With the 2020 Presidential Election a little over 1 month
away, it seemed only fitting that my first post after a long absence from my
blog be about why I think that many supporters on both sides of the political
aisle have misinterpreted the beliefs & values of their opponents. It seems to be especially prevalent when it
comes to the accusations made by the Republican party against the Democratic
Party.
For my first post, I am going to discuss the difference
between being Pro-Life vs being Pro-Choice and share with you why and how the
Republican Party has it wrong and is spreading inaccurate information. In addition, I will explain how laws that
restrict abortion and/or a woman’s right to choose her own reproductive health
care are unconstitutional. I fully
expect to receive
So, let’s jump right in.
Let’s talk about the difference between being Pro-Life and
Pro-Choice. This is probably the biggest
misconceived topic when it comes to the way Republicans try to undermine Democrats. Being Pro-Choice is NOT about being
Pro-Abortion. In fact, it is nearly the
opposite. Being Pro-Choice is having the
stance that each individual woman should have the right to make her own
decisions about her reproductive health.
In contrast, Pro-Life supporters believe that life begins at conception
and, therefore, abortion is “murder”. Scientifically,
this is not the case.
Did you know that prior to the Roe v. Wade decision that legalized
abortion, single women could not legally obtain birth control? That’s right! Prior to 1973, if you were single,
you could not legally obtain birth control.
Only married women could obtain prescriptions for birth control from
their doctors. So, not only were women
prohibited from legally & safely ending an unwanted pregnancy, they weren’t
even allowed to legally obtain the birth conte rol that would likely prevent
the unwanted pregnancy in the first place.
So, what does this mean in terms of Roe v. Wade and the Republican
party’s push to have the ruling overturned?
Theoretically, if the ruling is completely overturned by the Supreme
Court, single women may once again be banned from legal access to birth control. They would be forced to either continue with
an unwanted pregnancy or choose to terminate the pregnancy in unsanitary &
unsafe conditions. Banning abortions and
access to birth control does not help the advancement of women; but instead
brings women even further away from the equality they have fought decades for.
As a sociologist, I also have to look at the societal effect
that this contentious topic has on the world around us. I have to then propose that an answer be
found to certain consequences that may arise.
First, let’s think about what happens if abortion is delegalized and the
Republican Party/Pro-Life get what they want – for the Supreme Court to
overturn the 1973 Decision of Roe v. Wade.
Abortion for be illegal in all 50 states and the US territories. Women would be either forced to carry an unwanted,
and in some cases, potentially deadly, pregnancy leading to the birth of thousands
of unwanted children. If a woman decides that she cannot carry through with the
unwanted pregnancy, she will seek a “back alley” abortion clinic. That clinic in many cases will be unsanitary
& unsafe.
This could then lead to hundreds, if not thousands, of women
losing their own lives due to having no safe place to end the unwanted
pregnancy. Making abortion illegal does
not stop it from happening; it will make the conditions horrific & put more
and more women, especially young women, at a higher risk of infections, disease
& potentially death.
By allowing abortions to remain legal in all 50 states and
by declaring laws which prohibit abortions in various ways, we in effect
protecting the lives women. We are also
providing a means for the prevention of unwanted pregnancies by allowing all
women to obtain birth control to try to put an end to unwanted pregnancies. This includes allowing open access to the “morning
after” pill, also known as Plan B. In
addition, we are empowering young women to be able to stand up for themselves,
take control of their own lives and to deal with the consequences of their
actions, both negative and positive by making a choice that is right for
them. We are allowing them to make a choice
based on their own personal morals, values & beliefs and not based upon the
beliefs of some lawmaker.
Once we look at the ramifications for the health &
well-being of the woman, we have to then look at the potential effect that banning
abortions will have on our welfare system, foster care & adoption systems
and the well-being of the baby who has been brought into the world unwanted and,
in many cases, unloved by their birth parent.
Let’s say that a 23 years college senior has accidentally become pregnant. She has not yet graduated from college, so
she works at the local coffee shop to earn money while attending her university
classes. Roe v. Wade has been overturned,
so abortion is illegal and she became pregnant because she was no longer able
to obtain the birth control pills that would have prevented the pregnancy. Her partner used a condom, but it broke. This girl was afraid to have an illegal
abortion because she knew how unsafe it could be. She decided, together with her partner, that
they would put the unwanted baby up for adoption. This way they both could finish college and
go about their wonderful lives as if nothing had ever happened. Though the woman & her partner
desperately tried to find a loving, caring home for their baby, they were
unable to find adoptive parents before the baby’s birth. As a result, they baby was left in the care
of Social Services and placed in the foster care system until a family could be
found to adopt the baby. Because of the
number of children already in the foster care system, an adoptive family was
never identified and the baby grew up floating around from foster home to
foster home never really knowing the love of having a true family. At 18, they “aged out” of the system, unequipped
& financially unable to live on their own.
They end up living on the streets, homeless, with no where to go and no
family to care about them.. All while
the birth parents have long since graduated from college, have wonderful &
lucrative careers, ended up getting married and had more children, who were planned,
wanted & loved. Birth mom, however,
has a whole in heart where her first born child should be. She longs to have her first born in her life
and regrets her decision every day. She
is depressed and may even have developed some kind of dependence or addiction to
something that helps her to hide or forget about the pain; if only for a little
while. The child who was faced with a
life on their own, no real parents to raise them, no siblings to grow up with
and no family to provide emotional support has no education beyond what was
required by law, has no health coping skills and is unable to hold down a
decent job because they are so used to moving around all of the time.
This is the snowball effect that occurs when a woman’s
choice is limited or completely stripped away.
I have asked this question of many people who have identified themselves
to me as Pro-Life. That question is: Are you willing to adopt, love & care for
each and every unwanted child who is abandoned by their birth parent(s) who
were forced to give birth to a child they didn’t want, have no intention of
caring for, or don’t have the financial ability to care for? Are you willing to pay higher taxes so that
all of those unwanted children are able to be fed and clothed and cared for
through the welfare system? Are you
willing to love & support that young mother who may have made a mistake
that she wishes she hadn’t made and is now forced to care for a baby when she
is still a baby herself? If your answer to any of those questions is “no”; you
may need to reevaluate your stance on reproductive rights. You may need to consider that it’s not your
choice to make.
In conclusion, laws that are enacted using Christian ideology
and beliefs are a violation of the Constitution of the United States which
provides for the freedom of religion and the separation of church &
state. This means that our government shall
not force upon its citizens any particular official or national religion and
may not enact laws that infringe upon the religious freedoms of it’s citizens. Therefore, laws banning and/or restricting
abortion and a woman’s choice on how to address her own reproductive health
that are based upon the values of and scripture from the bible are, in fact,
unconstitutional.
No comments:
Post a Comment