Collateral Damage in the War for Fetus-rights: unexpected victims of pro-life zeal

From rachelshobbithole:

 ”But one of the truly strangest side effects of some pro-life activity is the impact it has on women who miscarry. These measures are generally aimed at women who are attempting to terminate a pregnancy that involves a live fetus — because, according to the pro-life POV, this is murder, and little (in some cases, nothing, not even the woman’s very life) justifies that choice. But in practice, they often impact women (and men) who very much wanted to carry a child to term: grieving would-be parents, who have lost a wanted member of their family. People who should, according to the pro-life narrative of parenting and family, be the object of sympathy and kindness. Not when they’re collateral damage in the fight to eradicate abortion, however.
For example, consider the experience, at the hands of pro-life protesters who frequent the clinic, of one couple in Alabama:
whose baby had died en utero [and] was coming to the clinic to have it removed. In an awful coincidence, that was the day, Watters said, when the pro-life demonstrators collected a children’s choir on the sidewalk to sing “Happy Birthday Dead Baby” to anyone driving in.
“Will had to physically restrain the father,” Watters said, nodding to one of the men marching in a pro-choice jacket. “And by the time she walked through them, she was an emotional wreck.”
This is a clinic where at least one protester has been arrested for assault. In such a case, there seems to have been no thought spared whatever for the circumstance that drove people to seek abortion: the protesters assume that the person requesting an abortion is simply a callous baby murder. And if she happens to be a grieving mother, there with her grieving husband? Well, collateral damage. There can be no thought spared, or compassion given, for the “enemy”, whether that is the woman who can’t afford another child or the woman whose pregnancy ended in a heart wrenching death. This is a deep running problem in much of the pro-life movement. People who need or want abortions do not matter; the fetus, dead or alive, is what matters. The woman’s circumstance ceases to matter. It used to be that a woman’s bodily autonomy was dismissed out of hand, but now there are no extenuating circumstances that justify abortion, even within the very narrow pro-life parameters. If you get an abortion, you are the enemy. Period.” 
There’s a lot more in the original … check it out if you have the chance.
Is it me, or does this profile look like a mugshot?

Is it me, or does this profile look like a mugshot?

Oh my. Just, oh my.

Oh my. Just, oh my.

I wonder how much of the Biblical law that she’s embracing here she’d like to live under herself? So many Christians are happy to go all primitive on other people, justifying ancient text as their excuse, but isn’t it amazing how few actually observe those texts to the letter of the law? Wanna bet that Tori doesn’t segregate herself away when she has her period, probably eats shellfish, pork, etc., wears mixed fibers, dates guys who shave, etc., etc.? And yet she snidely comments that a woman’s death is deserved, citing the Bible as justification. 

I wonder how much of the Biblical law that she’s embracing here she’d like to live under herself? So many Christians are happy to go all primitive on other people, justifying ancient text as their excuse, but isn’t it amazing how few actually observe those texts to the letter of the law? Wanna bet that Tori doesn’t segregate herself away when she has her period, probably eats shellfish, pork, etc., wears mixed fibers, dates guys who shave, etc., etc.? And yet she snidely comments that a woman’s death is deserved, citing the Bible as justification. 

Kirsten is a frequent “guest” on this blog, and she’s apparently eager to oblige again — emphasizing both the stupid & evil part of being a sanctimonious douchebag lifer.

Kirsten is a frequent “guest” on this blog, and she’s apparently eager to oblige again — emphasizing both the stupid & evil part of being a sanctimonious douchebag lifer.

Siobhan McGee is a study in hypocrisy and sanctimony. All life is precious. Except the lives of those who disagree with her. Then they are not only not precious, but deserve death. It must be a curious existence, to go about life with one’s head wedged so far up one’s rectum…

Siobhan McGee is a study in hypocrisy and sanctimony. All life is precious. Except the lives of those who disagree with her. Then they are not only not precious, but deserve death.

It must be a curious existence, to go about life with one’s head wedged so far up one’s rectum…

Lifers * still * going on about Tanya Reaves’ death — and * still * some of them can’t contain their glee. But, remember, they are the compassionate ones who care about life.

Lifers * still * going on about Tanya Reaves’ death — and * still * some of them can’t contain their glee. But, remember, they are the compassionate ones who care about life.

