You Found Your Voices and You Have Been Heard

By Terri Burke Executive Director State Sen. Wendy Davis may be doing the heavy lifting – standing and talking for 13 hours without a break and without food or bathroom breaks – but she is merely an extension of you. As I have traveled the state since taking this position five and half years ago, whether I was speaking to a group of 20, 50 or even 150 people, over and over I’ve heard you say, “I didn’t know there was anyone else in Texas who thinks like me.” The extremist minority has always been louder. Until now. I’ve always believed there are more of us than we knew, and this past week you’ve shown that to be true. It started when we released statewide poll results last Wednesday afternoon showing that 80 percent of Texans’ don’t think legislators ought to be making these deeply personal decisions for women, that what registered voters really want is for their Legislators to focus on jobs, the economy and education. Every time you showed up, every time you spoke up - whether it was the 700 plus women and men who waited more than 12 hours to speak at the House hearing last Thursday, or the 1300 who filled the Capitol on Sunday as the House took up the anti-reproductive freedom measures - you emboldened so many more to speak up. Whether you said no to the arrogance of the majority or no to those whose actions are driven merely for short-term political game, you emboldened so many more. You were heard across the nation and around the world – really. It appears victory is in sight. We know this is only one battle in a much bigger war against women and poor people. We can bask in the win tonight and then we have to start again. Our poll showed clearly that supporting the sanctity of the doctor-patient relationship isn’t a Democratic or liberal position. In fact, 50 percent of the respondents to our poll said they are Republicans or tend to vote Republican, while 37 percent said they are Democrats or tend to vote Democratic. We must encourage all Texans to join us in this fight; we will start now to educate the public about what their legislature tried to do to them in the name of politics and we will remind them over and over through the 2014 elections and as we prepare for the 84^th Legislative Session in 2015. And we will remember those who stood so tall, so long, so resolute. Be sure to send your thank-you notes to these Texas heroes: Rep. Jessica Farrar, Sen. Leticia Van de Putte, Rep. Senfronia Thompson, Rep. Donna Howard, Rep. Sarah Davis, Sen. Kirk Watson, Rep. Yvonne Davis, Sen. John Whitmire, Rep. Nicole Collier, Rep. Mary Gonzalez, Rep. Naomi Gonzalez, Rep. Mary Ann Perez, Rep. Roberto Alonzo, Rep. Alma Allen, and thank Wendy for standing up for Texas women. At the same time, don’t forget those whose arrogance and complete disregard for the people whose business they were elected to conduct put us through this costly, needless exercise. On second thought, maybe we should thank Rick Perry and David Dewhurst for helping us find our voices.