Addison Gardner, a 12-year-old girl from Kenova, West Virginia, was among a group of individuals speaking out against a bill that would not only ban abortions but would also allow for physicians who perform abortions to be prosecuted.

“My education is very important to me and I plan on doing great things in life. If a man decides that I’m an object and does unspeakable and tragic things to me, am I, a child, supposed to carry and birth another child?

Am I to put my body through the physical trauma of pregnancy? Am I to suffer the mental implications, a child, who had no say in what was being done with my body? Some here say they are pro-life. What about my life? Does my life not matter to you?”

Addison Gardner said.

Despite the speeches from Addison Gardner and others, the House passed the bill with a 69 to 23 vote. An amendment was adopted that allows for abortions in cases of rape or incest. The amendment barely passed and only allows for the procedure to be performed up to 14 weeks of pregnancy and only if the rape or incest is reported to the police.

Other states have trigger bans that banned abortions just in a short period after Roe was overturned. West Virginia specifically has had a ban that is nearly 150 years old that would come back into effect without Roe. Kanawha County Circuit Judge Tera Salango blocked the enforcement of the ban and granted the Women’s Health Center of West Virginia the ability to continue performing procedures.