised elders blood pressure
These unwashed chaos agents have gone too damn far this time. How can anyone support this.. https://t.co/xVctETfDIe
(https://x.com/tify330/status/1737141874802958638?t=qaplDkjZQNW9LfyU5npkew&s=03)
Sahil Kapur (@sahilkapur) posted at 1:36 PM on Tue, Dec 19, 2023:
“We cannot fail. The fate of the world is at stake,” says @ChrisMurphyCT, top Dem negotiator on an immigration deal to unlock Ukraine/Israel aid.
He says they don’t have a deal yet but he’ll soon return to negotiating table. https://t.co/BvxrEbLwko
(https://x.com/sahilkapur/status/1737195204539548061?t=WOjI-5zr_TGC6o4lYLcbPw&s=03)
There are all kinds of strange things on TikTok. How they get on my feed, I dunno.
North Sea Tiktok – I don’t understand anyone who takes a job that sends them to the North Sea. It’s too phucking dangerous.
Neil-the-Seal TikTok: the seal that has made Tazmania its home while it sheds. Neil is hilarious.
Kitchen River TikTok. These folks literally have rivers in their kitchens. Fascinating to watch.
Basement Eel TikTok: There is a man with a subbasement full of eels. The creepiness of it…I feel that Law Enforcement should be looking into him.
LOL
NBC Chicago (@nbcchicago) posted at 1:36 PM on Tue, Dec 19, 2023:
Family finds owl living inside Christmas tree, days after they decorated it in their living room https://t.co/DW6mJzMAi7
(https://x.com/nbcchicago/status/1737195119286063150?s=03)
Herbie Ziskend (@HerbieZiskend46) posted at 10:32 AM on Wed, Dec 20, 2023:
🧵The @VP’s wide-ranging interview with @Lawrence was excellent.
She was clear: “One does not have to abandon their faith or deeply held belief to believe that the government should not be telling [a woman] what to do with her body.”
https://t.co/I5th6uufBX
(https://x.com/HerbieZiskend46/status/1737511384693252192?t=3mO-vUlS464yjRJ0gg72ZA&s=03)
Kriss (@KMC4wauk) posted at 10:28 PM on Tue, Dec 19, 2023:
I’m 73 years old & have waited a long time for this leader. @VP showed every character of a president tonight, someone who sees people for who they are,where they hold space,how they were raised & she respects their individual beliefs,passions, way of living.Listen to her words https://t.co/sIq27K7yQz
(https://x.com/KMC4wauk/status/1737329098437849227?s=03)
Sasha🇺🇦 #🟦 🇮🇱 (@SashaBeauIoux) posted at 9:37 AM on Wed, Dec 20, 2023:
It should surprise absolutely NO ONE that the pro-Hamas mobs in the US are targeting Black people for harassment, intimidation and violence.
There has always been a deep vein of racism and antisemitism in the Progressive Left. /1
Sasha🇺🇦 #🟦 🇮🇱 (@SashaBeauIoux) posted at 9:37 AM on Wed, Dec 20, 2023:
The sad and enduring truth is that the people who hate Jews also hate Black people.
That includes the Progressive Left in this country
And the pro-Hamas mobs who have co-opted the language of our struggle to make it more palatable to college kids and suburban WYTs.
/2
Sasha🇺🇦 #🟦 🇮🇱 (@SashaBeauIoux) posted at 9:37 AM on Wed, Dec 20, 2023:
The pro-Hamas movement IS NOT about Palestinian liberation because Hamas isn’t interested in improving the lives of Palestinians.
Hamas is DEDICATED to the destruction of Israel & the global eradication of Jews. /3
Sasha🇺🇦 #🟦 🇮🇱 (@SashaBeauIoux) posted at 9:37 AM on Wed, Dec 20, 2023:
They’ve said that CLEARLY & REPEATEDLY.
And those siding with them are complicit.
They want Black people dead TOO.
That’s why the pro-Hamas mobs are punching elderly Black ppl in the face.
