WARNING: SOME IMAGERY WITHIN COULD BE PERCEIVED AS GRAPHIC
RICHMOND, Va. (WTVR) – Virginia residents, mainly women, have recently staged several creative demonstrations over the past months, in response to certain Senate and House bills.
Starting yesterday, activists took to Facebook to begin posting their frustration–in the form of personal updates. The posts were tongue-in-cheek posts detailing anatomical happenings, asking questions and thanking Virginia Senate Republican caucus chairman Ryan McDougle for his concern of women’s health and rights.
McDougle might have applied partisan pressure to help push through controversial legislation like the now-tabled personhood and the so-called ultrasound abortion bills, but today he received some pressure of his own, on his Facebook page.
Whoever manages McDougle’s Facebook page quickly began removing the posts, but a user of political blogging site Daily Kos managed to first snatch some screen shots.
Those who posted said they did so since male legislators intended to empower women to make personal health decisions, and since the legislators seemed to demonstrate such knowledge of and concern for the female anatomy.
Posters said it would follow that the lawmakers should also receive detailed updates on the current anatomical happenings of their bodies, or their girlfriends and spouses bodies.
One blog site posted several of the comments, like the one seen below:
Senator McDougle, I am almost 49 and STILL menstruating with no sign of slowing down! Frankly, I’ve had enough of this inconvenience- the cost of pads and pain reliever and all the mess- well YOU know how it is. You’re an expert on this lady stuff. I was going to ask my gynocologist [sic] about this issue, but since you know so much about women’s reproductive health, I figured I’d just stop by your Facebook page and ask you. So, when will I finally go through the change? My mister and I want to donate the money we spend on birth control to the Richmond Reproductive Freedom Project to help women pay for those unfunded government mandated ultrasounds.
You can click over to that site to read more postings, here.
Even today posters were continuously leaving images on Delegate David Albo’s page, who last month faced national scrutiny for joking on the General Assembly floor about how his wife rejected sex with him after hearing about the bill. [Web Extra: Delegate Albo jokes around about ultrasound bill]
No such postings have been spotted on the page of ultra-sound abortion bill sponsor Delegate Kathy Byron, other than comments of disdain previously left in response to the legislation. The posts were left on McDougle and Albo’s pages presumably because posters were angry with the majority male involvement in female reproductive decisions.
CBS 6 reached out to Senator McDougle and asked about his thoughts on the postings. We also asked who had taken them down and how long the posts stayed up. We were told that they would try to get the questions to McDougle. If we receive a response from the Senator, we will update this post.
Here are some screenshots of postings. View more here on Daily Kos.
