Who Cares if Abortion Is Legal if It Is Inaccessible?

I have to weigh in here--I hate to get sucked into a pro-choice/pro-life argument because it never seems to do any good. People feel the way they feel about it.

Nevertheless--I myself had an abortion, 2 years ago. I have never regretted it and I feel so lucky I live somewhere (Canada) where it was legal, safe, accessible and free (it is covered under Medicare, for anybody, for any reason). I never cared about the issue until I found myself with an unwanted pregnancy and I realized it was the only realistic option for me. I'm eventually going to write a blog post about my abortion experience because I just feel so passionately grateful that I was able to have one and I want so badly to have a conversation about abortion to get rid of some misconceptions about it.

It was not a sad experience for me. It was one of the best days of my life, actually. Which I know is strange, but it's a feeling of empowerment like no other. It was certainly not a source of trauma and when you remove all the controversy from it, for me it was basically like having a root canal, only it was not painful or even all that unpleasant. That's not to say that some circumstances (for example if a woman debated having the baby but ultimately decided abortion--I knew I wanted abortion before I even knew for sure that I was pregnant, so there was never any loss for me) would make it extremely difficult for some women. But we have to get away from the idea that there's anything inherent to the procedure itself that has a negative emotional or mental effect on women. As far as physical health, there are fewer risks from abortion than there are from pregnancy, particularly if in the first trimester. First trimester abortions are the vast, vast majority of abortions in Canada and probably the U.S. too. Most doctors will not perform one past 20 weeks unless it is to save a woman's life because that is when it starts to become risky for the woman.

The Smith bill, HR 3, is moving fast. Not only does it tax abortion services, but it also cuts off Medicaid funding for women who are raped (it changes the definition of rape) or have health complications. If this bothers you, please consider signing this petition:

http://org2.democracyinaction.org/o/6713/p/dia/act... ( http://org2.democracyinaction.org/o/6713/p/dia/act... )

Suzanne also blogs at CUSS and Other Rants ( http://cussandotherrants.com ) and is the author of Off the Beaten (Subway) Track ( http://offthebeatensubwaytrack.com ).

Great post. I was not aware of this inaccessibility as it appears to get no media attention, so thanks for so eloquently describing this issue. It seems people in power who oppose a law have their own way of getting around it.

I also like how you responded to the pro-lifer.

I blog about the arts and health and disability issues regularly at http://loveablehomebody.blogspot.com/

The Mad Housewife and Mad Merlot Mama blog at Desperately Seeking Coffee @ http://javainmyveins.blogspot.com/

Even if something were to be illegal in any sense, in any state, people will find a way to get it. For example, Prohibition. It was illegal to own, distribute, and consume liquor. Yet, people still found a way to access and consume it.

Abortion is like that. Now, I'm not here to tell you if it's wrong or right, you have your opinion and I have mine and I respect that.

But even if it IS outlawed, unplanned pregnancies happen. That is simply a fact of life. Women will find a way to abort the pregnancy, if that is what they choose.

If said woman grew up in an anti-abortion household, in an anti-abortion community & she gets pregnant outside of the acceptable boundaries (wedlock) she might very well choose abortion. Think about it: if she stays to carry the pregnancy to term, she might very well be ostracized & condemned for her "whore-ish" ways. Even if she puts the child up for adoption, that stigma will follow her.

So what does she do? She travels somewhere where she isn't recognized and finds someone who will perform an illegal procedure. Now she's risking her immediate and long-term health. This is not a good option.

Just my two cents

-Mad Merlot Mama

Thank you for this thoughtful, informative post. Well said and done.

Blondie writes at Tales From Clark Street ( http://www.talesfromclarkstreet.blogspot.com/ ).

Not to minimize this conversation with a cartoon but this was on Slate yesterday:

http://www.slate.com/id/2112318/fr/nl/

If nature/god/the universe saw fit to give women the power to bear life within a world they see fit, then I say so can I. She decides if her world is a place worth bringing a child into.

