"The Good Place" actress Jameela Jamil opens up about having an abortion
Jameela Jamil, best known for her role on "The Good Place," has opened up about having an abortion, calling it "the best decision I have ever made."
"Both for me, and for the baby I didn't want, and wasn't ready for, emotionally, psychologically and financially," Jamil tweeted on Monday.
The actress spoke about her decision while criticizing Georgia's recently passed so-called "fetal heartbeat bill," a piece of legislation that bans abortion after about five or six weeks into a women's pregnancy, which is before most women know that they're pregnant. Abortion rights advocates have called the legislation an effective ban on abortion in the state.
I had an abortion when I was young, and it was the best decision I have ever made. Both for me, and for the baby I didn’t want, and wasn’t ready for, emotionally, psychologically and financially. So many children will end up in foster homes. So many lives ruined. So very cruel.
— Jameela Jamil 🌈 (@jameelajamil) May 13, 2019
"This anti-abortion law in Georgia is so upsetting, inhumane, and blatantly demonstrative of a hatred of women, a disregard for our rights, bodies, mental health, and essentially a punishment for rape victims, forcing to carry the baby of their rapist," Jamil tweeted.
Jamil's comments come as other Hollywood mainstays begun boycotting the state over the controversial new anti-abortion law. David Simon of "The Wire" vowed to pull his production company, Blown Deadline Productions, out of state until "we can be assured the health options and civil liberties of our female colleagues are unimpaired." Killer Films and Color Force have also followed suit.
The bill is slated to go into effect in January 2020.
This anti-abortion law in Georgia is so upsetting, inhumane, and blatantly demonstrative of a hatred of women, a disregard for our rights, bodies, mental health, and essentially a punishment for rape victims, forcing to carry the baby of their rapist. https://t.co/WROYaLAwPG
— Jameela Jamil 🌈 (@jameelajamil) May 13, 2019
The bill appears to be a violation of Roe v. Wade, the landmark 1973 Supreme Court decision that protects a woman's right to an abortion up until when the fetus is viable, which typically happens between 24 and 25 weeks. The American Civil Liberties Union and the Center for Reproductive Rights have promised to challenge the legislation long before it is implemented in Georgia.