The Evolution of the Debate

Main ArgumentsWho Decides?Illegal Abortion Kills

WomenAbortion is a

Women’s Rights IssueAbortion is MoralWe care about the

Fetus TooWe care about the

Woman

Abortion is MurderAbortion Kills the

UnbornAbortion is a Civil

Rights IssueAbortion is ImmoralFetal Life Needs

ProtectionWe care about the

Woman too

Feminist For LifeLaunched in 1972Current Mission:

Main ArgumentsChallenge the automatic equation of feminism

with the cause of abortion rightsFeminist foremothers were staunchly opposed to

abortionEarly feminists never made claims against

abortion lawsInstead celebrated motherhood as a site of power

and reverence Affirmed the experience of motherhood not the

institution of motherhoodUnderstood devaluing of the fetus as an

extension of the lack of human status for women

ProChoice Movements ResponsesFeminists were adhering to the norms of the

timeie , Petchesky “false consciousness” Response: Early feminists were involved in other

social movements of the timeMohr’s adherence to Victorian sexual ethics)Response: Early feminists acceptance of sex for

pleasure and communication for women and men and support for sex education and family planning

Feminists were opposed to abortion because it was unsafeChildbirth was riskier

Separating Feminists from Other Abortion Opposition

“Antiabortion sentiment was grounded in an acute sensitivity to the problems of women who bear and raise children. It is not to be confused with the misogynist diatribes of conservatives like Dr. Horatio Storer.”

(MacNair, 1995 p.11)

Solution to Abortion was Addressing Root CausesCulturally enforced ignorance about sex and

reproductive physiology (including pregnancy prevention and fetal development)

Men’s sexual and parental irresponsibility and coercion

The stigma of pregnancy outside marriage (for women but not men)

Lack of community supports for those with children

Vulnerability to the profiting industry

“Voluntary Motherhood”Abortion was not a right but an abrogation of

rightsWomen had the right to be free from sexual

coercion and irresponsibility on the part of menVoluntary motherhood would end abortionTwo types of response

Women need access to sex education and family planning

Women should practice sexual abstinence as contraception would encourage more male explotation

Current Feminists for LifeMain message: “Women Deserve Better than

Abortion”Current Issues

Equality in the WorkplaceVictory Over Violence Right to KnowChild Abuse/InfanticideEuthanasia and Assisted SuicideFather's Rights and ResponsibilitiesWomen's HistoryWomen's Rights Worldwide

Position on Contraception“Feminists for Life's mission is to address the

unmet needs of women who are pregnant or parenting. Preconception issues including abstinence and contraception are outside of our mission. Some FFL members and supporters support the use of non-abortifacient contraception while others oppose contraception for a variety of reasons. FFL is concerned that certain forms of contraception have had adverse health effects on women.”

http://www.feministsforlife.org/FAQ/index.htm#contraception

Modern MovementPart of a larger Women’s-Centered Strategy

http://www.feministsforlife.org/index.htm

Focus on the FetusInitial Focus on the Defenders of the UnbornGraphic representations of abortionFocus on the innocence and humanness of

the fetusActivities to “rescue” or save the fetusGoal to establish the fetus as a person in law

Insufficient SuccessDespite public opinions polls showing that

most people believed that abortion took at fetal life and life begins at the moment of conception … ongoing public support for legal abortion

Women recent the fetal-centered strategy and perceive the anti-choice activists as uncaring and judgmental

A woman-centered focus re-positions the anti-choice movement as the defended (rather than the opponents) of pregnant women

Women as an add-on strategy not an alternative

(Cannold, 2002)

David ReardonArchitect of this approachFounder of the Elliott

Institute in Springfield, ILSince 1987 –7 books and

a dozen articlesCreated conversationSkilled at B.A.D. (biased—

agenda driven science)Leading spokes person

for Post-Abortion Syndrome

Goal is to replace the fetus with the guilt-ridden, grief-stricken images of women victimized by abortion

Compassion for WomenVictims of society, men and the abortion industryPromotion of restricted laws that prescribe the

type and timing of information women receive related to abortion

Focus is on telling women about the psychological risks of abortion

Disassociation from the fetal-focused anti-abortion and violent parts of the pro-life movementCannold: Money demonstrates something different

Mental Health ConsequencesTexas Information Booklet: “A Woman’s Right to Know”

“You should know that women experience different emotions after an abortion. Some women may feel guilty, sad, or empty, while others may feel relief that the procedure is over. Some women have reported serious psychological effects after their abortion, including depression, grief, anxiety, lowered self-esteem, regret, suicidal thoughts and behavior, sexual dysfunction, avoidance of emotional attachment, flashbacks, and substance abuse. These emotions may appear immediately after an abortion, or gradually over a longer period of time. These feelings may recur or be felt stronger at the time of another abortion, or a normal birth, or on the anniversary of the abortion”

Post-Abortion CounselingCan be absolved from moral responsibility

through the act of seeking forgivenessUse personal stories to show how “abortion

hurts women” Promotion of law suits

Validation from the Supreme Court“Respect for human life finds an ultimate

expression in the bond of love the mother has for

her child....While we find no reliable data to

measure the phenomenon, it seems

unexceptionable to conclude some women come

to regret their choice to abort the infant life they

once created and sustained…Severe depression

and loss of esteem can follow.” Gonzales v Carhart, 2007

Valuing the FetusAddressing the Harms

The Moral Value of the Fetus“How to Think About the Fetus”

by Francis Kissling of Catholics for a Free Choice

Winder 2004-2005 issue of Conscience Magazine3 central values

Right of women to bodily integrityA respect for human life and a moral presumption

in favor of lifeAction that do not promote more hostility

A fundamental belief that if the public saw the pro-choice movement as more compassionate it would be more supportive of legal abortion

The Posited DilemmaIf the fetus could be removed without harm

and gestated elsewhere?Do women have a right to a dead fetus?

Caring for Women After AbortionFormation of Exhale

http://www.4exhale.org/Pro-Voice not Pro-Choice

“Exhale serves women who have abortions, and their partners, friends and family. We respect the cultural, social and religious beliefs of all our callers.”

The availability of e-cards

Going Beyond Post-AbortionBackline

Pre-counseling as well as post-Adoption counseling

Men as the cause of abortionFailure to assume responsibility

The Men’s MovementArthur Showstackhttp://www.menandabortion.com/

Men are victims of abortion too

“Changing abortion's pronoun” LA Times 1/7/08

Caption: “I hadn’t given it a thought,” Mark B. Morrow, shown with son Ross, said of long-ago girlfriends’ abortions. “ Now it all came crashing down on me — look what you’ve done.”