Pro choice because I value life
Let me start by saying I am not pro abortion...outside of a fringe few (the genocide dictators who do it based on race/ethnicity/tribe/etc) I cannot imagine anyone who is pro termination. I find it highly ironic that the extreme right wing who is so adamnatly anti-choice because of their supposed belief in the right of life (I chose to not say to on purpose) seem to often been adamantly pro capital punishment. These right wing people, to quote an old cynical cliche which sadly is so true, seem to think life begins at conception and ends at birth. This is why they have no trouble cutting back on all financial assistance to those who are already born. If they care so much about a non-viable life form, because I am not sure if it is "alive" but I know it is not a "living" thing at this stage, how can they care so little for how this child, when it is a living person, lives and thrives?
Having said that I am decidedly pro choice. This label has been demonized by the anti choice movement, because they are so not going be called right to life by me - their whole mantra is about ending rights. They depict the people who support this choice as baby killers bent on ending world reproduction or something equally crazy. There are extremes even within this extreme who believe that rape, incest, death of the mother are not viable reasons for termination. This is an attack primarily on women who are poor, and families who are poor, since they will be the ones without access to free medical care from places like Planned Parenthood which provide pre-natal care, they will have the illegal abortions that could kill them, they will have NO choice...are we now a nation that believes that our poor deserve nothing...not even the simple choice they have had for the past 50 years?? This has silenced many who believe in the right to choice. This silence is what scares me and I find I can be silent no more.
I am pro choice because this decision should be available for each indvidual to make. Contrary to propaganda machine from the religious fanatics and the current right wind government factions ...it is not fear of hell fire that scares people who make this choice but the personal trauma this causes to anyone who has ever had an abortion. Furthermore, I came from a country where first they banned abortion, then they banned birth control, since people were not having enough children mostly by choice. Most people did not want to bring a child into that grey tinged oppressive enviorment since as a parent the thing you hope most for your child is that they will be better in life than you and hope that they will make life a little better for the generations to come. Yet people were having children because for the most part humans are hopeful even under the worst of circumstances it is just that they were trying to have only what the family could hope to feed often. When the decrees went out ...shocker...abortions still happened. Only now they became life threatening for the mother if she was without a lot of money and do not kid yourselves even in Communism there are the 1%ers. If she did have means or connections the abortions were still dangerous for her and potentially for the person who performed them. The lack of birth control added to this by actually making abortions birth control...the fear and myth the far right loves spreading here now. The stories I have heard growing up from women from the former Eastern bloc nations where this was a rule sadden me...tales of abortions that left families without mothers, women without the ability to have any more children, and the trauma and fear that went with it. Not the fear of a wrathful God but the real fear of being found out and imprisoned. Yet for those of you who may read this and be anti choice you may have no sympathy because your belief is that these women were committing a mortal sin anyway...for those of you who feel that way just ask yourself since when is it not a sin to think you have the right to condemn someone as if you spoke for whatever God you chose to worship -- yes you chose? Yet I guess for those of you who believe this way it is your choice to make...and unlike you I believe you should have that choice. Historically speaking when abortions were illegal they were still done...less have been done with access to education than with threats of imprisonment.
So do I think abortion on demand with no counseling and discussion should occur? NO ...this is a matter that will impact your life and the choice you make will be with you forever. It is a medical procedure, and again am struck bit dumb by the fact that somehow the "right to life" finds no issue with terminating the life of the doctors who perform these procedures, with physical and emotional consequences. If we want abortions to be on the decline and rare, which by they way they have been since the advent of more birth control options for women, then let's teach people about birth control (real not the I've got no rhythm kind), abstinence, protection against diseases, and of course adoption as a CHOICE.
Having said that I am decidedly pro choice. This label has been demonized by the anti choice movement, because they are so not going be called right to life by me - their whole mantra is about ending rights. They depict the people who support this choice as baby killers bent on ending world reproduction or something equally crazy. There are extremes even within this extreme who believe that rape, incest, death of the mother are not viable reasons for termination. This is an attack primarily on women who are poor, and families who are poor, since they will be the ones without access to free medical care from places like Planned Parenthood which provide pre-natal care, they will have the illegal abortions that could kill them, they will have NO choice...are we now a nation that believes that our poor deserve nothing...not even the simple choice they have had for the past 50 years?? This has silenced many who believe in the right to choice. This silence is what scares me and I find I can be silent no more.
I am pro choice because this decision should be available for each indvidual to make. Contrary to propaganda machine from the religious fanatics and the current right wind government factions ...it is not fear of hell fire that scares people who make this choice but the personal trauma this causes to anyone who has ever had an abortion. Furthermore, I came from a country where first they banned abortion, then they banned birth control, since people were not having enough children mostly by choice. Most people did not want to bring a child into that grey tinged oppressive enviorment since as a parent the thing you hope most for your child is that they will be better in life than you and hope that they will make life a little better for the generations to come. Yet people were having children because for the most part humans are hopeful even under the worst of circumstances it is just that they were trying to have only what the family could hope to feed often. When the decrees went out ...shocker...abortions still happened. Only now they became life threatening for the mother if she was without a lot of money and do not kid yourselves even in Communism there are the 1%ers. If she did have means or connections the abortions were still dangerous for her and potentially for the person who performed them. The lack of birth control added to this by actually making abortions birth control...the fear and myth the far right loves spreading here now. The stories I have heard growing up from women from the former Eastern bloc nations where this was a rule sadden me...tales of abortions that left families without mothers, women without the ability to have any more children, and the trauma and fear that went with it. Not the fear of a wrathful God but the real fear of being found out and imprisoned. Yet for those of you who may read this and be anti choice you may have no sympathy because your belief is that these women were committing a mortal sin anyway...for those of you who feel that way just ask yourself since when is it not a sin to think you have the right to condemn someone as if you spoke for whatever God you chose to worship -- yes you chose? Yet I guess for those of you who believe this way it is your choice to make...and unlike you I believe you should have that choice. Historically speaking when abortions were illegal they were still done...less have been done with access to education than with threats of imprisonment.
So do I think abortion on demand with no counseling and discussion should occur? NO ...this is a matter that will impact your life and the choice you make will be with you forever. It is a medical procedure, and again am struck bit dumb by the fact that somehow the "right to life" finds no issue with terminating the life of the doctors who perform these procedures, with physical and emotional consequences. If we want abortions to be on the decline and rare, which by they way they have been since the advent of more birth control options for women, then let's teach people about birth control (real not the I've got no rhythm kind), abstinence, protection against diseases, and of course adoption as a CHOICE.
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