State Senator Wendy Davis from Texas filibustered one of the most restrictive abortion bills in history for almost 11 hours during a special session of Texas’ Senate last night.

Supporters argued that the bill would protect women’s health by banning abortions after the 20th week, forcing doctors to have admitting privileges to hospitals within 30 miles, limiting abortions to surgical standards, and requring doctors to monitor non-surgical abortions.

Opponents, however, argued that the bill is intrusive on a woman’s right to choose whether she wants an abortion, and that the bill would effectively close 37 of the 42 abortion clinics in the state.

The Democrats, obviously would not let the bill pass and decided to attempt to filibuster the bill to midnight and force the session to end, and thus kill the bill for the session.

The word filibuster, in the past few years, has been synonymous with stalling and dirty politics. This filibuster was different; it was courageous, and it was right.

Davis spoke with conviction and did what she could to stop a Republican attack on women’s health and women’s choice.

Davis said, during her filibuster, “Either get out of the vagina business or go to medical school.”

That phrase, one part of a long filibuster, resonated throughout the country and woke up the country to the blatant attack on women’s rights in Texas. During her speech, protesters from across the state came to the Capitol to protest and to support her.

The filibuster helped Davis rise to stardom within the Democratic Party and propel the issue of women’s health and rights back to the front.

Her filibuster ultimately ended, but she put the case of the Republican war on women in front of Texas and the nation.