Boston Walk For Choice

Aug 20

So Rick Santorum said some shit about abortion

Moderator: Our next question is for Senator Santorum: In June, you said, quote, “I believe that any doctor who performs an abortion should be criminally charged for doing so.” You would allow no exceptions for cases of rape and incest. [Santorum nods.] Polls have long shown that large majorities of Americans support at least some exceptions for abortion. Are your views too much even for many conservatives to support?

Santorum: You know, the Supreme Court of the Unites States, on a recent case, said that a man who committed rape could not be killed, would not be subject to the death penalty—yet the child [sic] conceived as a result of that rape could be. That to me sounds like a country that doesn’t have its morals correct. That child [sic] did nothing wrong. That child [sic] is— [pauses for audience applause]. That child [sic] is an innocent victim. To be victimized twice would be a horrible thing.

It is an innocent human life. It is genetically human from the moment of conception—it is a human life—and we in America should be big enough to try to surround ourselves and help women in those terrible situations—they’ve been traumatized already! To put them through another trauma of an abortion I think is, uh, is too much to ask, and I so I would, I would just absolutely stand and say that ONE violence in enough!

Now, the best comment I’ve seen about this comes from Shaker Megpie71.

TW: near-incoherent rage, misogyny

Hang on a minute…

WHERE THE FUCK IS THE WOMAN IN THIS EXAMPLE?

Who got raped?

Who conceived the child?

Whose womb is being inhabited here?

She’s vanished. She doesn’t matter; doesn’t exist save as an abstract concept (“rape victim”) or an incubator. Nobody was traumatised by the rape (except, of course, for the rapist, who was deeply offended by first having been accused of being a rapist, then sentenced with prison time for committing it), nobody was harmed by it (with the exception of the “innocent victim” embryo being threatened with abortion), nobody had their boundaries shattered, nobody got forcibly invaded, nobody was required to sit through multiple levels of validation just to prove the rape happened in the first fucking place.

The depth of contempt shown for women (all women) in this example by the Senator is breathtaking.

Now say it with me everyone!

Your body is a battleground.

Reblogged 1 year ago from handsomephillip

23 notes

abortion, rick santorum, pro-choice, pro choice, prochoice, anti-choice, anti choice, antichoice,

Aug 19

When I say I’m pro-life…

desliz:

speakfortheweak:

It doesn’t mean I’m religious.
Because I’m not.

It doesn’t mean I hate LGBT community.
Because I am a supporter.

It doesn’t mean I force women to give birth.
Because I never will.

Take what you want from my blog, but never assume I’m just your stereotypical pro-lifer. It is VERY possible to ask questions, state your opinions in a civil manner on this blog. I am respectful and I enjoy answering all questions received!

Thanks for following! :)
-speakfortheweak

Let me tell you some things.

I used to investigate child abuse and neglect. I can tell you how to stop the vast majority of abortion in the world.

First, make knowledge and access to contraception widely available. Start teaching kids before they hit puberty. Teach them about domestic violence and coercion, and teach them not to coerce and rape. Create a strong, loving community where women and girls feel safe and supported in times of need. Because guess what? They aren’t. You know what happens to babies born under such circumstances? They get hurt, unnecessarily. They get sick, unnecessarily. They get removed from parents who love them but who are unprepared for the burden of a child. Resources? Honey, we try. There aren’t enough resources anywhere. There are waiting lists, and promises, and maybes. If the government itself can’t hook people up, what makes you think an impoverished single mom can handle it?

Abolish poverty. Do you have any idea how much childcare costs? Daycare can cost as much or more than monthly rent. They may be inadequately staffed. Getting a private nanny is a nice idea, but they don’t come cheap either. Relatives? Do they own a car? Does the bus run at the right times? Do they have jobs of their own they need to work just to keep the lights on? Are they going to stick around until you get off you convenience store shift at 4 AM? Do they have criminal histories that will make them unsuitable as caregivers when CPS pokes around? You gonna pay for that? Who’s going to pay for that?

End rape. I know your type errs on the side of blaming the woman, but I’ve seen little girls who’ve barely gotten their periods pregnant because somebody thought raping preteens was an awesome idea. You want to put a child through that? Or someone with a mental or physical inability for whom pregnancy would be frightening, painful or even life-threatening? I’ve seen nonverbal kids who had their feet sliced up by caregivers for no fucking reason at all, you think sexual abuse doesn’t happen either?

