Actress and women’s rights activist Alyssa Milano has sparked quite the debate on Twitter after she called for a sex strike following Georgia’s new anti-abortion bill.
The “Charmed” actress posted a tweet on Friday calling for women to not have sex until “we get bodily autonomy back.” Her call to action came after Republican Gov. Brian Kemp signed the “heartbeat bill” last Tuesday. The new bill bans abortions after a fetal heartbeat is detected at about six weeks from conception and before many women know they’re pregnant.
“Our reproductive rights are being erased,” Milano wrote on Twitter. “Until women have legal control over our own bodies we just cannot risk pregnancy. JOIN ME by not having sex until we get bodily autonomy back.”
Milano followed up that tweet by tweeting a 2017 Quartz report that highlighted reports of sex strikes in various countries dating back hundreds of years.
Some female tweeters shared support for Milano’s sex strike.
“If they want to control our bodies reproductive organs, [then] we should deny sex to cis men,” one Twitter user wrote.
“Join us in helping cis men feel the physical consequences of our reproductive rights being systematically eliminated!” wrote Kate Kelly, a human rights attorney.
However, there were some women who took issue with Milano’s call.
“Living under patriarchy has already robbed me of safety, autonomy, opportunities, and trust in our institutions,” author Kristi Coulter wrote. “Now I’m supposed to give up sex, too, and play into the fiction that it’s just a bargaining chip/transaction for women? Love you, but nope.”
“You want me to deny myself the one pleasure men offer because what now,” wrote communications consultant and writer Jamilah Lemieux.
Meanwhile, Milano responded to some of the backlash on Saturday.
“We can LOVE sex and fight for our bodily autonomy. There are lots of alternatives to cis men.”
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