Taken from Pro-Lifers Say the Darndest Things on facebook. This one is a real gem. I don’t believe it is required, nor is anyone advocating, that men should have to undergo an agonizing, risky process to prove that they are men. So what, exactly, does this prove?? View high resolution

Taken from Pro-Lifers Say the Darndest Things on facebook. This one is a real gem. I don’t believe it is required, nor is anyone advocating, that men should have to undergo an agonizing, risky process to prove that they are men. So what, exactly, does this prove??

wristsandvines: theartundermymattress: captaingrossaint: itskittentits: shitliferssay: Interesting how their dirty minds always assume that using the pill equates to wild, promiscuous whoring-like-it’s-going-out-of-style. Because married folks never use the pill, right? Dumb asses. (The site she’s referring to, btw, is Planned Parenthood)  Single lady here. I take birth control to stabilize my incredibly painful periods and to manage my Mittelschmerz. Haven’t had sex since my last relationship which ended two months ago.By the way, I have to PAY for my birth control, Mrs. Swenson. It does have other uses than preventing babies. Go be a bitch in the concerned parent section. To add to itskittentis’s argument, I also take it and I have NEVER had sex. I take it to regulate my periods (which I used to have every three weeks) as well as prevent cysts on my ovaries (cysts are so painful that I would vomit uncontrollably for hours when I’d ovulate) because I suffer from PCOS. I also take it to regulate my mood and clear up my horrible acne. It’s also problematic that people keep focusing on just the health benefits of the pill. It goes along with the idea that it’s only acceptable in certain situations. I know you guys are trying to prove a point but it is still problematic. It unconsciously shames people with uteruses (not just cis women) for having sex. Goes along with the idea that women can’t have any pleasure. The pill should be used for whatever purpose the user sees fit, sex or health benefits, doesn’t matter.  Although I would like to point out that a safe sex life is beneficial to ones health.   Agree completely. I don’t think it undermines the argument when people mention that they use the pill for health reasons. This is a legitimate concern, and it affects lots of people (including my sister, who did not need it for sex but did need it for health). I think it only becomes an issue when we try to “sanitize” birth control, as and over emphasize that it used for those things — which seems to be a reaction to prudes who try to demonize female sexuality. This is rarely intended (even PP and NARAL do it sometimes), and something that we do not need to be careful of — women have every right to be sexual beings, and it isn’t something we should have to be afraid of saying. However, referencing health reasons is often said not to obscure that but in exactly the context that I mentioned the use between married people above: because someone makes an outrageous blanket statement, and people poke holes in it. It’s a perfectly appropriate argument for poking holes in such stupidity; it’s a bad argument (by itself) for the overall use and availability of the pill. In other words, for an argument  that assumes that all use of the pill is for sexual reasons the writer thinks are taboo, you only need to provide a single mainstream use that is outside of the lurid fantasies of the anti-BC crowd. Thanks to all who have commented, some excellent discussion here. Stay strong…we are fighting the battle that will define our generation’s freedoms. It’s up to us to make our moms and grandmoms proud. :) View high resolution

wristsandvines:

theartundermymattress:

captaingrossaint:

itskittentits:

shitliferssay:

Interesting how their dirty minds always assume that using the pill equates to wild, promiscuous whoring-like-it’s-going-out-of-style. Because married folks never use the pill, right? Dumb asses.

(The site she’s referring to, btw, is Planned Parenthood) 

Single lady here. I take birth control to stabilize my incredibly painful periods and to manage my Mittelschmerz. Haven’t had sex since my last relationship which ended two months ago.
By the way, I have to PAY for my birth control, Mrs. Swenson. It does have other uses than preventing babies. Go be a bitch in the concerned parent section.

To add to itskittentis’s argument, I also take it and I have NEVER had sex. I take it to regulate my periods (which I used to have every three weeks) as well as prevent cysts on my ovaries (cysts are so painful that I would vomit uncontrollably for hours when I’d ovulate) because I suffer from PCOS. I also take it to regulate my mood and clear up my horrible acne.

It’s also problematic that people keep focusing on just the health benefits of the pill. It goes along with the idea that it’s only acceptable in certain situations. I know you guys are trying to prove a point but it is still problematic. It unconsciously shames people with uteruses (not just cis women) for having sex. Goes along with the idea that women can’t have any pleasure.

The pill should be used for whatever purpose the user sees fit, sex or health benefits, doesn’t matter.  Although I would like to point out that a safe sex life is beneficial to ones health.  

