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Each person has a unique reason to be pro-choice. Here are some of ours. I am pro-choice because I don't think there is any reason why a
woman should have to face all the consequences from something she
did not do alone. If a guy can get a woman pregnant and then run
away, there is no reason why she should be the one responsible for
everything. Having more options puts a woman on more equal footing
with men, instead of being someone of whom they can take
advantage. In addition, I believe that it is best for a child to
not be born at all than to be born hated, to a mother who is
forced to have him because she has no choice, and not because she
wants the child.
The single most important factor for women's advancement in
society is our ability to control our fertility. Without that, we
are trapped by the realities of pregnancy, childbirth and
childrearing; rather than a privilege and a gift, these aspects of
being female become an unbearable burden. Attempts to limit
women's reproductive freedom are no more than a gambit to keep
women "in their place"-- a gambit in the guise of religious
moralism. True, the guise can run deep, and many so-called
"pro-lifers" genuinely believe that killing a fetus is equivalent
to killing a human being. But such religious feeling has no place
in the public policies of a country that claims to separate church
and state. In the words of supreme court justices O'Connor,
Kennedy and Souter: "At the heart of liberty is the right to
define one's own concept of existence, of meaning, of the
universe, and of the mystery of human life." No one wants to plan
an abortion. But the best way to prevent abortions is to prevent
unwanted pregnancies: through sex education, improved distribution
of birth control, and general empowerment of women to shape our
own individual lives.
I think one of the biggest problems with the abortion debate is
that the two sides aren't in direct opposition. The pro-life
movement seeks to force their moral beliefs on others - grounded
in their own religion or personal philosophy. The pro-choice
movement doesn't make claims on the morality of abortion - we
leave that as an individual choice for every woman faced with an
unwanted pregnancy. If they feel abortion is wrong and they want
to give their child up for adoption, or keep it, we will support
their decision. Pro-life people say "Abortion is wrong;" we only
say "Abortion is." Making abortion illegal won't stop abortions
from happening, it will only stop them from being safe. 43% of
abortions worldwide are illegal. Changing laws doesn't solve the
problem, making contraception available and affordable does. If
we are to maintain the separation of church and state so central
to our nation's identity, we cannot have some people forcing their
beliefs on us all.
I believe strongly in taking responsibilities for one's
actions. I believe that people should practice safe sex or
abstinence. And I believe that the consequences of an unwanted
pregnancy can be worse than the "benefits" of having irresponsible
sex. However, in some cases, I believe that abortion IS taking
responsibility. Bringing an unwanted child into the world is
irresponsible. I am not pro-abortion. I am pro-choice. I
believe that every woman should decide what to do with her own
body without restrictions placed on her by a strongly religious
government that ironically preaches the 200 year old doctrine of
the separation of church and state. On that note, I think
religious freedom and education are also a constitutional right of
every citizen, but they do not belong in the hospital room.
Reproductive freedom is just as sacred and constitutional as
religious freedom. And I am not the opposite of "pro-life." I
love life and I love babies, but an unwanted life can be worse
than no life at all. I think safe sex and abstinence education is
needed. Like many pro-choice believers, I want the number of
abortions to be limited, or at least I want to limit the
overwhelming need for abortions.
I'm pro-choice because it's the only option that isn't poisoned
with misogyny. I believe that we are responsible for justifying
our beliefs, and just as one cannot claim that a given race is
inferior to another because "it's what I believe", I don't think
one can argue that old white men can assert control over a woman's
uterus -- and future -- because they claim to believe that a fetus
is comparable to a human life. That belief is so clearly a result
of the fact that only women can get pregnant and only women would
ever have to carry an unwanted fetus to term that I find it
laughable that anyone claims being anti-choice has anything to do
with concern for potential life. Can anyone really believe that
abortion would even be an issue if men had to face the possibility
of giving birth to and raising a child because of one night of
failed contraception?
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