Religions and governments have always tried to marginalize (or take-over) a woman's sexual and reproductive decision-making power without making the world a better place for her children. That can leave mothers on the recieving end of very bad options.

For me, the abortion debate can never stand on it's own. Women bring children into a world that is socially and economicially not of their design. It forces a certain degree of dependency, then punishes women the most for that dependency.

The push back on legalize abortion reeks of morality and sexual control over women.

In a perfect world, rape would not exist, women would not seek abortions, and we would all live within an economic structure that directs resources to mothers instead of away from them.

We do not live in a perfect world. The plight of children who are here wear greatly on my conscience. We need to empower mother's everywhere. I dream big dreams to change this reality via my blog.

Thanks for this post!

Heather blogs about Motherhood & Other Offensive Situations at http://www.ultimateoutcasts.com.

This is a difficult discussion. It is one that requires us to make judements about another person's spiritual beliefs and physical and mental health.

If we were truly concerned about abortions, we would do everything in our power to make them as unneccessary as possible. Sex education would be available to everyone, be factual and include accurate information about birth control and birth control would be easily available.

We must admit even if we did all of that perfectly(and we don't come close to doing so), we would still have some number of unwanted pregnancies or wanted pregnancies that for unforeseen reasons are a danger to the mother.

Undoubtedly, mothers who contemplate ending a pregnancy and the people close to them go through heart wrenching trauma in deciding the best course of action. It would be callous and unfeeling to trivialize this pain and trauma. To pretend to understand the spritual beliefs, physical and mental health of the mother, and all of the other many issues that go into a decision of this magnitude better than the mother does is arrogant.
Centerist Cynic

www.whatweshouldknowblog.com ( http://www.whatweshouldknowblog.com )

First, women are women, but zygotes, embryos, and fetuses are not even close to babies. They are cells that could eventually turn into a baby, but just as a toddler is not an adult and we don't treat him like one because they are not developmentally the same, I don't afford the same privileges to zygotes, embryos, and fetuses as I do to babies. let's be very clear: scientifically, abortion does not kill any babies.

Speaking of science, there is absolutely no evidence that abortions lead to breast cancer, just as there is no evidence that immunizations lead to autism. Lots and lots of conclusive studies have shown this, whether you chose to believe them or not. (See: Guttmacher Foundation for a run down on all the research.) Nice dig on the mental stability, too, but again, research has not found that to be the case for most women. And there is not evidence that having an abortion will lead to later problems with fertility, unless of course a woman had an unsafe abortion because she couldn't access a safe one and something terrible happened. Tell me where you found your stats on deaths from abortions because I have never seen a reputable source that said anything even close to that.

Finally, yes, birth control is obviously best. This we agree on. :) But sometimes it fails for any number of reasons. Every choice in life has a consequence. I have the right to decide for myself which actions and consequences are right for me, just as you have the right to chose for yourself. Flat out, if my birth control failed, for a variety of reasons - including my own physical and mental health - the best option for me would be an abortion. In fact, being pregnant would lead to all of those bad things that you attribute to abortion, so please leave my health to me since I know me and my needs best, and I'll leave your reproductive status to you since you know what is best for you. Thanks.

Suzanne also blogs at CUSS and Other Rants ( http://cussandotherrants.com ) and is the author of Off the Beaten (Subway) Track ( http://offthebeatensubwaytrack.com ).

I find it interesting that you care about the women getting hurt in pregnancy but not the babies they are killing. I just never could understand that sort of argument. While it is very much true that women have health challenges when pregnant, there are many many women with health challenges that have abortions. The risk of breast cancer doubles after only one abortion. Legal abortion is reported as the fifth leading cause of maternal death in the United States. Look it up if you disagree.

Abortion is just simply unnatural and to think that there aren't going to be any repercussions from it in regards to health, future "wanted" pregnancies, and mental stability is just wishful thinking.

I have found birth control to be a faithful friend. I say give it a try.