Agree completely. I don’t think it undermines the argument when people mention that they use the pill for health reasons. This is a legitimate concern, and it affects lots of people (including my sister, who did not need it for sex but did need it for health). I think it only becomes an issue when we try to “sanitize” birth control, as and over emphasize that it used for those things — which seems to be a reaction to prudes who try to demonize female sexuality. This is rarely intended (even PP and NARAL do it sometimes), and something that we do not need to be careful of — women have every right to be sexual beings, and it isn’t something we should have to be afraid of saying. However, referencing health reasons is often said not to obscure that but in exactly the context that I mentioned the use between married people above: because someone makes an outrageous blanket statement, and people poke holes in it. It’s a perfectly appropriate argument for poking holes in such stupidity; it’s a bad argument (by itself) for the overall use and availability of the pill. In other words, for an argument  that assumes that all use of the pill is for sexual reasons the writer thinks are taboo, you only need to provide a single mainstream use that is outside of the lurid fantasies of the anti-BC crowd.

Thanks to all who have commented, some excellent discussion here. Stay strong…we are fighting the battle that will define our generation’s freedoms. It’s up to us to make our moms and grandmoms proud. :)

(Reblogged from aliceinthetardiswithdiamonds)
prochoiceisprolife: You might be a lifer if…

prochoiceisprolife:

You might be a lifer if…

(Reblogged from prochoiceisprolife)

For the women who protest that the Government should stay out of their panties, vagina or uterus yet still think they should pay for their birth control and abortions… How can you not see the hypocrisy there?

Let’s try really hard here. When I work and receive insurance benefits in exchange for that work, I am paying for my insurance (through labor). When I work, earn money, and buy my own insurance policy, I am paying for my insurance. When my insurance is a mixture of the two (partially covered in exchange for labor, partially covered by premium payments), I am paying for my insurance.

The. government. is. NOT. This is apparently a very difficult topic for lifers and the religious to grasp, so let me break it down to something that, hopefully, you’ll be able to comprehend:

A nice, Republican family has a baby. The nice, Republican mommy is a stay-at-home Mommy. The nice, Republican daddy owns a business and so earns money; and, while he manages all the finances, of course, he gives the Republican mommy some money to buy baby food for the rosy-cheeked cherub Republican-in-training baby.

The government did not buy that food. The hard working, business owning, job creating daddy, and his loving, devoted, submissive, Republican-voting wife, did.

In exactly that way, the government isn’t buying women’s birth control. Women are. We are buying our insurance policies, which cover our BC. In other words, WE, not the government, are buying it.

(Reblogged from heartlessly-scheming-deactivate)
allarecreatedequal: Which side is, by an overwhelming majority, hateful and bigoted? There are plenty of nice, respectful pro-choicers. But there are also a lot of men and women who are content to publicly wish death upon everyone who disagrees with their views.  I would say the pro-“lifers” are by far the most violent and vocal in their hatred. Just this morning I screen capped people wishing dismemberment on women who have abortions, wanting women’s vaginas sewn up, etc., etc. — and that from one thread on LiveAction’s page. So, yeah, I’m going to have to call BS here. Oh, and did you miss pro-life Bachmann’s “spiritual hurricane” comments?  View high resolution

allarecreatedequal:

Which side is, by an overwhelming majority, hateful and bigoted? There are plenty of nice, respectful pro-choicers. But there are also a lot of men and women who are content to publicly wish death upon everyone who disagrees with their views. 

I would say the pro-“lifers” are by far the most violent and vocal in their hatred. Just this morning I screen capped people wishing dismemberment on women who have abortions, wanting women’s vaginas sewn up, etc., etc. — and that from one thread on LiveAction’s page. So, yeah, I’m going to have to call BS here.

Oh, and did you miss pro-life Bachmann’s “spiritual hurricane” comments? 

(Reblogged from allarecreatedequal)

syukurlah:

I love that every story I read about “post abortion regret” involves a woman experiencing trauma because an abortion was forced upon her. So why don’t pro-lifers understand that if you force someone to have a baby when they don’t want to, they’re going to be traumatised as well?

I think they just don’t care. Women experiencing distress is only relevant if they can use it for their goals; but ultimately they don’t give a damn about it. Much like the laughable attempts by the pro-life movement to hijack feminist language, in order to force women (and only women) to live like there is no such thing as the medical knowledge, nothing that can allow us to control when and if we want kids, nothing that can allow us to save our own lives or health if we find ourselves in danger of death or complications from a complicated pregnancy.

Oh, and the truly interesting thing? Statistically, women who experience mental health issues (depression, etc.) relating to abortion do so only in areas where abortion is demonized. No attempts to convince women that 8 month old miscarries are 12 week fetuses, no “you’re going to hell, you baby murderer!”, no guilt. Which, of course, is why they keep up the barrage — so that they then can point to the anecdotal evidence of women who were either pushed into abortion (i.e. had their choice taken from them) or guilted into regretting their choice.

(Reblogged from syukurlah)