Uma Thurman shared her “darkest secret” on Tuesday, revealing in a Washington Post op-ed that she had an abortion as a teenager and that decision has been haunting her ever since.
Thurman’s piece was meant to decry the new Texas law and “predatory bounty hunters” ready to report violators of the legislation that prohibits most abortions after six weeks of pregnancy, when a fetus’ cardiac activity may be first detected.
The ‘Kill Bill’ actress said that she had her abortion in Germany after being “accidentally impregnated by a much older man” in her late teens.
“I was living out of a suitcase in Europe, far from my family, and about to start a job. I struggled to figure out what to do,” Thurman wrote. She said that after speaking with her family, they decided that terminating her pregnancy was the best option.
"My heart was broken nonetheless," Thurman added.
The 51-year-old actress said the abortion decision was “the hardest” one in her life, as it caused her “anguish” at that time and brings her sadness even now.
“… but it was the path to the life full of joy and love that I have experienced," Thurman wrote. "Choosing not to keep that early pregnancy allowed me to grow up and become the mother I wanted and needed to be.”
Thurman has three children now, daughter Maya and son Levon from her marriage to Ethan Hawke, and another daughter, Luna, with her former fiancé Arpad Busson.
The ‘Heartbeat Act’, which came into effect in September after the Supreme Court dismissed attempts to shut the legislation down, allows any private citizen to file a lawsuit against those performing and helping with an abortion. If the suits are successful, they can be rewarded a minimum of $10,000.
Apart from Texas, lawmakers in Florida, Arkansas and South Dakota have also been looking into adopting similar versions of the Act in their states.