First of all, let’s get something straight: I’m not anti-life. I believe in what’s best for the woman and the child. Why put a woman’s life at risk? Truth be told, pro-lifers sometimes neglect to regard the woman’s life. There was a drop in mortality post-Roe vs. Wade.

Abortions are the most commonly performed surgeries, and death is 10 times more likely for a woman who carries her child to term. Let’s face it, abortions are safe as long as they’re legal. Nineteen million women undergo unsafe abortions. Because of policies like the global gag rule and a lack of resources — because President George W. Bush won’t release UNFPA (United Nations Population Fund) funding — 68,000 of these women die. I think we all have the right to choose, the right to safe and comprehensive health care and education. The rate of pregnancies and abortions decreases with proper comprehensive sex education.

Maria Ringuette said it best, “Abstinence has a high failure rate.”

We want to be able to take emergency contraceptive if a condom breaks. We want our children to have comprehensive sex education so that they are capable of making healthy, safe and responsible choices about themselves and their futures.

According to Peter D. Hart Research Associates, voters said they believed that senators should vote against a Supreme Court nominee who refused to answer questions on important constitutional matters. Roberts has been refusing to answer or give a stance on reproductive issues. If students look at past decisions and tendencies, it isn’t hard to see where he stands. According to documents released in The Chicago Tribune, Roberts held a firm stance against “comparable worth.” Comparable worth supports equal pay and gender equality. Roberts also co-authored Rust vs. Sullivan, which insisted that Roe vs. Wade be overturned.

The term “abortion” is weighted. It has a negative connotation that people are not able to overcome. Laws that regulate abortion also deal with women’s privacy and contraceptive rights. For instance, Griswold vs. Connecticut guaranteed married women access to legal and reliable health services. Roe vs. Wade gave these same rights to unmarried women. Roe was recently upheld by a narrow 5 to 4 vote, with Sandra Day O’Conner serving as a key swing vote. Roberts’ anti-choice stance could swing the court in another direction and overturn Roe vs. Wade.

According to research by Celinda Lake, a pollster, strategist for progressive groups and candidates and a nationally recognized expert on women voters and women candidates, nine-tenths of voters said believed women should have the right to information about and the means to decide freely and responsibly about their bodies and their reproductive health. More specifically, these voters believe it is their right to decide when and how many children to have. At least 144 women at the University of Kansas utilized emergency contraception in 2004 alone, according to officials at Watkins Memorial Health Center. If those services were pulled, at least that many women would be put in a position they clearly didn’t want to be in.

I know that in the past, Kansas senators have voted predominantly anti-choice. But keep in mind that Supreme Court Justices serve lifetime positions. This means we’re going to have to live with the appointed judge for 35 years or more.

We know a filibuster is possible, but we need 60 senators to filibuster and ensure the checks and balances in our government.

Voters across the United States rank privacy as the No. 1 right they want the new Supreme Court justice to uphold, followed by women’s rights and individual rights, according to Ms. magazine’s most recent issue. Imagine if 60 percent of women wrote a letter to their senator asking that their voices be heard. Add to that the 52 percent of voters who believe women should have the right to choose.

With John Roberts’ nomination, these basic “American Values” will be threatened. We have the least amount of power and we need you to hear us. We need you to pass on our message. I guarantee when congressmen are up for election, we’re going to remember whether they remembered our rights.