Jameela Jamil condemns Texas abortion laws: ‘This is about a hatred of women’s freedom and progress’

Jamil said she felt ‘deep relief and gratitude’ that she was able to obtain a safe and accessible abortion in the UK

Jameela Jamil has hit out at the controversial Texas abortion law that came into effect in the US state on 1 September.

Sharing details of her personal abortion journey, the 35-year-old actor revealed that she “used two types of contraception, they both failed, and I aborted at 8 weeks”.

“I was mentally/physically/emotionally and financially unstable and most importantly did not want a child,” wrote Jamil. “That should be enough. My life matters more than an unborn human.”

The English actor, who lived in London until 2016 before moving to Los Angeles, continued by saying that she felt “deep relief” and “gratitude” that she lived in a country that made abortion accessible and safe.

“Nobody made me feel bad for being there. They just gave me healthcare,” she wrote.

Jamil also made a dig at the US healthcare system and highlighted the “laughable” irony of “the fact that this is happening in a country with no free healthcare or support for parents”.

“Do you know it costs $50k [roughly £37,000] to have a baby delivered if you can’t afford health insurance?” she asked, adding: “Never mind every other catastrophic cost of raising a child while you have no income support yourself?

“I am disgusted by Texas,” the Good Place actor continued. “This is not about children. We can’t even feed the children who are here. This is about control. This is about abuse. This is about a hatred of women’s freedom and progress.”

Jamil concluded by saying that this new law is the “beginning of all other progressive rights being rolled back”.

Texas’ new law bans abortions when foetal cardiac activity is detected – long before many women are even aware that they’re pregnant.

The legislation is one of the most stringent abortion laws in the US.

Jamil isn’t the only celebrity to speak against the Texas abortion laws. On Saturday (2 October), Billie Eilish also criticised the state’s laws during her performance at the Austin City Limits Music Festival.

“When they made that s*** a law, I almost didn’t want to do the show, because I wanted to punish this f***ing place for allowing that to happen here,” the singer said before raising her middle finger in the air and reportedly yelling: “My body, my f***ing choice.”

You can read everything you need to know about the Texas abortion law here.