You say there’s lots of couples who want to adopt. Kiddo, what they want to adopt are healthy white babies, preferably untainted by the wombs and genetics of women with alcohol or drug dependencies. I’ve seen the kids they don’t want, who almost no one wants. You people focus only on the happy pink babies, the gigglers, the ones who grow and grow with no trouble. Those are not the kids who linger in foster care. Those are certainly not the older kids and teenagers who age out of foster care and then are thrown out in the streets, usually with an array of medical and mental health issues. Are they too old to count?

And yeah, I’ve seen the babies, little hand-sized things barely clinging to life. There’s no glory, no wonder there. There is no wonder in a pregnant woman with five dollars to her name, so deep in depression you wonder if she’ll be alive in a week. Therapy costs money. Medicine costs money. Food, clothes, electricity cost money. Government assistance is a pittance; poverty drives women and girls into situations where they are forced to rely on people who abuse them to survive. (I’ve been up in more hospitals than I can count.)

In each and every dark pit of desperation, I have never seen a pro-lifer. I ain’t never seen them babysitting, scrubbing floors, bringing over goods, handing mom $50 bucks a month or driving her to the pediatrician. I ain’t never seen them sitting up for hours with an autistic child who screams and rages so his mother can get some sleep while she rests up from working 14-hour days. I don’t see them fixing leaks in rundown houses or playing with a kid while the police prepare to interview her about her sexual abuse. They’re not paying for the funerals of babies and children who died after birth, when they truly do become independent organisms. And the crazy thing is they think they’ve already done their job, because the child was born!

Aphids give birth, girl. It’s no miracle. You want to speak for the weak? Get off your high horse and get your hands dirty helping the poor, the isolated, the ill and mentally ill women and mothers and their children who already breathe the dirty air. You are doing nothing, absolutely nothing, for children. You don’t have a flea’s comprehension of injustice. You are not doing shit for life until you get in there and fight that darkness. Until you understand that abortion is salvation in a world like ours. Does that sound too hard? Do you really think suffering post-birth is more permissible, less worthy of outrage?

“Pro-life” is simply a philosophy in which the only life worth saving is the one that can be saved by punishing a woman.

Reblogged 1 year ago from desliz

25,420 notes

LGBT, anti abortion, anti choice, pro abortion, pro choice, pro life, religion,

A Forced Eugenics Survivor Speaks Her Truth (Womanist Musings)

cydne-should-be-sleeping:

When North Carolina’s Eugenics program ended in 1974 more than 7,600 people were sterilized. North Carolina had one of the most coercive eugenics program sterilizing people for “epilepsy, sickness and feeblemindedness.” Though the aforementioned were the stated reasons they also sterilized for promiscuity, homosexuality and so-called criminal intentions. […]

Many White reproductive activists cannot relate to the experiences of Black women. They have never had to fight for the right to be mothers, or fight for the right to keep their children off the auction block. Unless the reproduction of a woman of colour is directly sanctioned by Whiteness, it is deemed an irresponsible act. Such language continues to occur in discussions of so-called third world Brown and Black women. Mommy continues to be defined as White, middle/upper class, able bodied, straight, soccer mom in a mini van. Undocumented workers are routinely accused of having anchor babies to secure citizenship, but when this is played out in the media, they most certainly aren’t refering to the undocumented workers from countries that are considered White. They mean the dangerous Brown and Black wombs reproducing at will.

Women of colour are construed as a project in need of being saved, as long as the process does not mean truly acknowledging the role that race and class have played in our continuing oppression. Innovations like the pill and Depo Provera, that have been touted as life saving, and important to the advancement of women’s rights, were tested on women of colour, long before they entered the precious bloodstreams of White women. Yet, this history is erased to praise the ability of women to control their reproductive process. Once again, advancement for women was carried on the backs of women of colour. Even as I am writing this, I wonder how many blogs dedicated to reproductive justice have ignored this story and its historical significance, because it would mean confronting the horrible truth that reproductive justice is about far more than access to birth control, the right to have an abortion and supporting Planned Parenthood; its about validating the idea that women, and by women I mean women of colour, have paid the brunt of the cost in terms of violation due to the intersection or racism and sexism.

I don’t think that justice can ever truly be delivered to these survivors and no monetary award can ever return to them that which has been lost. The only way to honour them is to ensure that in the future that women of colour have a seat at the table of plenty and are valued for who they are. If that small lesson cannot be learned from this atrocity, then their sacrifices have taught us nothing.

Next anti-choicer who says people should be forcibly sterilized after abortions should read this, then stfu forever.

