Back Rooms: Voices from the Illegal Abortion Era

In the book Back Rooms: Voices from the Illegal Abortion Era by Ellen Messer and Kathryn E. May, it goes back and interviews women before abortion was legal. The main point of the book is to show the this obscure legalization of abortoin now and for the future should be compared with how women had to deal with such a burden in the past. The emotion throughout the book remained largely depressing due to the women in the novel not being able to lean on their family or anyone during such an emotional time in their life. They would have to resort to back allies and different at-home methods that would end up abusing their health and sometimes death.

A woman from the novel, Liz, states that she, "would have been more prepared and all our lives would have been so much easier. Even though I love my children dearly, I regret that I did not have an abortion when I was given the option. I should never have let others influence my decision" (Messer, and May 63). After letting this sink in, it makes me sick to stomach to think about how other's opinoins and influences are so ignorant and demanding, that they see no other way but theirs. Sure, stand strong for your beliefs, but respect the beliefs of others as well. I could not imagine living in such a time period where it was illegal. If women feel prosecuted now, imagine how they felt before our generation of it being legal? Women before this time often felt that if they were successful in getting an abortion, they often viewed it as a life-affirming action because they now had a second chance at fulfilling their goals.

In another abstract from the novel, it describes a woman who was a "suspected criminal" for having an abortion. Yet, the flip side of this is about halfway through her pregnancy, she began to miscarry. She began to have excruciating pain and major bleeding. However, because terminating a pregnancy was illegal, she was guilty until proven innocent of having aborted herself. Keep in mind, not only was she upset over the loss of the miscarried baby she was carrying around, but the emotional stress and contemplation of suicide sat like a weight on her shoulders while the court tried to prosecute her. Things like an abortion effect ALL women, not simply those who are pro-choice or women who seek to have an abortion.

This novel only shows the voices of the survivors and those who are even able to talk about their experience. Many women out there have been stripped from life, freedom, and happiness. Because they had to remain silent, the novel provides a way to demonstrate what women would have to endure if abortion were illegal like the generations before us.

Messer, Ellen, and Kathryn May. Back Rooms: Voice from the Illegal Abortion Era. Buffalo: Prometheus Books, 1994. Print.

A (Possibly) Happy Birthday

The video is a commercial promoting pro-life decision making. It is basically a montage of pictures of happy children laughing and playing to the tune of happy birthday. It begs the question, "Will it have a first birthday?" The video works to appeal to the viewer's emotions. However, at the end, it steps out and draws a parallel between abortion and statism, showing a picture of a line of tanks.

This video, like the rest of the never ending parade of pro-life videos, does indeed work to manipulate the viewer's emotions. However, it all draws off of one base assumption - that the baby's life will be a joyful one. There is no telling what kind of life the baby might have if it were born. It might be abused by a crack whore mother that didn't want it, or kidnapped and tortured, or sexually abused by its father. No one knows. When you realize this, there's that sudden feeling of "Oh wait..." And as for comparing abortion to statism (a system of institutionalized violence and perpetual civil war, that leaves men no choice but to fight to seize power over one another), personally, I think that's just a bit dramatic. But I guess that's up to each viewer.

"New Pro-Life Campaign." Web. 12 May 2010. <">http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U85LKzAI62M>.

Oh, the Irony

Katha Pollit conveys a very unique and critical look at the abortion debate in her article. She shows what abortion has become - a taboo topic, one that she compares to smoking crack. She makes several humorous and ironic remarks such as "[Abortion] needs to be legal for reasons of abstract principle ('choice')." She shows the almost unbelievable double standards that America has set, firmly trying to destroy methods of birth control preventions while these are the only things that can buffer abortion rates. She goes on to explain the fecklessness of the zero abortion mentality and how with a little tolerance we can be at peace.

I think Pollit's piece is a pivotal work of pro-choice tolerance. She makes many good points, but what makes her piece truly outstanding is that she plays it so bluntly. She recognizes that zero abortion is an impossible idea, and that people will never agree on abortion stances. What she does is pleads for tolerance, and shows just how hypocritical the many faces of the whole abortion debate are. What she shows is true; abortion has truly stayed legal not because people want it, but because it just "has to be there." Maybe people have forgotten what this country was really founded on.

Politt, Katha. "Let Us (Not) Pray." The Nation. The Nation, 2010. Web. 21 April 2010. http://www.thenation.com/article/let-us-not-pray

The Truth About Ignorance

In the article, Chuck Baldwin presents his (very strong) opinions on abortion, and then moves on to criticiaze the government and the character of American citizens themselves. He portrays abortion as nothing more than murder, and the people who advocate it as murderers. He presents few statistics to back up his claims. He says that pro-abortionists have a complete and total disregard for human life and that human life begins at the moment of conception.

