Oklahoma law now requires that anti-abortion signs must be posted in public bathrooms across the state, including in hospitals, nursing homes, restaurants and public schools. The provision was created to try to reduce the number of abortions in the state.
The signs must be posted by January 2018, the Daily Dot reported. Businesses and other organizations will have to pay an estimated $2.3 million to put up the signs because the legislature voted against supplying money for them—and unsurprisingly, small businesses are not happy about this.
The signs would state “There are many public and private agencies willing and able to help you carry your child to term and assist you and your child after your child is born, whether you choose to keep your child or to place him or her for adoption. The State of Oklahoma strongly urges you to contact them if you are pregnant,” the Associated Press reported.
This new rule isn’t exactly surprising. Oklahoma has incredibly strict abortion laws. There is a ban against abortions after 20 weeks of pregnancy (a recommendation that the Guttmacher Institute points out "has been rejected by the medical community and is not consistent with scientific evidence."). Women also have to go to "counseling" before they have an abortion—during which the counselor will try to talk them out of having an abortion.
Oklahoma's attempt to stop abortion through bathroom signs is consistent with an increased amount of anti-abortion legislation that lawmakers have tried to push through since Donald Trump was elected to the presidency. While experts aren't sure a Trump Supreme Court will be able to overturn Roe v. Wade, the landmark case that confirmed women's constitutional right to an abortion, these smaller state restrictions can add up to essentially deprive women of that right. As we enter this uncertain time, make sure to research the birth control and sexual health options available to you—knowledge is power!