Responsible Feminism
There is a line of reasoning, which I don’t hear voiced nearly often enough, that holds that the pro-life movement is, in fact, more pro-woman than its opposite number. This post got me thinking about it. For the moment, we can leave aside the religious perspective on abortion, which I think is delineated here quite eloquently.
Pro-choice advocates point out how victimized and compromised women are by unwelcome pregnancies, ignoring the great and powerful choice these “victims” make to have sex in the first place. (Pregnancies resulting from rape are a different issue.)
Think of it in terms of fiscal responsibility. A nation shouldn’t take on more debt than it can afford. I believe all women are powerful and clever enough to assess the risks associated with sex. If they engage in risky behavior, they also take on the consequences which may require long term sacrifice.
In every way, society goes extraordinarily wrong when we seek to divorce our decisions from their consequences.
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May '10
Re: Responsible Feminism
Ursula, your error is to equate being "pro-woman" with a belief that women are powerful and clever. To be pro-anyone you must infantilize that person and treat them as a victim of their decisions, which is how you support the troops, for example.
May '10
Re: Responsible Feminism
It has always bothered me that the arguments in support of abortion leave out the first "choice" the woman makes. Presumably, again apart from rape or something worse, she knows of the potential consequences of having un- or inadequately-protected sex. We've known where babies come from for a good number of years! So, I'm pro choice. I just suggest that the choice is made on whether or not to engage in activity which may have as its logical consequence a pregnancy. And once that choice is made, the consequence must be borne. Or I should say, born.
And there is nothing "pro-woman" in the violence of an abortion. There may be some circumstances under which an abortion might be the lesser of two evils, but we should never lose sight of the fact that it is an intensely violent act, hugely serious, and, yes, evil.
May '10
Re: Responsible Feminism
Huh? Isn't the entire tenor of modern politics the promise to divorce unhealthy decisions from their consequences?
Siddown, siddown, siddown, siddown, siddown, you're rockin' the boat.
May '10
Re: Responsible Feminism
This site needs a "like" option on the comments section. I do hope that the pro-life movement takes advantage of its pro-woman agenda by advancing the cause of gender equality in the developing world. Unlike progressive perspectives who either ignore/avoid the global implications of feminism or endorse cultures or countries that relegate women to a second-class status, pro-life women should desire for women not only to be more accountable to the choices they make, but they should hold societies more accountable to their treatment of women.
May '10
Re: Responsible Feminism
There is a "Like" link on each comment, but not on the original contributor post.
May '10
Re: Responsible Feminism
To me, Lila Rose, has done the most to prove abortion isn't really pro-woman.
May '10
Re: Responsible Feminism
Thanks, INRS. I should've clarified that I'd like to see a "like" button on the contributor posts. Also an "edit" button for folks like me who only notice their mistakes after they post their comments.
May '10
Re: Responsible Feminism
Abortion isn't pro-woman for a very simple reason: it kills many girls each year who would have grown into women. In the case of countries, like India and China, where sex-selective abortion is prevalent, this gendercide is a serious, silent catastrophe.
While I appreciate your intent, I am uncomfortable with arguments against abortion based on personal responsibility because abortion isn't just contraception. The best argument against abortion is the simple biological fact that an embryo is a human being and the simple insight that in a just nation, all human beings have a right to life.
May '10
Re: Responsible Feminism
Ursula,
So well said. I have been making this case for personal responsibility to my social circles for what seems like forever. The most "pro-woman" thing you can do is admit that women (except in cases of rape) have the most important CHOICE ever--whether or not to have unprotected sex with their partner. Holding a woman accountable for that choice is also quite pro-woman, and pro-equality.
This speaks to the welfare state, too. Sadly, in my business, I see the Federal Government paying more than $1500 a month in rent for people who have criminal histories, drug records, and multiple children to live rent-free in Section 8 housing. There is absolutely no incentive, no boundary, no parameter that prevents them from behaving badly--and certainly the most important one--personal responsibility--is left completely out of the conversation. Our society has decided they are victims, and in order for us to be "pro-them" we have to support their victimhood. How empowering is that?
Thanks for your post.
Re: Responsible Feminism
Courtney Poulos: Ursula,
So well said. I have been making this case for personal responsibility to my social circles for what seems like forever. The most "pro-woman" thing you can do is admit that women (except in cases of rape) have the most important CHOICE ever--whether or not to have unprotected sex with their partner. Holding a woman accountable for that choice is also quite pro-woman, and pro-equality.
This speaks to the welfare state, too. Sadly, in my business, I see the Federal Government paying more than $1500 a month in rent for people who have criminal histories, drug records, and multiple children to live rent-free in Section 8 housing. There is absolutely no incentive, no boundary, no parameter that prevents them from behaving badly--and certainly the most important one--personal responsibility--is left completely out of the conversation. Our society has decided they are victims, and in order for us to be "pro-them" we have to support their victimhood. How empowering is that?· Jun 15 at 6:25am
Hi Courtney, I was going to select a few lines here to agree with vehemently, but, well, I agree with all of them! Your points are more cogent than mine, actually. Thanks for your comment.
Jun '10
Re: Responsible Feminism
Ursula: Regarding your observation about the negatives of disconnecting the consequence from the act, the great Australian political philosopher Kenneth Minogue said this in an article in this month's New Criterion: “[t]he statesmen of eras past have been replaced by a set of barely competent social workers eager to take over the risks of our everyday life.”
And that's the best way to infantilize and entire society.
May '10
Re: Responsible Feminism
I just finished reading a book by Neal Shusterman titled Unwind. The basic premise of the book is that abortion has been made illegal, but because of a bloody war, a compromise was reached between Pro-Choice and Pro-Life; one can abort their child once he/she is between the ages of 13 and 18 through a process called unwinding which is basically using 100% of the body through organ donation. The genius of the book is the exploration of the outcast children who don't want to be unwound and those adults who support the system.
If abortion were to be truly free of violence against women, it would have to take place outside the womb. But then that would be infanticide. And there goes another injury.