Some bills introduced and/or passed by Republican lawmakers are so outrageous, my heart starts to beat faster and I want to fling my laptop across the room as I write about them. This is one. AaronNCYNIC with the Chicagoist reports Republican Illinois state House Representatives John D. Canaletto and Keith Wheeler filed a House bill (HB6064) that disallows a birth certificate to be issued to the child of a single mom who cannot provide the biological father’s name, or the name of another family member who will be responsible to financially provide for the child.
The onus is once again placed upon the mother. This bill removes a provision in the Vital Records Act concerning use of the biological father's name on the birth certificate—if not married to the biological mother. In its synopsis, HB6064 provides that:
“...if the unmarried mother cannot or refuses to name the child's father, either a father must be conclusively established by DNA evidence or, within 30 days after birth, another family member who will financially provide for the child must be named, in court, on the birth certificate. Provides that absent DNA evidence or a family member's name, a birth certificate will not be issued and the mother will be ineligible for financial aid from the State for support of the child. Provides an exception for artificially inseminated mothers. Amends the Illinois Public Aid Code. Provides that a family that does not comply with the Vital Records Act provision concerning birth certificates of unmarried mothers shall be ineligible for aid for support of the child. Effective immediately”
Why do we need a birth certificate?
A birth certificate is one of the most important legal documents used to establish identity. It shows who you are, when you were born, and where you were born. A birth certificate is required for many things during a person’s life, such as:
enrolling a child in school
participating in youth sports
getting a Social Security card
obtaining a driver’s license
applying for a passport
So while many Republic lawmakers want a fetus to have “personhood” status, which often overrides the rights of the mother, there is this one little exception. If the fetus becomes “a child born,” well then, that’s too bad. And how compassionate does this bill allow for girls/women who have been raped?
What’s just as disturbing is that a woman, state Rep. Jeanne Ives, adamantly tried to get this passed last year. Since Democrats had a majority in the House, the bill was killed. Rep. Ives, in her angry, aggressive, “slut-shaming” voice, spews,
And I’m telling you right now, I am not interested in providing childcare to “people” where you don’t even know the paternity, when you’re not going after childcare support, when you have no income verification on whether or not they’re getting a benefit they “truly deserve.”
Ives goes on to say (as members began to heckle her):
“You better know who the daddy is and whether or not he can afford that child and whether or not the taxpayers should be funding that or if there’s actual child support he can provide.”
Here is the video of Rep. Jeanne Ives in her rant.
x YouTube VideoEd Yohnka of the Illinois American Civil Liberties Union said:
‘This is a punitive and outrageous bill that would have a hugely negative impact on those most likely in need of safety net programs and support.’
I heard about a similar bill back in the early 90s, after a friend suggested I listen to “this guy” Rush Limbaugh. The Republican pundit was raving on the radio about how women should not receive any government support unless they were married. I was outraged and disgusted that anyone would propose such a thing, and here we are in 2016 with white male lawmakers proposing a similar action. It was no surprise when I heard that Rush Limbaugh called then-college student Sandra Fluke a “slut” and “prostitute” on air, for three days, for advocating mandated insurance-covered birth control, during a congressional hearing. The GOP hypocrisy is astounding.
Once again we have a bill that puts financial responsibility for childbearing on the mother, with no penalty for men who impregnate women and then take off. But ladies, don’t you dare ask for low-cost or free accessible birth control (for medicinal purposes—or any purpose). And forget about getting an abortion! No, you have that baby, so you can be penalized by Republican lawmakers who scream, “Fuck the mother! Save the fetus!” and who then pass laws that prove they don’t give a flip about children once born.
While HB6064 may never get passed due to a Democratic majority in Illinois, what would happen if Republicans carried majority in that state? The fact that such a bill would be introduced and promoted in 2016 is just another indication of the extreme GOP misogyny. These types of bills are introduced ever day with no sign of it stopping. And this is what we risk when we don’t vote.