Pro-Choice Does Not Equal Pro-Abortion

I have never touched on this subject on here before because I always thought it was too much of a downer but I recently read a letter to my local paper and it just pushed me over the edge enough to write this article. The person that wrote the letter was upset about the paper not covering the “Right to Life” rally in DC that happened on the weekend of the 21st and 22nd of January, 2012. She also mentioned that she was happy that more and more young people are choosing to be pro-life, a fact that I believe is a bit skewed, and that she hopes that Roe vs. Wade would be overturned after this fall’s elections.

Before I go any further, I would like to start for the fact that I am pro-choice. Personally, I don’t think I could ever terminate a pregnancy, unless there were some kind of extenuating circumstances, such as I became pregnant because I was raped or if my life or the baby’s life would be in danger if I carried to term. I would also like to state that I believe that too many women get an abortion to get rid of a “problem” and that I believe that is a horrible thing to do. I believe that people need to be personally responsible for their decisions and if you are a woman and can’t take the responsibility to use some kind of contraceptive or to make sure that the guy you are with uses a condom, then you should step up and at least give birth to the baby. In that way, they will at least learn a lesson and maybe from that point on they will take precaution until they are ready to have a child. Many people I have met that are pro-choice feel the same way I do in this regard. So when the pro-life crowd paints us as people that are pro-abortion, it just isn't the case.

Now it’s time to move on and discuss the main purpose for this article. The main issue with overturning Roe vs. Wade and this is something the pro-life advocates don’t seem to think about and that is that just because you make it illegal, doesn’t mean they are going to stop. What they seem to forget is that abortions were occurring before they became legal nationwide. Women would either do it themselves with a hanger or contact some back alley surgeon to take care of it. All you have to look at is what happened during prohibition. Obviously it’s not the same thing but the point is that alcohol was illegal at the time and that didn’t stop people from getting a drink when they wanted it and the same thing would happen with the repeal of Roe vs. Wade.

I completely understand why certain people want to outlaw abortion. As I made clear earlier, I think abortion is hardly ever the answer and it is something I wouldn’t really consider doing myself. The question everyone has to ask themselves though is what is worse, outlawing abortion and forcing women that want to get one into a dangerous and possibly deadly situation or would you rather allow abortions and keep everyone who chooses that route safe from unsafe medical procedures that are wither self-administered or through a back alley doctor?

Now let us take a look at one of the big debates going on right now over abortion and that is the question of when do you consider what grows inside the womb is an actual human being? Many people on the pro-life side consider that to be the moment of conception. As for myself, I believe that a fetus isn’t really a human until he or she can survive outside the mother. The reason I bring up this debate is because the main purpose, or so it seems, is that the “life begins at conception” crowd contends that abortion is wrong because it constitutes murder. Many of these same people also object to abortion because they believe it’s a sin to stop a life from beginning. Of course some, not all mind you, believe that using contraceptives are also a sin because sex should really only be used to try and reproduce. Typically this group is made up of mostly Christian fundamentalists and political Conservatives. This same group is also against sex education in schools and the welfare systems in this country. So let me ask you this, if you are so angry at all these people having babies and living off the government, then why are you against giving everyone the chance to at least learn how to keep themselves from getting pregnant? They could always give the child up for adoption you might say. Well, that’s a grand idea. The only problem is there are already a ton of children waiting to be adopted. So I guess all these pro-lifers might not be willing to put their money where their mouth is?

I know this has been a pretty heavy subject matter for this particular blog but I felt I had to get this off my chest. I want to leave you all with one more thought though. Even if you are pro-life, that is your choice. It’s a choice in the same way that someone else may choose to get an abortion. So what you have to ask is if you are willing to make that choice for everyone?