For Halsey, giving birth to their first child after suffering multiple pregnancy losses did not lessen their support of abortion rights.
The singer, whose son Ender turns 1 this month, detailed their experiences in an op-ed published in Vogue on July 1, a week after the Supreme Court overturned the landmark Roe v. Wade ruling that had recognized the constitutional right to abortion in the United States for nearly 50 years.
“Many people have asked me if, since carrying a child to term after years of struggling to do so, I have reconsidered my stance on abortion. The answer is firmly no,” Halsey wrote. “In fact, I have never felt more strongly about it.”
The 27-year-old had previously spoken out publicly about one of their past miscarriages, saying they suffered one while on tour in 2015. In their Vogue op-ed, the singer wrote that that they “miscarried three times” before their 24th birthday, adding, “It seemed a cruel irony that I could get pregnant with ease but struggled to maintain a pregnancy.”
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Halsey continued, “One of my miscarriages required ‘aftercare,’ a gentle way of saying that I would need an abortion, because my body could not terminate the pregnancy completely on its own and I would risk going into sepsis without medical intervention. During this procedure, I cried. I was afraid for myself and I was helpless. I was desperate to end the pregnancy that was threatening my life.”
Medical terms for miscarriages—used in billing and insurance claims—include “spontaneous abortions,” “missed abortions” and “incomplete abortions,” according to the National Library of Medicine.
If the patient does not pass an unsuccessful pregnancy naturally, they may be made to wait longer, take pills to try to speed along the process or undergo a surgical procedure with or without sedation. The latter two methods are also typically used in elective abortions of successful pregnancies.
“My abortion saved my life and gave way for my son to have his,” Halsey wrote. “Every person deserves the right to choose when, if, and how they have this dangerous and life-altering experience. I will hold my son in one arm, and fight with all my might with the other.”
On June 26, two days after the Supreme Court overturned of Roe v. Wade, Halsey performed a scheduled concert in Phoenix, Arizona and spoke out against the ruling, prompting many people to walk out.
“Some of the people I’m looking at right now are going to need an abortion one day, and you deserve that,” Halsey said onstage. “Whether it’s a life-threatening situation or it’s not, you deserve it. And here in Arizona, you guys gotta promise me that you’re gonna do that work so that the person to the left of you and to the right of you has that right for the rest of their lives.”
They added, “If you don’t like it, you can go home right now. I don’t care. If you don’t like it, I don’t know why you came to a Halsey concert.”
After facing criticism for their onstage words, Halsey tweeted, “The ‘people pay to see you sing not hear your views’ argument is so dumb. No, you paid to see me use a stage as a form of expression in the manner that I choose. Sorry you lack the critical thinking to realize that the rhetorical power of music doesn’t always serve your escapism.”
They later added, “I’ve had abortion statistics in my show since my tour started in May and 16,500 people came to my last show. I’m gonna be fine because my fans are on the right side of history.”
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