Democratic Michigan Rep. Laurie Pohutsky, during a protest Wednesday against President Donald Trump, announced she decided to sterilize herself as a way to challenge the new administration.
At a protest at Michigan’s state capitol, demonstrators gathered on the capitol lawn to support the national “50501 Movement,” a grassroots anti-Trump initiative that seeks to organize people to “hit the streets” and “resist Project 2025,” according to the Michigan Advance.
“Just under two weeks ago, I underwent surgery to ensure that I would never have to navigate a pregnancy in Donald Trump’s America,” Pohutsky said. “I refuse to let my body be treated as currency by an administration that only sees value in my ability to procreate.”
“If you know people who are questioning how serious this is, I’m going to repeat myself: A sitting government official opted for voluntary sterilization because she was uncertain she would be able to access contraception in the future.”
Republican Michigan Rep. Matt Maddock posted footage on X showing some protesters waving LGBT flags and American flags. Others held signs that read “Deport Elonia and arrest Donalf Shitler!!” and “It’s treason.”
“This is what real Americans look like, cunt!” another protester yelled at the representative as he could be seen walking through the crowd.
During Trump’s campaign, the then-GOP presidential candidate repeatedly said he was not in favor of a national abortion ban, adding the issue should be left to each state. At a campaign rally, Trump said that he would be a “protector” of women, adding, “You will no longer be abandoned, lonely or scared. You will no longer be in danger … You will no longer be thinking about abortion.”
On Jan. 25, Trump signed an executive order to enforce “the Hyde Amendment and similar laws that prevent Federal funding of elective abortion, reflecting a longstanding consensus that American taxpayers should not be forced to pay for that practice,” reversing policies from the Biden-Harris administration. In an additional move to protect women, Trump signed another executive order on Wednesday banning biological men from competing in women’s sports nationally.
Since the announcement of her surgery, Pohutsky posted to X on Thursday, writing, “The fact that so many conservative men take personal offense to a decision that I made with my husband about my health care and future just proves the point that we shouldn’t assume that right is secure.”
Featured Image Credit: Gage Skidmore from Peoria, AZ, United States of America
