A few words about abortion

I want to talk about abortion, but I have been putting it off. Whilst I like to stimulate debate and discussion, and I genuinely do enjoy reading other people’s views, I don’t like conflict and I don’t want people’s views pointed against me.

Being a Christian, it’s easy to assume what my pov regarding abortion is, but it’s actually more complicated.

When I was younger, I did see life very black and white. I can remember having to write an essay on a ‘controversial subject’ for my English GCSE and I wrote about abortion. I quoted Psalm 139:13 ‘For you formed my inward parts; you knitted me together in my mother's womb’ and Matthew 10:30 ‘even the hairs on your head are all numbered’. I quoted Exodus 20:13 ‘Do not murder’ and Numbers 35:16 ‘But if he struck him down ..., so that he died, he is a murderer.’. I didn’t get a good mark because I was told that I hadn’t argued the other point of view, however to me, there wasn’t another pov: you should always try and protect life. Even if the baby was conceived in a horrendous and violent manner, it’s still not the baby’s fault and they deserve a chance at life.

As I got older, I did start to see life's nuances. Not only did I become friends with women who had had or had considered abortion, but I had my own life experiences that affected my beliefs. When I was pregnant with DD1 I had Hyperemesis Gravidarum, commonly called “extreme morning sickness”. I lost over 3 stone in the first trimester and when I was at my worst, I considered a good day to be one where I kept down a single hula hoop and a single sip of water. I was in severe malnutrition and dehydration and it was affecting all aspects of my life. After I had given birth, I came across the HelpHER website (and wish I had found it earlier), and on the forum the women there were grieving because a lady had recently died. She also disagreed with abortion, so continued with her pregnancy against medical advice, and it resulted in the loss of her life and that of her unborn child.

Pregnancy is hard work on the body and on the mind, and to force someone to undergo a pregnancy isn’t right. Not only is there the risk of HG, but the mother may have other underlying medical conditions that mean pregnancy isn’t advisable. And the reverse is also true, just because a women may not be in prime mental or physical health, does not mean that you should force an abortion on a woman who doesn’t want one. There was a case in the UK recently where doctors tried to do just that. [LINK]

My largest worry about controlling abortion is the unspoken control of women’s bodies. By banning abortion, you are taking away women’s autonomy. By criminalising control over themselves, you are making women second (if not third) class citizens. If a woman does abort a child, you should not incarcerate her, and even if that is the law in the part of the world you’re in, a women should certainly not be indicted for miscarrying! [LINK] Women should not be forced into having back-alley abortions and all the health risks that they entail, because they are not allowed to have medical care that could easily be provided. I have some sympathy in countries where there is not the technology or perhaps trust in medicine and abortions not being carried out there. However, it terrifies me that people are praising countries like the USA for changing the law against abortion. We are nowhere near equality for women, and the few rights that women do have are slowly being eroded and taken away.

photo from metro.co.uk

So after everything, if you were to ask me whether I agree with abortions, I would answer no, I don’t. However, I don’t think they should be criminalised, I just wish they were a service that was never used. Women should be free to enquire about and use abortion clinics without condemnation and oppression. They should not be attacked and abused for walking into one and having to be accompanied by bouncers and the like. Women should have control over their whole reproductive health – access to good education, good information, contraception, abortion (though imo hopefully it wouldn’t be used) and support services during the pregnancy and beyond. There should be health and social welfare so that girls do not consider abortion because they are “young” or women, because they are “poor”. 

The whole of society needs to act in the best interests of the poorest and the weakest members, and sometimes that may be the ‘least-worst’ option of abortion. Just because I could never have an abortion, does not mean I have the right to impose my beliefs on to other people.