Chuck Baldwin comes in swinging like a raving lunatic - spouting off random opinions and statistics with no sources. He claims that his hometown had a 39% abortion rate in 2003, a statistic with no research to back it up (not to mention it doesn't cover the national level). But he doesn't stop there; he goes on to claim that the mother's womb is the most dangerous place to be, the point at which most people would stop and think, "Does this man actually have a brain?" He takes one of the most horrid examples of a slippery slope fallacies I've ever witnessed - apparently just because abortion is allowed we will be killing old people next. It's nothing more than crazed anti-abortion ranting. Afterwards, he goes on some long, and just as nonsensical, tangent about the government and degrading morals of America... apparently he ran out of things to say about abortion but just felt the need to keep on spouting. Typical.

Baldwin, Chuck. "The Truth About Abortion." News With Views. NewsWithViews.com, 2009. Web. April 16, 2010. http://www.newswithviews.com/baldwin/baldwin563.htm

What is ProLife?

In the article on christiananswers.net, the author presents their definition of what abortion is. They interpret it as nothing more than the act of murdering a human being. Nothing more nothing less. The author presents this act as completely unjustified, as the developing fetus is totally innocent. The author then moves on to criticize people who hold the stance that says they are both pro-life and pro-choice on the topic of abortion, such as: "I'm personally against abortion, but I don't object to a woman who wants to have one if she believes it is the right thing to do." The author calls this position completely hypocritical, claiming that it is morally wrong to take this stance.

After a thourough reading of the article, it should be obvious to any logical reader that this article was written by a completely biased and almost uneducated sounding woman. The article starts off with an invariably nonsensical claim of "The unborn entity is fully human from the moment of conception." Even though it has been decided in judicial courts all over America that an unborn fetus cannot be considered a human being until the age of viability (approx. 22 weeks into the conception period). Despite this incontraversible evidence, she sticks to her ignorant claim that we are human from the moment of conception, seemingly ignoring all conceived evidence manifested by the intellects of America. She also claims that the "killing" is unjustified. However, while it is not even considered killing since the fetuses are younger than the age of viability, it is justified. The abortion may save the life of the mother, keep her out of financial strife, or prevent a lifetime of abuse and neglect for the future baby. She rationalizes her whole argument to one point - that abortion is morally wrong because it is the murder of innocents. It is a faulty, oppinionated argument, one that has been repealed over and over again in court, yet ignorance persists.

Beckwith, Francis. "What is Pro-life? Can one be both pro-life and pro-choice?". Christian Research Institute. 2010 http://www.christiananswers.net/q-sum/q-life001.html

The video clip previously posted greatly summarizes the entire view of what "ProChoice" really stands for. Many tend to forget that it is a woman's body- it is her own. In the clip, it even symbolizes the government rule over women with a simple branded "Property of the U.S. Gov't" on the lower right hip. This reflects of what could be if abortion were to be illegal. In the last part of the clip, "Lose your choice. Lose your freedom." concludes the entire video in that we live in a country that is supposedly free. Without the woman having her own choice, who is to say we are truly living in the "land of the free"?

Although the video clip is very short, I feel that is says all that is needed to be said. A woman's right to abortion is her right. Not the U.S. Government's, not her dad's, not her boyfriend's, not her husband's, not her mother's- it is HER choice. It's devastating that abortion has become this ignorant. From "killing babies" and killing doctors who perform abortions clearly show that these "ProLifers" do not have their priorities in order. I believe it is the woman who goes through the depression during pregnancy. It is the woman who has to carry around a fetus for nine months. It is the woman who has to go through child birth. And in many cases, it is the woman who will take full responsibility for the child. If a woman is responsible for all of these things, then shouldn't she have the full right to decide whether or not she wants to have an abortion?

"ProChoice". Arykafilms. 2010 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XR88NRTgIV4&feature=related

Who's to say when life begins?

Many people will argue that a human life begins at conception. However, ask yourself this: If a fire breaks out in a fertility clinic, and you can only save a Petri dish with five blastulae or a two year old child, which one do you save if they are "equal"? According to catholiceducation.org, the website resists pro choice in stating that "it is patently arrogant that we, as adults, get to decide for the most vulnerable of our society- our unborn children, who cannot speak for themselves- who lives and who dies." Yet, the website never mentions rape cases and the mental trauma a full out pregnancy can bring on the woman. Many christian-based answers to when life begins would naturally be conception, when the sperm meets the egg. However, women have an egg every month that dies but that is not considered a "human life". Elaborating on that topic they will fight and say that "life is a continuous cycle of developing" but how can it be considered a human being when it still relies on the mother to stay alive. The developing of the baby depends on the mother and is therefore not an independent individual. Yes, it has 46 of it's own chromosomes, but the fertilized egg will not survive unless fully dependent on the mother's will.

Throughout the article, the website bashes pro choicers in stating that the pro choicers are wrong in that they believe that life does not begin until birth. Who is to say that the christian way is right? Who is to say that a law should make every woman's decision? To determine when life truly begins you must really study your beliefs on life itself. Why can't life just be as simple as: Abortion is legal: If your beliefs believe otherwise, don't get one. Stop forcing your beliefs on others. It's not getting us any closer to world peace.

Dougherty, Jon. "Life begins at Conception". Catholic Education Resource Center. 2010 http://www.catholiceducation.org/directory/Current_Issues/Abortion/