Roe vs Wade
vs USA
By Hank Silverberg
By Hank Silverberg
Abortion! Say the word and you will get a great deal
of heated opinion from almost everyone. It is an issue which has divided the
country for more than four decades. Even the terminology sparks outrage.
Pro-life, Pro-choice, Anti-abortion and sometimes worse ----Pro-abortion or “baby
killers.”
http://www.ncregister.com/daily-news/marist-poll-pro-choice-and-pro-life-majorities-want-more-abortion-restricti
The latest poll from Marist College shows 55% of Americans identified themselves as “pro-choice," while 38% claimed to be “pro-life.” Only 16% of those who said they were pro-life also said they would like the Supreme Court to make abortion illegal in all circumstances, including rape, incest or a threat to the mother’s life.
And that brings us to the flurry of legislation passed this past week in Alabama, Missouri and Georgia. The details vary in these three states and in five others, which have taken similar tracks. The so- called “heart beat” bills in Georgia and Missouri are particularly heinous because they require women to make a decision at six or eight weeks, in many cases before she even knows she’s pregnant. Supporters agree these bills say they are really designed to prompt
(Courtesy of uscourts.gov) |
The Centers for Disease Control says abortions in the United States dropped 24% in the last decade, way before the rash of new restrictive laws were passed. That decrease, a trend that began with the 21st century, has been linked to an increase in sex education classes across the country and the availability of contraception. Those statistics were one of the reasons there was a major push during the health care debate to mandate the availability of contraception in health plans under the Affordable Care Act.
Both Alabama (2) and Georgia (7) are among the top ten states with high infant mortality rates, indicating a need for better prenatal care. Such care is also the mission of many of the same women’s health clinics that will be forced to close under the new restrictive abortion laws. In fact, a recent study indicates that is already happening.
https://www.guttmacher.org/state-policy/explore/sex-and-hiv-education
Taking all this into account, it is hard to argue against the “right to choose” on practical grounds, though those who are pushing this agenda will. They focus on religious or values-oriented arguments.
In 2016 the Guttmacher Institute, which researches reproductive health and rights, reported that only 25 states mandate sex education in schools, with 27 states producing guidelines on how sex education is taught. Only 13 of those states require that sex education be free from cultural, racial or religious bias.
And that is perhaps even more controversial.
Religious teachings vary on how they treat abortions. I am not a theologist, but here is just one example which has already created problems for anyone trying to legislate on abortion. According to Catholic liturgy, if faced with saving the life of the mother or her unborn fetus, the life of the fetus is given preference. Judaism teaches just the opposite. Based on the old testament, a fetus attains the status of a full person only AFTER birth. The Talmud, the Jewish book of laws, teaches that abortion is not merely permissible, but mandatory when the mother’s life is imperiled by her pregnancy. When faced with saving the mother or the child, the mother is given preference. (The Torah does not specifically address abortion, but the law is interpreted in the Mishnah from Exodus 21:22-23, if you want to look it up.)
That puts some state laws at odds with the religious teachings of some of their residents, and presents a constitutional issue that has yet to be addressed. Bottom line, it’s a decision that should be made by the woman, and in some cases with consultation with her husband, according to their own beliefs and guidance from a doctor. It is not something the government should decide. Doctors need to be free to give their best medical advice based on their training and not be hampered by outrageous threats of long-term prison sentences for performing a medically necessary procedure.
The second value issue is straight forward. What gives the government the right to decide what a woman can do with her body? The same conservatives who argue the government should not regulate gun ownership, are trying to tell women that the government can decide how to regulate the female body. The hypocrisy is obvious, but often ignored. And then, to further regulate women to second class citizens, legislatures like the one in Alabama want to force women to carry the child of the man who raped them, or an incestuous rape that often leads to genetic defects.
There is one other side here. Many in the pro-choice
community
So, to sum up, let's make a few things clear.
*Being
“pro-choice” does NOT mean you are pro-abortion.
*Proponents of
restrictions on abortions are pushing these very severe bills to force a
re-evaluation of Roe v Wade and an eventual decision that will have an impact
nationwide. But polls still indicate, as they have for decades, the majority of
Americans believe abortion should be legal.
*It’s time for
the government to stay out of a woman’s uterus and let each individual make her own decision based on her own personal values and medical condition.
This debate has gone on long enough. Abortions are
legal in the United States and should stay that way. Let’s concentrate on bigger health issues for women
and babies, like accurate non-judgmental sex education, affordable effective
contraception, better foster care and adoption programs, help for unwed teenage
mothers who want to keep their babies, and good prenatal care.
(Your comments and suggestions are welcome. See the comment section below.)
(Your comments and suggestions are welcome. See the comment section below.)
Great piece of writing Hank.
ReplyDelete
ReplyDeleteAs always Hank you have some good insight. But your analysis only addresses the pro-choice debate. It doesn't address the pro-life view that there is indeed a vulnerable human life who is affected.
I find myself hesitant to share such things out of respect to friends I have on both sides of issues like this. I have never been a fan of government induced morality - because it isn’t. And at the same time, I don’t believe solutions come in ‘All or Nothing’ silos crafted by parties and politicians. These are human moments. What surprises me are the evidential extremes that are being revealed within the abortion industry - and yet good people on all sides simply stay silent.
There is such clear evidence that abortion means more than choice and untold millions for the richest providers. All at the hands and hearts of the poor, vulnerable and minorities. It’s starting to make sense why any other viable option, including adoption, is never given equality in the doctor / patient conversation.
For me, it was the New York decision that made me question my own ability to just watch politics trounce simple truths. We are no longer talking about when a baby is a baby. Now it's plainly obvious that pro-abortion leaders just don't care.
In making termination of life acceptable for a fully viable human baby - possibly even after birth - where are we going as a society? Silence supports that, whether it’s popular or not.
Norway has almost eliminated people with disabilities like Down’s Syndrome. Believing that somehow personal decisions like abortion are better. I had the recent pleasure of working with special needs adults and children with Down’s and what a joy they are to be around. They like other lifestyles don't need to be 'fixed'.
As someone with two chronic illnesses, do I become a ‘less than’ in my own life time?
It's a broader question for the media and the mind. Do I one day lose life saving meds to the new social norm because my situation isn’t perfect? And I'm a burden.
Then you have state representatives like John Rogers, who’s own words speak against the hope and future of people who one day could our next champion. Our next cancer cure, or our next MLK but have lesser hope before they are even given a chance.
The real sin isn't abortion. It's the self-absorbed belief that 'we' know best what a person can be or do with their life - without ever knowing them and using only adversity stereotypes.
I have many friends on both sides of this issue, and I dearly love them. But one does not need a religious reason to see the reason why so many are speaking up.
https://www.realclearpolitics.com/video/2019/05/02/alabama_state_dem_rep_john_rogers_defends_abortion_you_kill_them_now_or_you_kill_them_later.html
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/down-syndrome-iceland/
I am remaining anonymous because I too work in the media, but sharing a pointed counter cultural view like this isn't good for the career. Gone are the days of reason and debate if you don't fit the newsroom worldview...
A reply to anonymous:
ReplyDeleteFirst, thanks for the comment. I do ask of all posters that all comments be kept short and to the point.
A clarification. This is NOT a reporter story. It clearly states at the top of the blog that this is an opinion piece and although I base my opinion on facts and research it is still opinion and not meant to reflect all sides on an issue.
As for a direct response to what you wrote. I have no issue with people who are morally opposed to abortion for themselves or their family. That is their belief and we live in a free society. I do however, along with millions of Americans, believe abortion is a private, personal decision that should NOT involve any regulation by the government.
HS