Is it true that abortion only became a political issue after certain politicians decided to best avoid speaking about REAL issues they are responsible for, like voting rights, help for the needy, health insurance, fair taxation???
I live in Europe where abortion is a non-issue, as it should be-- left to the women and the doctors performing. Those doctors who might be uncomfortable in certain constellations can simply refuse the procedure and pass on to another; counseling is provided (mandatory) and people stay out of other people's personal lives.
We have already played the world without legal abortions. My mom helped her good friend after an abortion by a doctor in a hotel room in the early 40's in San Francisco when they were in college and WWII was happening. I was in college when two friends had to go to Mexico for an abortion in VERY sketchy places ending with each woman having serious infections. I had one of the first legal abortions in the country in 1968. It was my first time having intercourse with my boyfriend. He offered to get married which would have changed the course of both of our lives as juniors in college. All of these were private decisions. All of this will happen again as we turn back the clock and control women's bodies. How about all men required to have vasectomies until they choose to and have a proven themselves capable of raising a child. Just a thought.
I just read an article reporting that Texas plans to outlaw 'chemical abortions'. This highly partisan SCOTUS is just getting started. They're appointed for life, there is no recourse. Legislation that tries to thwart their agenda will be deemed unconstitutional. Democrats don't have the will to expand SCOTUS. We will rapidly become 2 separate countries, which is not tenable. We already know that SCOTUS is looking at ways to gut OSHA (why would they care about workers rights, when they have billionaire overlords to please) scaling back libel laws, and Republicans are chomping at the bit to gut our slender social safety net. The 40-year descent of the US from leader of the free world to a floundering democracy in the grip of cold civil war is incredibly sad to behold.
"...this is a watershed moment in the history of women’s rights in America." You bet it is, and it might be the start of even more freedoms that might be taken away from us Americans.
Why can't men be made to have (reversible) vasectomies to prevent pregnancy in the first place? Why place the burden solely on women?
I am not surprised that you, Nick Kristof, a great journalist and world traveler have written a eloquent and intelligent analysis of this issue which its tearing the fabric of our society. It does not have to do this, as you say, if we leave the issue to the woman and her doctor (although not all women especially younger, poorer ones, have access to medical consultation): there are many other critical issues such as inequality and gun safety which need to be addressed. Thank you for mentioning the importance of "comprehensive sex education," in your article as a way to lower the need for abortion in our country. We are making progress along these lines, but have further steps to take. The people of Oregon could count on you, I'm sure, to strengthen in-school programs, which include instruction about contraception, abstinence and prevention of rape and incest, if you are elected Governor. Best wishes in your quest.
Nicholas, as you say, women who are well off will go to other states. And I would like to know how many of those politicians and others who are pro-life are willing to adopt a child that a woman cannot support after birth. . . Also, how many of these people have wives, daughters, mistresses, sisters who have had abortions, if the truth be known.
None of these conservatives justices have ever met any poor people. Never met an addict who couldn't afford rehab. Never met an uninsured person. And think people in these conditions are responsible for their conditions and deserving to remain there. Born on 3rd base and think they hit a triple.
There is talk of a backlash - that if SCOTUS reverses Roe, voters might just wake up and stop electing Republicans. A switch to Democratic majorities in state houses and in D.C. would allow changes in our laws which could very well end up enshrining abortion rights in a constitutional amendment. We can only pray.
The biggest problem I see is the absolute certainty and moral arrogance of the "pro-life" voters. "I could be wrong" is a foreign concept: these voters are convinced that they alone represent the will of the Almighty, and how dare you disagree? By first convincing themselves that any death of any embryo after fertilization (and for many, even efforts to prevent fertilization) is de facto murder, and then convincing themselves that pro-choice equates to pro-abortion, which equates to pro-murder and anti-life, they have used this alleged moral high ground to justify every imaginable sort of evil - like stealing SCOTUS seats in order to bring about their chosen end.
So yes, I do hope it backfires on the GOP. I hope that no matter what SCOTUS decides to do with Roe, Americans will begin to realize the direction this nation is headed, and make some changes in their voting patterns.
