'The Daily Show' Tells Texans to 'Knock Someone Up' to Celebrate Supreme Court Ruling
Comedy Central's "The Daily Show with Trevor Noah" has drew criticism, from both pro-life and pro-choice camps, after the show encouraged people to go "knock someone up" in Texas to celebrate Monday's Supreme Court decision that struck down key aspects of a pro-life law.
"Celebrate the #SCOTUS ruling! Go knock someone up in Texas!" read a tweet from the show on Monday.
The ruling in question refers to the 5-3 decision to strike down two key aspects of Texas' House Bill 2, which required abortionists to have admitting privileges to nearby hospitals and for abortion clinics to be regulated as surgical centers.
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While pro-life groups had argued that the bill placed important medical standards for women's health, pro-choicers insisted that it served as a way to restrict women in Texas from getting access to abortion procedures.
Social media users and a host of publications slammed "The Daily Show" for the message it was sending out.
"I'm vehemently pro-choice, and you are loathsome. This tweet isn't 100% pro-rape, but it is rape-flavored. Screencapping," wrote one Twitter user by the name Doctor Science.
"I'm pro-choice, but stop trivializing abortion like it's getting your nails done," added Josh Fields, another Twitter user.
The Huffington Post further called the joke "awful," arguing that it is a "crass suggestion."
Slate said that it was the "worst possible response" to the Supreme Cout's ruling.
"Where to start with how bad this tweet is? For one thing, it assumes that everyone reading it is a man. It proposes that 'knock[ing] someone up' — a phrase that entirely erases a woman's agency in the act of procreative sex — is a recognizable form of celebration, like clinking champagne glasses or blowing a party horn," the publication wrote.
It adds that "the tweet manages to spin a vindication of women's right to control their own bodies into an opportunity for straight men to have unprotected sex without consequences. How progressive!"
"The Daily Show" later tried to explain in a follow-up tweet that it was not trying to promote abortions.
"Friends, we're certainly not promoting abortions. Just excited about #SCOTUS reaffirming right to choose," the show's twitter account said, though that has not stopped criticisms from pouring in.
While the Supreme Court ruling is being hailed as a victory by pro-choice groups, pro-life advocates have said that it is dangerous for women's health.
"The Supreme Court's decision to strike down H.B. 2 undermines the health and safety of vulnerable women. This decision is a loss for women and gives the abortion industry a free pass," Family Research Council President Tony Perkins said.
"Hair and nail salons, public pools, restaurants, and tanning centers must meet basic health and safety standards — shouldn't abortion facilities? Abortion facilities cannot be exempt from following basic health standards."
