Texan lawmakers, including Governor Greg Abbot, have created over 600 new laws to be put into effect in August of 2021, many of which are controversial and concerning to different people. Three of the most extreme ones are the ban of a medical abortion after a fetal heartbeat is detected or at 6 weeks (about 1 and a half months) into pregnancy, the permit less carry law allowing anyone over the age of 21 to have a gun on them without a permit, and finally the curriculum change in schools about the teaching of African American history and more specifically slavery. These drastic changes have raised questions about a woman’s right to choose, the access and ease to obtaining a deadly weapon, and the future ignorance of one of America’s worst practices, slavery. 

 When authoring an article based on something as meticulous as the law, it is important to have valuable and diverse insights. The two professionals I chose to interview were Mrs. Deborah Sprenger, a Social Studies teacher at Hidden Valley and former attorney, and a registered nurse with experience in Women’s health.  

 A registered nurse who has worked at an abortion service provider during points in her career, believes that the Texas heartbeat bill will “subject a woman to even more trauma.” In her experience when women were faced with the reality of their situation, “those decisions were never made lightly.” This is a perspective that many people do not see, and sometimes do not understand. One final thought the nurse had to share was “The more restrictions we put on women, the less control they have of their bodies.” 

 For my second interview, Mrs. Sprenger shared her thoughts that “the Heartbeat Bill seems to be in direct conflict with all of the interpretations the Supreme Court has made for the case of Roe vs. Wade.” She also believes that “there will be litigation that will once again reach the Supreme Court.” 

 Next, I asked Mrs. Sprenger for any observations she had on the permit less carry law, that allows almost any adult over 21 to carry a firearm. She believes that this law fits within the constitutional rights of the second amendment, but has always been “a source of constant controversy” and could potentially cause more gun violence in Texas’ future. 

  Finally, I asked Mrs. Sprenger what she thinks about the curriculum change in Texas schools, and the belief that the teaching of slavery causes too much guilt for young children when they learn the ugly truth about America’s mistreatment of African Americans. “Slavery is a very difficult issue to address in the classroom,” but Mrs. Sprenger believes “it is important to be truthful” to her students.  

 While these topics are controversial, they are also important to stay informed about. It is always critical to stay open minded and educated about controversies such as these.