Refuting the Pro-Choice "Forced Gestation" Argument & Additional Thoughts

I recently read a well thought-out secular pro-life article in response to the pro-choice "forced gestation" argument which can be summed up as saying: opposition to & restriction of abortion is akin to forcing women to continue pregnancies they don't want/forcing women to birth children they don't want & in the more extreme pro-choice viewpoint: akin to treating women as nothing more than brood mares. Haven't heard this argument? Well then you haven't met the likes of the mainstream online pro-choice community over at RH Reality Check. But I digress, the secular pro-life article I'm referring to can be read here: http://liveactionnews.org/the-pro-choice-myth-of-forced-pregnancy/

I thoroughly agree with the premise of this article & the inherently flawed logic in the pro-choice "forced gestation" argument. In addition, to argue that women are inherently unequal due to our biology & unable to fully participate in society unless we deny our femininity & alter our biology (by chemically sterilizing ourselves or aborting our off-spring) in order to gain equality is to treat women as inherently second class citizens & seems to fly in the face of what our feminist fore mothers believed. Rather women should be truly valued for our traits as individuals with intrinsic value, not who we have to become to be valued or accepted as equal (& this also could be said of sexual orientation, skin color, appearance, economic status, cultural background, or religious beliefs).

Spreading Awareness About Down Syndrome

Rachael's Note: March 21st is World Down Syndrome Day (named for Trisomy 21, the condition which causes Down Syndrome). The diagnosis of Down syndrome often strikes fear and dread in an expectant mother's and father's heart. The Down syndrome diagnosis often brings forth images of mentally handicapped individuals unable to take care for themselves and partake in life in any real way, and the need to care for their child for the rest of their life. Also, many people still view Down Syndrome as "terminal illness" like cancer or heart disease, and the individuals with this condition "defective" or "broken." These and other misconceptions about Down syndrome are often based on worse-case scenarios, misperceptions, sterotypes, and ignorance, and further perpetuate these fears. I have been working in direct care for 7 years and have met and worked with individuals with a variety of developmental disabilities. Today, I will be sharing information, based on my own knowledge/experience as well as from professional/parent resources, to debunk many of the misperceptions and stereotypes about Down Syndrome. Down Syndrome it is a developmental disability. Down syndrome is a genetic condition that causes delays in physical and intellectual development. While there is no cure for Down syndrome, there are many treatments available for the problems associated with Down syndrome. Approximately 40% of the children have congenital heart defects. Some of the heart conditions require surgery immediately after birth/in early childhood, while others only require careful monitoring. Children with Down syndrome have a higher incidence of infection, respiratory, vision and hearing problems as well as thyroid and other medical conditions. However, with appropriate medical care most children and adults with Down syndrome can lead healthy lives. The average life expectancy of individuals with Down syndrome is 55 years, with many living into their sixties and seventies. Unfortunately, for individuals with Down Syndrome, there is a higher chance of developing dementia and Alzheimer's, however this doesn't mean every individual will develop it.

Also, most people with Down syndrome have only mild to moderate mental retardation. More important than IQ scores is the fact that all individuals with Down syndrome are capable of learning. Most children with Down syndrome in the United States are “mainstreamed” into regular schools. They attend regular classes for some subjects and attend special classes for other subjects and continue to earn a certificate of completion or graduate from high school. A large percentage of adults with Down syndrome live semi-independently in supported living homes and assisted living facilities. Adults with Down syndrome often hold jobs and have romantic relationships. Some high school graduates with Down syndrome participate in post-secondary education. Many adults with Down syndrome are capable of working in the community, but some require a more structured environment, such as a supervised workshop.

It's important to remember that individuals with Down Syndrome are people too. They enjoy various hobbies and activities and have individual likes and dislikes like you and I. Also, people with Down syndrome experience a full range of emotions such as sadness, anger and happiness & they respond to positive expressions of friendship and they are hurt and upset by inconsiderate behavior, just like everyone else.

Disability rights organizations, care providers, and individuals and their families are seeking to educate the public and bring about awareness about Down Syndrome so that better treatments can be found, to lend to more education and understanding of the condition, and bring about awareness.

For more information on Down Syndrome and to listen to families and individuals with Down Syndrome share their insight and experiences, please visit:

Room for More: World Down Syndrome Day

CDAC
Offers scientific research, information, education, and suuport to parents and families of children with Down Syndrome as well as awareness and education for the medical professionals and the general public. Written by parents of a child with Down Syndrome.