Thank you Nick! I am glad to have come of age in the 1960s when women were making progress and our prospects looked bright. What I am seeing now is making me very frightened. The GOP seems intent of cutting back protections for America’a women. I am concerned that the gutting of Roe v. Wade will be just the opening salvo in the their war on women. Poland is introducing a bill to register all pregnancies, for “medical reasons”. Will the GOP-led states be far behind?
As for the abortion pill, I hope the FDA will make permanent their temporary Covid-related approval to make it available via tele-medicine and the mail.
Extremely well said. How can we possibly muddle our way into the future when we are ignorant of both the past and the present? Unfortunately I won’t be able to vote for you because I live in Seattle.
Enjoyed learning the American history behind abortion rights and look forward to advances in telemedicine and in the accessibility of the abortion pill and learning more about the Netherlands' sex education system.
Great article - thanks. I appreciate the emphasis on the idea that why a woman has an abortion should not be a consideration. I have two friends who found out they were carrying children with Potter's Syndrome. One chose to terminate her pregnancy, and the other chose to carry her child to term and her child died while she was in labor. Both women had very personal reasons for their choice, and it was heartening to see how they were supported in those decisions by their respective communities. I wish we could be more understanding towards each other. I can honestly say I don't know what I would have chosen in the same circumstances, and it's not for me to second guess either of their decisions. Nor is it my place to question any woman's decision about such a personal matter.
An amazing issue looking in from the outside. What would Africa be like without legal abortions in lucky countries where sanity prevails. The US seems to have a rage about issues that will take it back to the dark ages! Abortion, immigrants (which by the way you all are!), racism, like Trevor Noah says he is relaxed talking about these issues in South Africa
OK, bear with me for a moment, as this argument goes nowhere in my family: Let's take the end of Roe, and the beginning of a hodgepodge of locally-initiated, states-rights driven encroachments on a woman's right to choose.
Each new infringement feeds the culture war maelstrom; like a hurricane that picks up force as it crosses into the Gulf of Mexico- Mississippi, Alabama, Louisiana, Texas, all fall like a row of dominoes.
The long suffering religious right advances their Crusade after howling for 2, nay 3, generations in the wilderness. Finally, the sanctity of life is restored.
How do we make common cause?
Consider that current access to abortions becomes illegal. Firstly, fight to accept the international standard of termination up to 12 weeks. And, make that as accessible as possible.
Then, we carve out, with the AMA's help, that states respect ANY procedure between a woman and her doctor is private, unless agreed to share under HIPAA. No mandatory reporting, not included in summary, public health statistics, nobody's business, nothing to see here, you meddling prohibitionists. Just like decades of gun violence research obstructionism.
The procedure goes dark.
The network of contacts lights up: men's responsibility, access to chemical means, air lifting women to safe states. The tenor changes to become the Underground Railroad.
We will live, for awhile, as refugees from rationality and reflect on the power of emotion, on the power of cultural tradition, on respect for a stalwart, well heeled, adversary.
It will take a generation, or two, or three, before we quietly step back from this ledge.
The War on Abortion will be prosecuted like the War on Drugs, or the War on Crime, or the War on Ignorance. To the same effect.
We are a culture of revolutionaries and maybe the last thing we want is the Government on our Side.
Thank you for saying so well what I've been saying for years. As a social worker, I had at least one 12 year old developmentally delayed pregnant girl in my caseload. I took another for birth control at age 13. She didn't have her first child until age 17, a miracle considering that she lived with prostitutes. By that time, she had some education and was able to get a decent job. When I saw her at that job, she delightedly showed me photos of her baby. Not a perfect situation, but progress. I could go on and on, the pregnant woman with active schizophrenia in her fourth pregnancy because she wasn't competent to agree to sterilization, for example. Bans on abortion with no or few exceptions for extenuating circumstances essentially put women in bondage and servitude.
Patronizing is not quite the right word - misogyny fits much better. You need to disrespect a person to deny them their human rights to be able to choose when they have a child. Limiting women’s control of their own bodies is also about power. Many white men are having a very hard time learning to share their power; the abortion debate is just another symptom of their fear.
