Independent news from the Indigenous Media Freedom Alliance
November 22, 2024
Perspectives

Sara Jumping Eagle: North Dakota ‘Personhood’ laws direct attack on women’s rights

Jodi Rave Spotted Bear
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jodi@imfreedomalliance.org https://twitter.com/JodiRave
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JT Shining Oneside shared stories about her Ojibwe and Anishinaabe inheritance during the Native American Heritage Month Celebration on Nov. 15. She spoke about the coming-of-age and traditional birth ceremonies. (Photo credit/ Adrianna Adame)

BY SARA JUMPING EAGLE
Last Real Indians

On Friday, March 15, 2013, the North Dakota Senate voted and passed House Bill 1456, a “personhood” bill which effectively bans abortions in North Dakota. This bill, also called the heartbeat ban, outlaws abortions once a fetal heartbeat is detected, as early as 6 weeks! If this bill is signed by Governor Jack Dalrymple on Monday March 18th, it will become the strictest abortion law in the country.

This bill states that if a physician performs an abortion after a fetal heartbeat is detected they will be fined $5000 and potentially sentenced up to five years in prison, making this medical procedure a Class C Felony in this circumstance. Under this bill there is an exception for “medical emergencies” yet the wording is vague.

There is also no exception made in cases of rape or incest.
The North Dakota Senate had also passed Bill 1305; this addendum to the code specifies that a physician may not perform an abortion which is sex selective or because of a chromosomal or genetic abnormality. The penalty for the physician would be a Class A Misdemeanor. Again, wording in the bill is vague.

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Posted in PerspectivesTagged
Jodi Rave Spotted Bear
jodi@imfreedomalliance.org https://twitter.com/JodiRave

Jodi Rave Spotted Bear is the founder and director of the Indigenous Media Freedom Alliance, a 501-C-3 nonprofit organization with offices in Bismarck, N.D. and the Fort Berthold Reservation. Jodi spent 15 years reporting for the mainstream press. She's been awarded prestigious Nieman and John S. Knight journalism fellowships at Harvard and Stanford, respectively. She also an MIT Knight Science Journalism Project fellow. Her writing is featured in "The Authentic Voice: The Best Reporting on Race and Ethnicity," published by Columbia University Press. Jodi currently serves as a Society of Professional Journalists at-large board member, an SPJ Foundation board member, and she chairs the SPJ Freedom of Information Committee. Jodi has won top journalism awards from mainstream and Native press organizations. She earned her journalism degree from the University of Colorado at Boulder.

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