Midterm elections happened November 6th around the country. There were women, ethnic persons and members of the LGBTQ community voted into positions. Marijuana was made legal in Michigan, Utah and Missouri and ex-felons in Florida now have the right to vote.
Progress seems to be happening all over — except in Alabama.
I have lived in Alabama all of my life and every passing year the state seems to be stuck in the 20th century.
The two amendments proposed and passed in the state were to allow the Ten Commandments on state property and to "recognize and support the sanctity of unborn life and the rights of unborn children, most importantly the right to life in all manners and measures appropriate and lawful."
Alabama is ranked 48 in opportunity out of 50 states total. But for reasons beyond myself, Republican Alabama voters keep voting against their own needs and against the needs of others in the state.
I voted no on Amendment One, the one allowing the Ten Commandments because the First Amendment of the Constitution states Americans have religious freedoms. A satanic statue went up in Arkansas earlier this year in protest of the Ten Commandments that went up in 2017.
If these state properties in Alabama allow for these Christian-based rules to be posted, does this mean that all religions will have representation on state properties? Alabama is right in the middle of the Bible Belt and seems to only want to recognize Christian-based faiths and has a disregard for anyone else who doesn't believe in the same God as them.
Alabama has, since I've been alive, had a problem recognizing that their religious faith is not the only one that exists. I believe that it's the "you fear what you don't know" saying that comes into play when talking about topics like religion with the majority of Alabamians.
Amendment One only keeps these religious divisions intact. Your religious beliefs are valid, just like everybody else's. There is no real certainty when it comes to religion. Christian-based faiths could be right, Muslim-based faiths could be right. We don't know for sure. It's all rooted in that word "faith" because there is no certain right answer.
I also voted no on Amendment Two that would give the unborn rights in all "manners and measures" that are "appropriate and lawful."
Abortion was made legal by the case Roe v. Wade in all 50 states. I have always been pro-choice in the instances of rape, incest and other extreme cases of unexpected and unwanted pregnancy. However, what a woman does with her body is none of my business.
It seems to me – and this is not just in Alabama but it does apply here – that those who are against abortion are only in favor of a child's right to live while they are still a fetus.
When it comes to a child's health care, they'll vote against it. When it comes to preventing a child, they want to do away with it.
This does not go for everybody, but it does go for the majority I have met and have seen posts from on social media.
Unfortunately, I don't think I'll see Alabama change any time soon and that's heartbreaking for me. Knowing the place I have spent the last 21 years of my life would rather stay in the past and vote for a party rather than the person upsets me. It upsets me to know that as a bisexual college-aged woman, there are people in this state that want to vote against rights that I have now or believe I should have never gained those rights.
It's time to take control and change the way this state functions. I know I am not alone in these thoughts and I know that we are the minority in this mindset. And while Alabama did not surprise me in the midterms, the rest of the country did. That's what makes me hopeful for the upcoming elections.