(Source: keepyourbsoutofmyuterus)

Reblogged 1 year ago from cydandthat

116 notes

pro choice, abortion, race, forced sterilization, pro life, anti choice,

Aug 18

Crisis Pregnancy Centers in the State of Illinois

daskannnichtsein:

What is a Crisis Pregnancy Center (CPC)?

A CPC is a fake clinic that advertises to those who are unsure of what to do with their unplanned pregnancy. Their ads offer help, counseling, and, usually, free pregnancy tests. However, these “clinics” are actually not staffed by any medical professional, are extremely anti-choice, and will guilt trip the person into NOT getting an abortion. They also DO NOT provide referrals for someone seeking an abortion. They also will not provide any prenatal care or help if the person does decide to carry out their pregnancy. Some CPCs locate themselves near or directly across from a Planned Parenthood in order to lure confused patients. These centers are extremely religious.

Further Reading: The Feminist Campus’s collection of articles exposing CPCs

Feminist Campus’s “What Are Fake Clinics?”

Have you seen these popular CPC advertisements?

“Pregnant? Need Help? You Have Options!”
“Pregnant? Scared? We Can Help! Call 1-800-XXX-XXXX”
“Free Pregnancy Tests!”

They advertise on your campus and in your community with names like, “Crisis Pregnancy Centers” and “Pregnancy Resource Centers.” They pose as comprehensive women’s health clinics and advertise under “abortion” and “family planning” services. Although they are often located near comprehensive clinics, using similar sounding names, they do not offer abortion services, contraception, or referrals.

Crisis Pregnancy Centers (CPCs) are typically run by anti-choice organizations with staff and volunteers who usually are not licensed medical professionals. They often use misinformation to intimidate women from considering abortion and provide false information about birth control and the effectiveness of condoms for the prevention of STIs and HIV. Ultimately, their tactics delay women from receiving comprehensive medical care.

Fake clinics target college students by locating near campuses and advertising “free” pregnancy tests. According to a 2008 survey by the Feminist Majority Foundation, 48% of responding Campus Health Centers include CPCs on their referral lists for students facing unintended pregnancies.

It is estimated that 3,500 CPCs exist nationwide, outnumbering comprehensive women’s health clinics 2 to 1. Most fake clinics are affiliated with one or more national anti-abortion, anti-birth control organizations.
A Congressional investigation of CPCs revealed that 87% provided false or misleading information about the health effects of abortion.[1] The Congressional report found many of these federally funded centers grossly misrepresent the medical risks of abortion by telling women that having an abortion could increase the risk of breast cancer, result in sterility and lead to suicide and “post-abortion syndrome.”[2]Abortion is not associated with an increase in breast cancer risk or infertility.[3] An eleven year longitudinal study of 13,000 women found that women who give birth have the same rate of need for psychological treatment as women who have abortions[4].
1. United States Congress House Committee on Government Reform, Special Investigations Division. False and Misleading Health Information Provided by Federally Funded Pregnancy Resource Centers. 109th Cong., 2nd Sess., 2006. Washington: GPO, 2006, p. i.
2. Ibid, p. 7 – 13.
3. Ibid, p. 7, 9.
4. Ibid, p. 11.

What can I do to help?

Educate yourself! Make sure you and your friends never step foot into these clinics. Find out if there’s a CPC in your neighborhood/campus and post up fliers! Check out the above Feminist Campus link for info on how to do so!

From my knowledge, there are SIXTY-NINE CPCs in Illinois. I’m going to list every single one. Please be aware of their existence.

Read More

This is fantastic. Great resource for the state of Illinois.

Reblogged 1 year ago from handsomephillip

8 notes

crisis pregnancy center, cpc, fake clinic, planned parenthood, anti-choice, anti choice, antichoice, illinois, pro-choice, prochoice, pro choice,

Jun 27

Several States Now Forbid Abortion After 20 Weeks - NYTimes.com

socialismartnature:

Danielle and Robb Deaver ran up against Nebraska’s new law when a problem arose in the 22nd week of Ms. Deaver’s pregnancy.

Dozens of new restrictions passed by states this year have chipped away at the right to abortion by requiring women to view ultrasounds, imposing waiting periods or cutting funds for clinics. But a new kind of law has gone beyond such restrictions, striking at the foundation of the abortion rules set out by the Supreme Court over the last four decades.

