Women are stepping up in record numbers to rebuild the Democratic Party by running for office and leading the resistance. Today, the DCCC Leadership decided to disregard our reproductive rights in hopes of reaching more voters by supporting candidates who oppose abortion rights. However, when you look at who votes, who rises up, who is supporting the Democratic Party, it’s pro-choice women. We are the base. Pro-choice women run local parties and activist groups, do the groundwork and now are running for all levels of office. This policy weakening on a core issue for Democratic women shows a disconnect between leadership at the top and the leadership on the ground that is actually driving the Democratic resurgence.

B en Ray Lujan said, “We have to be a big family in order to win the House back.” We do not need to grow our family through unplanned pregnancies.

Credit: Samantha Sophia

Democratic leadership has this wrong. A woman’s right to choose what she does with her own body is a basic civil liberty that cannot be compromised without decaying the moral fabric of the entire Democratic platform. Preservation of life includes that of mothers and the quality of life of whole families. Access to safe abortions is critical for the success of our next generation, freedom of women, and economic growth.

I do think we, as a party, need to shift our rhetoric on the subject. The problem is not that Democrats have been too pure in pro-choice policy, it’s that they’ve been condescending to anti-abortion voters. The narrative that you cannot be a anti-abortion Democrat is damaging to the party, but there is a difference between personal ideology of voters and the Party’s policy platform. We should no longer alienate anti-abortion people, and need to respect everybody’s religions.

However, we can respect somebody’s differences while still bringing them into the Party. As a Quaker, I’ve throughout my life voted for politicians that I fundamentally disagree with on foreign policy and the use of force. Despite their policy conflicting with my religious values, I am able to make the best decision given the choices. The key here is to make sure we are the best choice for them. The key is to make sure they know we are the Party that values life. The key is to be the Party of moral value.

Voters who are personally pro-life should be welcomed into the tent, as we work together towards the common goal of reducing abortion numbers through programs that support families. Women should not be deciding between poverty and abortion. The Republican legislation that obstructs women from accessing her own women’s health provider when confronted with an unplanned pregnancy, or that force her to postpone her decision, until she can access a clinic that specialized in abortion is callous and only serves to punish women and increase abortion numbers. The Republican policies that keep women in poverty and reduce access to birth control and prenatal care are what should be called out. They are letting women and babies die.

Day my daughter was born, planned and joyous.

We must reclaim the narrative, not rewrite our values. We must make it clear that we are the Party of Life. That we, and only we, through increased women’s agency and supporting families, will reduce abortion numbers, maternal death and child poverty. We need to be clearly fighting for pro-family planning policies, like reproductive health education and easy access to free birth control and prenatal care.

Abortion numbers will be lowered through increased women’s agency, not compromising women’s freedoms. We need more women in leadership, who have skin the game of reproductive rights. We need leaders who will not compromise on basic freedoms of women.

If we achieve a Democratic majority by electing anti-choice Democrats, we risk creating a bipartisan coalition that could dismantle women’s rights. The DCCC may be looking to achieve power for the Party, but at the expense of the women who constitute the Democratic base.