Thank you Nick!! Well said.
Is it true that abortion only became a political issue after certain politicians decided to best avoid speaking about REAL issues they are responsible for, like voting rights, help for the needy, health insurance, fair taxation???
I live in Europe where abortion is a non-issue, as it should be-- left to the women and the doctors performing. Those doctors who might be uncomfortable in certain constellations can simply refuse the procedure and pass on to another; counseling is provided (mandatory) and people stay out of other people's personal lives.
Here's to upholding justice for women!!
We have already played the world without legal abortions. My mom helped her good friend after an abortion by a doctor in a hotel room in the early 40's in San Francisco when they were in college and WWII was happening. I was in college when two friends had to go to Mexico for an abortion in VERY sketchy places ending with each woman having serious infections. I had one of the first legal abortions in the country in 1968. It was my first time having intercourse with my boyfriend. He offered to get married which would have changed the course of both of our lives as juniors in college. All of these were private decisions. All of this will happen again as we turn back the clock and control women's bodies. How about all men required to have vasectomies until they choose to and have a proven themselves capable of raising a child. Just a thought.
Thanks for sharing your story. I do think that these stories, personalizing the issue, can move some people who are on the fence.
I just read an article reporting that Texas plans to outlaw 'chemical abortions'. This highly partisan SCOTUS is just getting started. They're appointed for life, there is no recourse. Legislation that tries to thwart their agenda will be deemed unconstitutional. Democrats don't have the will to expand SCOTUS. We will rapidly become 2 separate countries, which is not tenable. We already know that SCOTUS is looking at ways to gut OSHA (why would they care about workers rights, when they have billionaire overlords to please) scaling back libel laws, and Republicans are chomping at the bit to gut our slender social safety net. The 40-year descent of the US from leader of the free world to a floundering democracy in the grip of cold civil war is incredibly sad to behold.
Thank you, Nick.
"...this is a watershed moment in the history of women’s rights in America." You bet it is, and it might be the start of even more freedoms that might be taken away from us Americans.
Why can't men be made to have (reversible) vasectomies to prevent pregnancy in the first place? Why place the burden solely on women?
I am not surprised that you, Nick Kristof, a great journalist and world traveler have written a eloquent and intelligent analysis of this issue which its tearing the fabric of our society. It does not have to do this, as you say, if we leave the issue to the woman and her doctor (although not all women especially younger, poorer ones, have access to medical consultation): there are many other critical issues such as inequality and gun safety which need to be addressed. Thank you for mentioning the importance of "comprehensive sex education," in your article as a way to lower the need for abortion in our country. We are making progress along these lines, but have further steps to take. The people of Oregon could count on you, I'm sure, to strengthen in-school programs, which include instruction about contraception, abstinence and prevention of rape and incest, if you are elected Governor. Best wishes in your quest.
Nicholas, as you say, women who are well off will go to other states. And I would like to know how many of those politicians and others who are pro-life are willing to adopt a child that a woman cannot support after birth. . . Also, how many of these people have wives, daughters, mistresses, sisters who have had abortions, if the truth be known.
None of these conservatives justices have ever met any poor people. Never met an addict who couldn't afford rehab. Never met an uninsured person. And think people in these conditions are responsible for their conditions and deserving to remain there. Born on 3rd base and think they hit a triple.
There is talk of a backlash - that if SCOTUS reverses Roe, voters might just wake up and stop electing Republicans. A switch to Democratic majorities in state houses and in D.C. would allow changes in our laws which could very well end up enshrining abortion rights in a constitutional amendment. We can only pray.
The biggest problem I see is the absolute certainty and moral arrogance of the "pro-life" voters. "I could be wrong" is a foreign concept: these voters are convinced that they alone represent the will of the Almighty, and how dare you disagree? By first convincing themselves that any death of any embryo after fertilization (and for many, even efforts to prevent fertilization) is de facto murder, and then convincing themselves that pro-choice equates to pro-abortion, which equates to pro-murder and anti-life, they have used this alleged moral high ground to justify every imaginable sort of evil - like stealing SCOTUS seats in order to bring about their chosen end.