These laws, passed in six states in little more than a year, ban abortions at the 20th week after conception, based on the theory that the fetus can feel pain at that point — a notion disputed by mainstream medical organizations in the United States and Britain.

The laws directly conflict with the key threshold set by the Supreme Court: that abortion cannot be banned until the fetus becomes viable. Viability, the ability to survive outside the womb, usually occurs at the 24th week of pregnancy or later, and is determined in individual cases by a doctor, said Elizabeth Nash, a policy analyst in Washington with the Guttmacher Institute, a research group.

Only 1.5 percent of the 1.21 million abortions each year, or about 18,000, occur later than 20 weeks after conception, and many of these involve medical emergencies, said Ms. Nash of the Guttmacher Institute.

Still, the new laws also place stricter, and what some say are unconstitutional, limits on medical exceptions as well.

They permit abortions after 20 weeks only to avert the death or “serious physical impairment of a major bodily function” of the mother, or to avoid the death of the fetus. There are no exceptions for rape or incest, none for less dire medical threats or mental health.

Nor, under the laws, is an abortion allowed after 20 weeks when a fetus is discovered to be catastrophically impaired but still living, as is sometimes discovered by routine ultrasounds in midpregnancy.

Reblogged 1 year ago from socialismartnature

2 notes

abortion, anti choice, prochoice, politics,

Jun 9

Anti-Abortion Groups Push To Outlaw Contraceptives By Redefining Personhood

ganymedefromgallifrey:

Anti-Abortion Groups Push To Outlaw Contraceptives By Redefining Personhood

By Marie Diamond on Jun 3, 2011 at 2:40 pm

A fringe anti-abortion group, Personhood USA, has been startlingly successful at pushing forward legislation across the country that would redefine life as beginning at the moment of fertilization, effectively outlawing contraceptives like birth control pills. Although the medical community has long been in agreement that fertilization does not mark the beginning of a pregnancy — fertilized eggs must first be implanted, and only about half of fertilized eggs actually result in a pregnancy — a growing number of lawmakers are supporting Personhood USA’s efforts to buck medical expertise and legally define life as the moment a sperm meets an egg.

If they succeed in passing such a law — and if such a law survives judicial scrutiny — it could turn common forms of birth control into the legal equivalent of a homicide. While “personhood” laws have always been a transparent attempt to outlaw abortion, the legislation supported by groups like Personhood USA goes much further in trying to assert government control over women’s bodies. These laws would recognize every fertilized egg as an individual and complete human being with full rights, and place millions of women in legal jeopardy. According to 2008 numbers, around 11 million American women use birth control pills and another 2 million use intrauterine devices (IUDs).

Contraceptives like the pill and IUDs not only act to prevent fertilization, but, if fertilization does occur, may prevent that fertilized egg from implanting in a woman’s uterus. Personhood USA considers this tantamount to abortion, and wants to make it a punishable offense for women to control their own fertility. Worse, because the proposed legislation could make any effort to terminate a pregnancy a criminal act, it could also bar doctors from saving the lives of women with ectopic pregnancies, which are never viable and need to be terminated as soon as possible.

Also at risk of prosecution would be the millions of women whose fertilized eggs never begin dividing, never implant, or implant but spontaneously abort. This often happens so early on that the woman never even knows she might have been pregnant.

Keith Mason, the president of Personhood USA, is transparent about his motives, telling NPR, “Certainly women, my wife included, would want to know if the pills they’re taking would kill a unique human individual. And I think there’s a lot of misinformation about that, or lack of information.” Sadly, Mason is not alone. Rachel Maddow reports that this Saturday is the fourth annual Protest the Pill event. Each year the event, put on by another fringe group called American Life League, features slogans like “The pill kills babies,” “The pill kills women,” and “The pill kills marriage.”

The very real risk to women posed by the “redefining life” agenda led Colorado to defeat personhood amendments in 2008 and 2010. But Alabama is one step away from passing this legislation, and voters in Mississippi could vote on a personhood amendment to their state Constitution this November. Personhood USA hopes to get proposals on the ballot in nearly half the states by 2012.

In the landmark privacy case Griswold v. Connecticut, the Supreme Court struck down a Connecticut law that made it illegal for married couples to use contraception. It’s difficult to imagine that the justices would overrule Griswold, but not as difficult as it once was. Justice Thomas’ dissent in Lawrence v. Texas leaves little doubt that he would overrule Griswold if given the chance, and Chief Justice Roberts disparaged Griswold in an article he drafted in 1981, although he claimed to have backed away from that view in his confirmation hearing.