National Down Syndrome Society Offers advocacy, outreach, education, and support and resources for families, parents, and medical professionals. Helpline: 1-800-221-4602

SOFT
Support Organization for Families of Trisomy, a nonprofit volunteer organization offering support for parents who have had or are expecting a child with a chromosome disorder and education to families and professionals interested in the care of these children.

Recommended Down Syndrome Sites on the Internet
Compiled by Len Leshin, M.D.

Hidden Treasures: The Trisomy 21 Journey
Parents from all around the world share their stories.

Video: Dreams
Dreams features children and adults who have Down syndrome talking about their dreams and what they're proud of in their lives. This fun and inspirational video made by Scott and Julia Elliott celebrates the work of the National Down Syndrome Society and the larger Down syndrome community.

My Letter to Abortion Providers

Today, March 10th is National Abortion Provider Appreciation Day. Here are my thoughts in a letter to abortion providers (doctors, nurses, & clinic staff).

Dear abortion providers,
Although you ment well & were trying to help, there are many women who've been hurt by their abortion(s) in addition to those who've benefited.
http://silentnomoreawareness.org
http://afterabortion.com
As you may know, an abortion is often a short-term fix to long-term problem(s) such as poverty, homelessness, & limited education. Please re-consider your work & let's work together to find other ways to better address these issues & work together to strengthen & empower women. 
Sincerely,
A pro-life feminist

Posted via Blogaway

Craft Project!

My dad and I recently completed a Father-Daughter project we had been working on in the evenings. He taught me basic carpentry skills while we turned an ordinary cat scratching post into a cat tree house (recycling extra scrap carpet, wood, & rope we had lying around). It was a ten hour project and every bit worth it, they love it!

Light Blogging/Tweeting This Week

Just to let my readers know, I'll be doing little blogging/tweeting this week, as I'm working 30 plus hours, preparing for my younger sister's upcoming wedding (which I'm a bridesmaid in), and visiting with family from out of state and country...I'm staying busy!

8 Reasons Why I Oppose Abortion (and you should too)...

1)One does not need to be religious to oppose abortion on the grounds that abortion ends the life of an new, individual, human being (this is scientific fact)

2) Abortion providers are poorly regulated and inspections/regulations are not enforced

3) Abortion Enables sexual abuse to continue undetected

4)Abortion enables irresponsible men to avoid taking responsibility for pregnancies& children they helped to create.

5) In addition, the whole abortion rights argument was built on a lie. First of all, Norma McCorvey, was an low-income woman who did not want an abortion but was lied to & used by the pro-choice lawyer to garnish sympathy for abortion rights.

6) The coat hanger abortion is a misrepresentation of abortion before legalization, only around 6% of abortions were self-induced (& those which were, were likely to be an acts of desperation & self-injurious behavior rather than empowerment), & the majority were done by reputable physicians in good standing at their offices & inhospitals. In fact, the maternal mortality rate for abortion had started dropping in the years prior to legalization.

7) Elective abortion (for any reason through all nine months) was made legal on the representation of abortion being necessary for rape, incest, & fetal abnormalities, although these only account for less than 3% of all abortion reported in a given year. In other words, it’s always been white, upper-class feminist elitists using disadvantaged individuals in their cause to garnish & protect elective abortion rights for themselves & not caring who they trample on in the process.

Happy 4th of July/Endor Day!

Happy 4th of July/Endor Day!

 

Today we celebrate freedom and liberty and remember

 those who lost their lives so we may live free

Slowly Returning from Hiatus

Hello to my dedicated readers and welcome to my new visitors. As you may know, I've been on a hiatus over the last couple of years due to personal circumstances. I'm happy to report that my haitus is over and I will be slowly returning to regular blogging as work and time allows. You may have noticed I recently made some changes in the appearance and lay out of my blog as I try to make it more streamline and easier to read and I will continue to make improvements as needed. Thank you and carry on.

Is This Really Being Pro-Choice & Supportive of Women? (Or Rather How Not To Hold a Protest)

Yesterday while surfing Twitter, I came across the following pro-choice blog, AbortionChat where they are discussing protests of CPCs (or Crisis Pregnancy Centers) and I'd like to discuss a few thoughts on this...

Two weeks ago, a group of people stood outside a Crisis Pregnancy Center holding signs that said, "Come Talk to Me!" "Your Body, Your Choice!" "We Support You" and "Honk if You Love Choice!  