That’s the truth whether you realize it or not. /End
(https://x.com/SashaBeauIoux/status/1737497571809996858?t=eKwuvfu4wO3w6N6e13aFxg&s=03)
Eric Deggans at NPR (@Deggans) posted at 7:28 AM on Wed, Dec 20, 2023:
Colleague David Folkenflik w/ important story: Will Lewis, ex-publisher of the Wall Street Journal chosen as new publisher of the Washington Post, is accused in lawsuits of helping lead a massive coverup of crimes by Rupert Murdoch’s British newspapers. https://t.co/bAzLgkFBye
(https://x.com/Deggans/status/1737464918922674354?t=NfKCOM4ZqbOZFaxWWQTbkQ&s=03)
CLAP CLAP CLAP
Spelman College (@SpelmanCollege) posted at 10:42 AM on Wed, Dec 20, 2023:
It’s giving the Spelman Promise! Patty Quillin and Reed Hastings’ $40M gift supports the Dovey Johnson Roundtree, C’38, Presidential Scholarship, which provides full four-year scholarships for 200 first-year students. Discover more in the Impact Report: https://t.co/58bRdiDlkl https://t.co/pBtJ2B8ztI
(https://x.com/SpelmanCollege/status/1737513715740573986?t=IZ0q4P8vqHTO4SB3dSyIOQ&s=03)
Republicans against Trump (@RpsAgainstTrump) posted at 10:09 AM on Wed, Dec 20, 2023:
Conservative former federal Judge Luttig on the Colorado SC ruling:
“This is not a political question, the decision of the Colorado Supreme Court is not a political decision. This is a question, and a profoundly important question, of constitutional law…You know, @gtconway3d… https://t.co/juSnWRjxms
(https://x.com/RpsAgainstTrump/status/1737505528199192928?t=Z0ayd5cqBh-92h3rco6XCw&s=03)
Occupy Democrats (@OccupyDemocrats) posted at 8:14 AM on Wed, Dec 20, 2023:
BREAKING: Donald Trump’s week from hell gets exponentially worse as a judge rules that Special Counsel Jack Smith CAN access a staggering 1,600 communications found on MAGA Congressman Scott Perry’s cell phone.
This historic ruling is the result of lengthy, partially secretive… https://t.co/wDoEen7L88
(https://x.com/OccupyDemocrats/status/1737476648616722863?t=A6MMcHESQowbaUqv9WswMw&s=03)
🇺🇦Banquo, a US hegemony enjoyer (@BanquoDyar) posted at 10:43 AM on Wed, Dec 20, 2023:
I’d like to think that the Pod Save America bros dislike Joe Biden because Biden and Ron Klein treated them like the privileged trust fund bros that they are and they resent him for it – I note that Biden and COS Ron Klein never wanted any of them in the administration 🤷♀️
(https://x.com/BanquoDyar/status/1737514095300190386?t=qQ7PWe_i5BlKWILPX9sHwQ&s=03)
PoliticusUSA (@politicususa) posted at 10:48 AM on Wed, Dec 20, 2023:
The black-owned business boom is one example of how Joe Biden is making the American economy work for the many instead of the few.
https://t.co/zDVg6PuGCS
(https://x.com/politicususa/status/1737515376475242991?t=8C_l21BOI3UGYv7cc5HsPQ&s=03)
Kyle Griffin (@kylegriffin1) posted at 10:24 AM on Wed, Dec 20, 2023:
According to President Biden, with nearly a month left in Obamacare open enrollment, more than 19 million people have signed up for coverage — breaking all previous records. Enrollment has grown by more than 7 million people since Biden took office.
(https://x.com/kylegriffin1/status/1737509411705258003?t=kxhkBvvCeXwyBqOpDLbyTQ&s=03)
Candidly Tiff (@tify330) posted at 7:04 AM on Tue, Dec 19, 2023:
Please look at this thread these protesters are out of control. Disrespecting Black elders at a private event is a HELL NO. They have gone too far and this is not protesting..this is a public disturbance.
The elder in the yellow had to hit someone with her cane. https://t.co/gAm7lsuegS
(https://x.com/tify330/status/1737096657412530209?t=RVAlBvVxD0zqqe_vAlYE1g&s=03)
Ragnarok Lobster (@eclecticbrotha) posted at 8:24 AM on Tue, Dec 19, 2023:
White people y’all about to start getting your asses whipped for running up in Black spaces and disrespecting our elders like this.
(https://x.com/eclecticbrotha/status/1737116767657636267?t=JhZKQuKQYM0JQlUO_LSdig&s=03)
Good Morning Everyone 😊😊😊