Choose

I’ve been appalled in the last several months. The media seems littered with stories about states with legislative agendas related to the birth of a child. Pro-choice or anti-(insert your word preference here…anti-woman, anti-contraception, anti-welfare, anti-birth control, etc.); Pro-life or anti-abortion. Whatever words you want to use to describe your particular beliefs on the procedure, there is a bigger issue at hand.

Abortion laws vary greatly from state to state, and from country to country. For example, recent legislation in New York are perceived as an expansion of women’s rights; however, other states are pushing for more conservative approaches and restricting the opportunities and reasons – medical or otherwise – for the termination of a pregnancy, and including significant punishments medical professionals who assist. As of today, there are three countries in Latin America and two countries in Europe who have banned abortions entirely. There are many statistics from the World Health Organization (WHO) where countries who provide safe, educated environments for sexual health show declines of the rates of abortion.

There are so many examples of circumstances that could be considered a legal exception, such as if the woman was unmarried, because of age (if the woman was under the age of 18 – or whatever the legal marriage age may be – or over the age of 40 – when it is known to increase the risk of the health-related complications to the mother and the child she is carrying), the pregnancy was conceived under illegal circumstances (rape, statutory rape, etc.) or an incestuous relationship, birth defects, or risk to the health or life of the mother. However, women who undergo such an abortion generally do not face criminal penalties, but physicians who perform them face a fine or imprisonment if the procedure is performed outside of the legal exception. Have there been any known prosecutions of physicians for performing non–approved abortions? Is it a chance that is willing to be taken? Or will the procedures be forced to be performed in unsafe conditions? Will the mental and physical health of the mother and child be affected in the future with neglect or abuse by compelling the birth but denying the future wellbeing?

I read something recently that compared the choice of abortion to forcing someone to donate blood in order to save a life, or even taking a person’s organs once they are dead in order to save a life. It (currently) isn’t legal to do these, even though a life may be saved, as it was an infringement of bodily autonomy or bodily integrity. The point was telling a woman that she must sacrifice her bodily autonomy against their will to save what another person views as a human life is unethical.

The choice isn’t black and white. The impact is heartbreaking. The unearned shame is a burden.

Is it is medical procedure or a criminal act? The importance of a woman having a choice over her own body – no matter her race, religion, economic / social situation, or circumstances – is shown by steady declines and lowest abortion rates in areas where education is promoted and choice is a given.

It’s not just about Roe v Wade. It’s not just about a woman’s right to choose, or the science and legality of when a group of new cells is a human. It’s about the education and the why these choices are being made and the how of how we treat each other – how we speak to each other – in the process. There are no international or multinational treaties that deal directly with abortion, but human rights law touches on the issues.

Isn’t it insane how we tend to care more about other people’s lives than our own, that we want to control a body that is not our own?

Do not judge; You don’t know what storm I’ve asked her to go through.

“People are often unreasonable, illogical and self centered; Forgive them anyway.”

#anyway #reflectionsofanyway #kindness #motherteresa #motherteresaquotes