Here are their reflections:  

What was your objective today? Do you feel like you accomplished it?  

Damien: I was there to support women's rights and my girlfriend, so yes. I think I accomplished those goals.

Jennifer: My objective was to express my feelings about being ProChoice, and I feel like I did accomplish that.  

Echo: My objective was to talk to people and give out more information about how crisis centers like the one we were at are giving out false information and lying by omniscient [sic-omission]. I feel like we accomplished a lot, we talked to a couple people and got 100+ honks!  

Nicholas: See a protest, not really

Put into context, I think it's pretty clear the "choice" they're talking about is abortion rights. Crisis pregnancy centers offer options counseling which discourages clients from choosing abortion (nor do they provide nor give referrals for abortions), but they do focus on having a healthy pregnancy and parenting/adoption and offer practical and emotional support for pregnant and parenting women; however there are those who strongly feel CPCs should be more "pro-choice" and include politically correct information on abortion and abortion referrals and there are many who feel CPCs shoud be shut down. However, this is where I feel pro-choicers are missing the point of being "pro-choice" when they're so wrapped up in advocating abortion rights, they're either criticizing or ignoring the need for (emotional and practical) support for pregnant and parenting women in poverty.
While I usually think it's cool for a guy to support his girlfriend in her beliefs, I don't in this endeaver, as I believe his presence is for the wrong reasons. While feminists are largely changing their views on whether or not the women's partner should have imput on pregnancy decisions for the most part men are still largely excluded and shunned by mainstream feminism. With that said, one could view this guy as standing up for men to not be able to give imput into the decision, when they're affected to a degree as well. However on the flip side, there are also many men who favor abortion rights for the sole reason avoid the responsibility of pregnancy/parenting.

 Was the protest what you expected?  

Damien: ::Shrug:: Yes, except we didn't get that many people to stop talk and talk  

Jennifer: The protest was what I thought, except with less people  

Echo: Not at all. I thought there were going to be other people there, but I'm glad it was just us. It was a very chill first experience, which was nice.  

Nicholas: No there was no one else

Hmm, so not a lot of pro-choicers turned out to protest, must not be a big priority on their activism list.

When people came up to talk, what was your reaction?  

Damien: No one came up to talk to me, I'm not going to lie. When they came up to Nick, I wanted to know what they wanted to find out. I'd go over and listen to everyone else's opinion. I also wanted to make sure that the people approaching us weren't going to start a confrontation.  

Jennifer: I was surprised that they were all males.  

Echo: Nobody directly came to talk to me, which is probably a good thing, but I was glad that people stopped to talk about what we were protesting for.  

Nicholas: Hello.  

Somehow I'm not surprised there were a lot of males, as there seem to be two reasons men support abortion rights 1)To blindly support their partner, in whatever it is she wants or needs and the more common reason I've pointed out above 2) There are many men who support abortion rights for the sake of avoiding responsibility for the pregnancy/situation they've created.

What was your favorite part about the protest?  

Damien: Supporting my girlfriend. And all the honks!  

Jennifer: Hula hooping! And getting beeps!  

Echo: My favorite part was hula hooping, and the woman coming out to talk to us.  

Nicholas: Hula hooping  

Wow, hula-hooping and honks, doesn't sound like a very productive protest (lack of meaningful dialouge), maybe more for attention-seeking than anything. This compares more to the stereotypical protests expected of pro-lifers with gory abortion photos, yelling, and flashy display; this contrasts to the truely meaningful sidewalk counseling done by pro-lifers at abortion clinics by groups such as Gabriel Project, where there aren't gory photos being displayed, nor yelling of condemnation, rather they seek to have meaningful dialouge and help women connect with resources in their community to help meet their socio-ecomic needs through pregnancy and beyond.

What was your least favorite part?  

Damien: People flipping us off.  

Jennifer: Standing, and the wind.  

Echo: My least favorite thing was the people driving by and saying rude stuff to us. 

Nicholas: I forgot deodorant  

Do you realize others face this everyday in standing up for their political and religious convictions in other countries and even here in the U.S. for having differing beliefs.

Do you think you'll protest again? 

Damien: Mmm hmm. (Yes)  

Jennifer: Yes!  

Echo: I totally want to protest again! Bringing the hula hoops every time!  

Nicholas: Depends on the topic  

Did anything that happened make you think differently about being ProChoice?  

Damien: No. 

Jennifer: No. 

