Jemele Hill Reveals She Had An Abortion At 26, As She Advocates For Women’s Rights: I was not raped. I wasn’t the victim of incest. I was not in the midst of a life-threatening medical emergency. I simply had no desire to give birth to a child.

Jemele Hill

Jemele Hill Reveals She Had An Abortion At The Age Of 26, As She Advocates For Women’s Rights Amid Supreme Court Overturning Roe v. Wade: I am angry, appalled, and disgusted about the Supreme Court’s decision

Sports Journalist Jemele Hill is opening up about the decision she made to have an abortion when she was 26-years old.

On the heels of the Supreme Court overturning Roe v. Wade–which granted women the federal constitutional right to an abortion–Jemele Hill is getting candid about her own experience and how she is disappointed by this new ruling. In a new article written by Jemele Hill, she expressed,

“I am angry, appalled, and disgusted about the Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade, the landmark ruling that previously guaranteed federal constitutional protections for abortion rights.”

The 46-year-old journalist then revealed,

“I had an abortion when I was 26 years old. I was not raped. I wasn’t the victim of incest. I was not in the midst of a life-threatening medical emergency. I simply had no desire to give birth to a child.”

Jemele Hill

The former SportsCenter host expressed that all women, despite the circumstance should have a right to an abortion. Hill explained,

“More than ever before, women who want an abortion or have had an abortion need to know that they aren’t alone; a large number of women have been in the same position. So much of the conversation about this issue is entirely too fixated on who deserves the right to have an abortion. But every woman should have a right to an abortion—not just those who are facing grim and horrific circumstances.”

She continued,

“Women should not have to justify why they want the power over whether and when they give birth. The government shouldn’t force them to have a child, any more than it should force them to be sterilized. They just need access to safe care.”

Jemele Hill later revealed the reason behind her decision to have an abortion at the age of 26 despite her being financially stable.

“When I had my abortion, I was a sports journalist at the Detroit Free Press, in Michigan. I was financially able to support a child. I have no doubt that my family would have been present for me. The man I was involved with at the time would have provided support. His family would have been there for us too. However, I didn’t see a long-term future with him. And given that my mother and father never married—and I knew their tumultuous history very well—I didn’t want to bring a child into an unstable relationship.”

Hill also noted that her career goals played a big part in her decision as well.

“My career meant everything to me. I was pursuing my dream of being a sports journalist. I understood clearly that having a child would have drastically limited the future I saw for myself. Parenting would be difficult to fit into my lifestyle.”

She continued,

“I’m aware that some people will read this and think that I was selfish. Women are judged harshly for pursuing their goals as ambitiously as men do. Some people will probably call me irresponsible. But mistakes happen. Just because an unwanted pregnancy occurs—and it doesn’t matter if it’s within the context of a relationship, a one-night stand, or a “situationship”—that doesn’t mean a woman should be punished by being forced to have a child she doesn’t want to raise.”