pro-choice is NOT pro-abortion

Now, I don’t want to go into a diatribe, but I do want to add to what I was talking about in my post about abortion yesterday. Basically, this desire to continue what I was saying, came from the news coverage of the anti-abortion rallies going on all around the country, right now; but more specifically, it was a comment that I read on Joseph’s blog last night. A blogger commented that he was adopted, and was therefore against abortion, because if abortion were legal, then he may not have been born. Now, I don’t want to single this person out, and I don’t want to say that they are not entitled to there opinion; an old roommate of mine was in the same situation, and held the same point of view. But, I do believe that line of thinking is both misinformed and dangerously ignorant. See, saying that you are for abortion laws, does not mean that you want everyone to get an abortion. Just because people have the right to have an abortion, doesn’t mean they necessarily will; but if they do, it is a decision that they should make, not the government. Many women have the option of abortion right now, and still choose to carry a pregnancy to term, and use adoptive services. The adoption services of this country are overflowing with children right this very moment because of these countless examples of choosing to carry the pregnancy to term; so I believe it is unfair to place the imposition of “abortion right = abortion practice”, on the right to choose. In my opinion, that is taking it a little too far.

When someone says that they are pro-choice, it means that they are for the woman’s right to choose what she does with her own body. They agree with the rights of privacy and freedoms granted to all citizens, and believe they should be extended to women and their bodies. They believe that women should be given the option of making the decision of whether or not to abort a pregnancy; not the government.

I am not a woman, so I cannot tell you what I would do if I were faced with pregnancy. But I can tell you what it is like to be without certain civil rights. And based on that, I believe with all of my being, that the right to choose is fundamental and essential.

What many people do not consider, and that which may be the greatest mistake of all, is that every situation, and every pregnancy is different. Many are wanted. Many are joyous and wonderful. Many are healthy and thriving. But many are not. Many are the product of rape. Many are the product of physical and mental abuse. Many are the product of sexual abuse. Many are the product of child abuse. Many are unhealthy and unsafe for both the mother and the baby. So the question becomes, “Should these cases be forced to carry a pregnancy to term?” Should a woman who is brutally raped be forced to bear an unwanted pregnancy, just because the government has more control over her body than she does? Should a little girl be forced to carry a pregnancy to term, that was forced on her by her sexually abusive father? I don’t think that any of these are right, and that is one of the main reasons, why I am pro-choice. But extreme circumstance or no, I believe a woman deserves the right to make the decision herself.

Being pro-choice means that you believe in the woman’s right to choose which option is best for her. She can choose what she believes is best for her, her body, and her pregnancy. For many women, ending that pregnancy is the best option for them; and I believe that in a country that touts freedom and liberty, denying women these rights is pure and utter hypocrisy. Believing abortion is right or not is NOT the issue. Believing in a woman’s right to choose what she does with her own body and her own life, is. Don’t choose to be pro-life, just because you don’t believe in abortion; know that you are going against the freedoms and liberties we, as Americans, are promised. And know that if these rights are taken away, many of which many have been restricted or taken already, that it is only the beginning of the improper use of governmental control over the citizens of this country.

[pic above is from indybay.org]