Ashley Judd will continue to be an outspoken advocate for abortion because, she says, it’s what saved her from having to raise a child with her rapist.
The actress, 50, explained her reasoning for protesting a new Georgia bill that would ban abortion as soon as a heartbeat can be heard Thursday at theWomen in the World summitin New York.
“As everyone knows, and I’m very open about it, I’m a three-time rape survivor. And one of the times I was raped, there was conception,” she told moderator Katie Couric. “And I’m very thankful I was able to access safe and legal abortion. Because the rapist, who is a Kentuckian, as am I, and I reside in Tennessee, has paternity rights in Kentucky and Tennessee. I would’ve had to co-parent with my rapist.”
Ashley Judd.JOHANNES EISELE/AFP/Getty
Added Judd, “So having safe access to abortion was personally important to me and, as I said earlier, democracy starts with our skin. We’re not supposed to regulate what we choose to do with our insides.”
It remains unclear if the alleged rape resulted in a conviction, which would have prevented the attacker from having custody or visitation rights in both Kentucky and Tennessee, according to theNational Conference of State Legislature.
“It’s starting to feel a little likeThe Handmaid’s Tale, isn’t it?” Couric asked as she brought up the bill.
Judd has spoken publicly about her abortion in the past, as well as her experiences with sexual assault and harassment.
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Jim Spellman/WireImage; CJ Rivera/Getty
Shortly after she filed suit, Weinstein denied having blacklisted Judd from Hollywood, with a representative saying in a statement: “The most basic investigation of the facts will reveal that Mr. Weinstein neither defamed Ms. Judd nor ever interfered with Ms. Judd’s career, and instead not only championed her work but also repeatedly approved her casting for two of his movies over the next decade.”
source: people.com
