The South Dakota House has passed a bill 60-10 that would ban abortions based on the sex of the fetus with several supporters citing the state’s growing Asian American population as the reason it was necessary, reports Mother Jones.
“Many of you know I spent 18 years in Asia,” State Rep Stace Nelson said. “And sadly, I can tell you that the rest of the world does not value the lives of women as much as I value the lives of my daughters.” Nelson is running for US Senate.
Fellow Republican, State Rep Don Haggar agreed.
“Let me tell you, our population in South Dakota is a lot more diverse than it ever was,” Haggar said. “There are cultures that look at a sex-selection abortion as being culturally okay.”
The bill now goes to the State Senate. Seven states already ban sex based abortions.
“The racism and the stereotypes and the stigma is laid so bare here,” says Miriam Yeung, the director of the National Asian Pacific American Women’s Forum. “We’ve been saying that these bills are wolves in sheep’s clothing. But in this case, I think the wolf has left off the sheep’s clothing.”
You can read more about this controversy and the direct connection many make between same sex abortions and Asian Americans in Mother Jones.
