Abortion just as common where it's illegal.
A woman I used to volunteer with as a "buddy" for HIV+ patients once told me about her abortion. She was 17 and about to go off to Mount Holyoke -- a big deal for her. One night, she and her steady boyfriend just went a little too far in the heat of passion. The year was 1968. Abortion was illegal.
But that didn't stop her from getting one. It just stopped her from getting one in the safety of a hospital or doctor's office. Hers was done, literally, in the back of a station wagon for $200. She felt lucky that she didn't die of an infection. Others, she knew, did.
It's basic supply and demand. There will always be unwanted pregnancies -- more, most likely, as we push "abstinence-only" sex education -- and as such, there will always be someone willing to perform terminations, no matter the political, religious or socio-economical trends of the day.
I think this is a crucial thing to remember moving forward. The reasons why Roe vs. Wade made it to the Supreme Court in the first place. Why they determined that abortion should be legal. The outcome if it were to be made illegal again.
Just something to think about.
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3 comments:
Couldn't agree more! It's going to happen no matter what; it might as well be safe.
abstinence only sex ed = pregnant teenagers. making it harder and harder for women to get birth control, pharmacists who won't dispense BC, charges at Universities for BC going up.. = unwanted pregnancies. I cannot understand HOW making BC harder and harder to get, is going to help anyone! And then to make legal, safe, clean terminations harder and harder to get, isn't helping either.
LAW
This is a tough, tough, tough issue.
I think the problem that I have with making abortion "legal" is that somehow that starts to translate into "legitimate" as in an "equally fine choice" when faced with the fact of pregnancy.
I think the "choice" should come sooner - namely at the time one decides whether or not to have sex and whether or not to use birthcontrol. (recognizing that there are things potentially out of our 'control' here, as well).
So anyway, I think that "termination" should be recognized as generally not a good choice - even if I am willing to acknowledge that there are times when even a bad choice is required under the circumstances. . . .
Germany has an interesting way of proceeding that actually makes sense along these lines: Abortion is not legal, but it's not prosecuted. And they did it that way for the very reason I've just oulined: they didn't want to legitimize abortion as one of several - equally valid - "choice" options. At the same time, they also recognize that there are situations in which that bad choice is unfortunately the best one, under the circumstances. . . . but that the abortion remains unfortunate.
With 'choice', I think we need to consider just what is legitimately ours to chose; what may we control.
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