It is impossible to know how frequently Russian soldiers are raping Ukrainian women. But we know it is happening, and we know that it is an instrument of terror being used by Russian soldiers against Ukrainian women and their families. There are far too many credible reports to dismiss this as propaganda. It’s real; it’s happening.
The terrible violence of the act of rape is the immediate crime, the possibility of an unwanted pregnancy is the criminal aftermath. We know that wartime rapes are often gang rapes, increasing the chances of a pregnancy. That, too, is consistent with the reports coming from Ukraine.
So, one of the great needs of Ukrainian women is to have access to abortion in case they fall victim to this horrific crime. However, given the war, medical supplies and priorities are necessarily being given to soldiers and civilians with life-threatening wounds from battle and bombs.
The victims of rape are not the only victims. All Ukrainian women who fear being raped are collateral damage. As are their families.
I have a daughter and a wife, nieces, and sisters-in law. When I’ve heard about an uncaught rapist in a NYC neighborhood close to my family, I’ve worried. For Ukrainian husbands and fathers, Ukraine is that neighborhood and every Russian soldier is that potential rapist.
No matter how we might feel about the direction of American participation in the war, we in the United States applaud and support the bravery of the Ukrainian people, not just the men, but the women too. We fervently hope that the war will end, that the killing and the terror, the violence and the rape will stop.
I suppose I have not been very subtle at where I’m taking this.
In Ukraine, abortion is legal on demand up to 12 weeks from conception and can be granted thereafter based on special circumstances.
In the United States, If Roe is overturned, many states will enact laws prohibiting abortion at any time, even in cases of rape and incest.
Barbarism comes in many forms.
The social upheaval over this issue had receded to the point that it was no longer the primary political cudgel of either the left or the right (except at the time of Supreme Court nominations). If the court decides to change the status quo in other than in an incremental fashion, it will throw gasoline on the fire that already burns all around us. I fear for my country.
Frightening developments.