To the editor:

With the recent decision to overturn Roe v. Wade, women’s rights have been a hot topic. American women are far from the only ones who are struggling to keep their rights.

Though I believe we need to continue the conversation about the mistreatment of women’s health care in the U.S., I feel we also need to talk about the way of life that many women have abroad.

Around 800 women die a day from preventable causes related to pregnancy and childbirth. COVID-19 has only made this worse.

In Africa, a woman is 47 times more likely to die in childbirth than in the U.S. This is attributed to the lack of health services these communities have.

So what can we do? We are dealing with our own infringement on women’s rights, and it seems out of reach to help women in other countries.

I can tell you it is not. I am an intern working with the Borgen Project, which is a nonprofit that brings attention to international issues such as starvation and health inequality. There are many easy ways for anyone to support these causes and I urge you to do so.

For this particular issue, you can support the Reach Every Mother and Child Act. Supporting this cause is easier than you would think. All you need to do is email Congress through the Action Center on borgenproject.org. It takes less than a minute, and every voice counts.

Libby Hale,

Lawrence