Echo: Nothing made me think differently about it. I was surprised at how many people honked for us! The ProChoice side isn't really publicized very much, so I didn't realize how many people were actually on our side.  

Nicholas: No my natural choice is valid and accepted currently  

Contrary to what Echo believes, the mainstream media is largely either pro-choice or neutral on the issue and the pro-choice view is often published in both editorials and articles on the anniversary of Roe v Wade and when a significant pro-choice protest occurs or anti-abortion extremist act of violence.

How do you think you can improve the next protest?  

Damien: Try to get more people, both to protest and to approach us. I'd also like to give more of my opinion.  

Jennifer: Better signs, and wind holes so it doesn't feel like the signs are going to get ripped out of our hands.  

Echo: I think making more signs would probably be a good idea, but overall I think we did awesome!  

Nicholas: BBQ  

Maybe having a table with literature and posters supporting your view with factual information and figures from non-biased sources and presenting actual opportunities for dialouge would be a good start if you actually wanted to get serious.

What did you learn from today's protest?  

Damien: Not everyone supports our beliefs. I mean, I already knew it, but people flipping us off, shaking their heads no for holding a sign saying, "Your Body, Your Choice," it's kind of messed up.  

Jennifer: I learned that people actually care. And that you should make wind holes in your signs so they don't try to bubble up.  

Echo: I learned that people are a lot more open minded than I thought.  

Nicholas: Do what thou wilt

No, it's not "messed up," part of the beauty of living in this country is people are allowed free speech and access to wide variety of information, leading to people to think for themselves, and they have the right to have their own view point, even if you don't agree with them.

Do you think the protest made anyone think differently? Did you help make change today?  

Damien: I don't know, maybe not think differently but shed some light on people supporting women's rights.  

Maybe it brightened the women's days who drove by us. Jennifer: YES! I feel like we helped make change today.  

Echo: There was one guy and his daughter that Lynne talked to for awhile. I hope she (Lynne) opened his mind to different options. I helped Jen hula hoop, so that was my contribution!  

Nicholas: Yes i made a pretty funny video on the way, and got some great giggles out of it. Highlight of my trip.

Again, doesn't sound like a very productive or meaningful protest, just a sidewalk show. I'll close with this thought: It's easy to be an activist and spout political rhetoric, hold signs, and hola-hoop, but the real challenge is in doing the legwork to support these women in navigating their options and the socio-economic challenges they face.

Ignorance and Stigma is Still Well and Alive, Part Duex

Fellow Blogger, MoronicProchoice Quotes brings to our attention this little gem from a pro-choicer on Twitter...

 

Crystal @Crystal_Smith44: "Grandstand much @RepHartzler ? Forcing women to bear children< monsters> w/ genetic defects is barbaric, shame on you. #Fem2"



Ugh, this is not the first time (nor will it be the last) I've heard such an ignorant & bigoted thing said about the developmentally disabled & it really angered me. I replied...

Butterfly Angel @bttrfly_angel: "@Crystal_Smith44 I've worked w/ moderate to profoundly disabled individuals for years & the only I've seen are not the disabled individuals I work with, but ignorant & prejudiced people like you"

Source

Not but within an hour after I responded, she blocked me and the tweet was removed within a couple of days as well. Not surprised, some prejudiced people don't like to be called out on their bigotry, but I disgress. Her insult towards the developmentally disabled aside, I'd like to address her claim about forcing women to carry pregnancies with a poor prenatal diagnosis. One point I'd like to make is about the assumption and pressure women face from their doctors, support person, and even family to terminate the pregnancy (have an abortion) when facing a poor prenatal diagnosis. This is discussed in a couple of articles written from the viewpoint of parents of a child(ren) with disability who experienced it first hand as well as medical journal articles:
DS Screening: A Few Cautionary Thoughts
Down Syndrome Support Groups Rise to Counter Physicians’ Poor Diagnostic Practices
Prenatal diagnosis of hypoplastic left heart syndrome: impact of counseling patterns on parental perceptions and decisions regarding termination of pregnancy
Is there pressure from society to terminate pregnancy in case of a fetal anomaly?

For the reason I'd like to move the focus away from the abortion debate and back to the pregnant woman and to the child(ren) she's carrying and ask: is enough being done to inform the woman and her partner about the ramifications of prenatal testing and to provide them with support and options other than termination? For that reason, I'd like to make a call for more compassion towards women facing a poor prenatal diagnosis, and let's give them a support system, medical resources, and options. Also, it's important to continue to educate and bring awareness to the public.