Many people, myself included, who oppose President Trump are quick to attack him for his views on reproductive health and blame him for the current state of women's rights. But Trump is only the latest figure in the spotlight talking nonsense about abortion, women's health care, etc. Reproductive rights have been a controversial topic for decades. Hundreds of politicians and lawmakers have made their stances on this subject known over the years.

Throughout history, women's reproductive rights have been taken away, restricted, restored, and picked apart. The fight began with a pioneers like Margaret Sanger, who fought for female-controlled contraceptive options. Sanger, along with many other women who made their voices heard, paved the way for women to have power over their bodies.

Following the introduction of birth control pills in 1960, for the first time women were able to have some say over when and if they wanted to become mothers.

Birth control, of course, was immediately opposed by many religious groups. To this day, there are still many who view birth control as sinful and shame women who choose to use contraceptives.

Not to mention, that preventing pregnancy is only one of the MANY uses for hormonal birth control. Many women use this type of contraceptives to help acne, painful periods, regulation of periods, and migraines. Women who suffer from endometriosis can also treat the pain it causes by taking birth control pills.

And then came the historic 1973 Supreme Court case, Roe v. Wade, which granted women the constitutional right to terminate their pregnancies.

Roe v. Wade is only one of the Supreme Court cases that fought to protect women's rights when it came to family planning. In the 1965 case Griswold vs. Connecticut, the Supreme Court ruled that laws banning the sale of birth control were unconstitutional, however, it wasn't until nine years later in 1974 that a federal judge allowed unmarried minors access to contraceptives. Since then, strides have been made and accomplishments have been reached in giving women total control of their bodies.

Lately though, it seems that the current administration has started moving backwards when it comes to these rights. Efforts are made constantly to overturn Roe v. Wade, access to contraceptives has been restricted, and who knows what other plans are in the works to limit reproductive rights.

Women's access to birth control is threatened on an alarmingly frequent basis. In the fall of 2017, the Trump administration announced two rules that would allow almost any employer, university, or health insurance provider to deny insurance coverage for birth control for any reason. Although federal courts have temporarily blocked these rules, efforts are made every day by the Trump administration to put these rules into place permanently.

This could potentially revoke million's of women's access to birth control. Many women cannot afford the cost of contraceptives without the help of insurance.

Planned Parenthood is an organization that makes headlines on a daily basis. Many attempts have come from lawmakers to defund the organization because they provide abortion services. What most of these (male) lawmakers don't fully understand is that Planned Parenthood offers SO MUCH more than abortion services.

In fact, only around 3% of the organization's services are abortion-related. The other 97% of services help women access basic healthcare. They provide birth control, test and treat sexually transmitted infections, provide screenings for cervical and other cancers, as well as providing comprehensive sex education, a stark contrast to the abstinence-only curriculum provided in most schools. In addition to these services, Planned Parenthood also offers affordable basic health check-ups for both men and women.

Any attempts to defund Planned Parenthood are attempts to take low-cost health care services away from millions of people.

Last year, the topic of abortion made waves when President Trump put a rule in place that allowed state governments to take funding away from clinics that provide abortion services.

Last month, President Trump once again came after women's reproductive rights when he announced changes to Title X, a federal family planning program. Title X is a program that provides money to health clinics to provide reproductive health services such as abortion.

These changes make it impossible for clinics like Planned Parenthood, that are funded by the Title X program, from discussing abortion with patients. Doctors who work for clinics funded by the Title X program are not allowed to refer women to other abortion providers, and are prohibited from even discussing abortion as an option.

These changes will also set restrictions for organizations that provide abortions and other reproductive health services across the globe. Women in poorer countries, without the help of organizations like Planned Parenthood, have little-to-no access to safe abortions and other forms of necessary health care.

The changes being put in place by are lacking in compassion and can be potentially misleading or dangerous to women.

Under Roe v. Wade women have the right to choose whether or not they terminate a pregnancy, and these changes manipulate that right and withhold information for pregnant women who haven't decided one way or another.

Some women may not be affected in the slightest by these new rules and changes proposed by the current administration. But for other women, specifically women of color and low-income women, these changes could be life threatening. Pregnancy is a situation that is different for everyone, and women deserve to know all of their options in order to make informed, life-altering decisions.

When access to birth control is taken away, the health of millions of women is put at risk and the choice of when and how to start a family is taken away.

When women can't get the information they need about pregnancy and abortion, they may turn to dangerous alternatives.

Women deserve the right to affordable, inclusive, and accessible reproductive health care. The government should not be involved in our personal decisions involving our bodies. It's astounding that Congress and the Trump administration, comprised of a majority of men, can be allowed to create life-changing rules for women.

In the wise words of Rachel Green, "no uterus, no opinion."

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