Since the beginning of our species, it has been the responsibility of the female to care for the unborn, the newborn and the young. After millions of years, women have gotten us this far.

Now is not the time for men — or a U.S. Supreme Court or state legislatures stacked largely with white men — to wrest control from women and direct the propagation of the species.

As Vice President Kamala Harris stated on Tuesday night, “How dare they!”

They cannot tell women what to do with their bodies.

If you haven’t joined the fight before, now is the time. Abortions will continue no matter what ultimate ruling is handed down from the U.S. Supreme Court. We need to protect the health of women and their right to privacy, regardless of the circumstance.

We already know the patchwork of laws that have sprung upinvariousstatesbanningabortionhavedisparatelyim- pacted low-income women, including those in the Black and Brown communities, who don’t have the means of wealthy women to travel elsewhere to end an unwanted or dangerous pregnancy.

We urge Congress to codify abortion rights into federal law by passing the Women’s Health Protection Act. The Democratic-controlled House already has passed it, but it has been blocked in the U.S. Senate.

In Virginia, Republicans will continue their legislative assault on women’s rights and try to ban abortions. So we must work to elect people to Congress and the Virginia General Assembly who believe in the rights of women and their ability to make responsible choices.

We have come too far for the clock to be turned back.