So yes, I do hope it backfires on the GOP. I hope that no matter what SCOTUS decides to do with Roe, Americans will begin to realize the direction this nation is headed, and make some changes in their voting patterns.
Thank you Nick! I am glad to have come of age in the 1960s when women were making progress and our prospects looked bright. What I am seeing now is making me very frightened. The GOP seems intent of cutting back protections for America’a women. I am concerned that the gutting of Roe v. Wade will be just the opening salvo in the their war on women. Poland is introducing a bill to register all pregnancies, for “medical reasons”. Will the GOP-led states be far behind?
As for the abortion pill, I hope the FDA will make permanent their temporary Covid-related approval to make it available via tele-medicine and the mail.
Extremely well said. How can we possibly muddle our way into the future when we are ignorant of both the past and the present? Unfortunately I won’t be able to vote for you because I live in Seattle.
Enjoyed learning the American history behind abortion rights and look forward to advances in telemedicine and in the accessibility of the abortion pill and learning more about the Netherlands' sex education system.
Great article - thanks. I appreciate the emphasis on the idea that why a woman has an abortion should not be a consideration. I have two friends who found out they were carrying children with Potter's Syndrome. One chose to terminate her pregnancy, and the other chose to carry her child to term and her child died while she was in labor. Both women had very personal reasons for their choice, and it was heartening to see how they were supported in those decisions by their respective communities. I wish we could be more understanding towards each other. I can honestly say I don't know what I would have chosen in the same circumstances, and it's not for me to second guess either of their decisions. Nor is it my place to question any woman's decision about such a personal matter.
An amazing issue looking in from the outside. What would Africa be like without legal abortions in lucky countries where sanity prevails. The US seems to have a rage about issues that will take it back to the dark ages! Abortion, immigrants (which by the way you all are!), racism, like Trevor Noah says he is relaxed talking about these issues in South Africa
OK, bear with me for a moment, as this argument goes nowhere in my family: Let's take the end of Roe, and the beginning of a hodgepodge of locally-initiated, states-rights driven encroachments on a woman's right to choose.
Each new infringement feeds the culture war maelstrom; like a hurricane that picks up force as it crosses into the Gulf of Mexico- Mississippi, Alabama, Louisiana, Texas, all fall like a row of dominoes.
The long suffering religious right advances their Crusade after howling for 2, nay 3, generations in the wilderness. Finally, the sanctity of life is restored.
How do we make common cause?
Consider that current access to abortions becomes illegal. Firstly, fight to accept the international standard of termination up to 12 weeks. And, make that as accessible as possible.
Then, we carve out, with the AMA's help, that states respect ANY procedure between a woman and her doctor is private, unless agreed to share under HIPAA. No mandatory reporting, not included in summary, public health statistics, nobody's business, nothing to see here, you meddling prohibitionists. Just like decades of gun violence research obstructionism.
The procedure goes dark.
The network of contacts lights up: men's responsibility, access to chemical means, air lifting women to safe states. The tenor changes to become the Underground Railroad.
We will live, for awhile, as refugees from rationality and reflect on the power of emotion, on the power of cultural tradition, on respect for a stalwart, well heeled, adversary.
It will take a generation, or two, or three, before we quietly step back from this ledge.
The War on Abortion will be prosecuted like the War on Drugs, or the War on Crime, or the War on Ignorance. To the same effect.
We are a culture of revolutionaries and maybe the last thing we want is the Government on our Side.
Thank you for saying so well what I've been saying for years. As a social worker, I had at least one 12 year old developmentally delayed pregnant girl in my caseload. I took another for birth control at age 13. She didn't have her first child until age 17, a miracle considering that she lived with prostitutes. By that time, she had some education and was able to get a decent job. When I saw her at that job, she delightedly showed me photos of her baby. Not a perfect situation, but progress. I could go on and on, the pregnant woman with active schizophrenia in her fourth pregnancy because she wasn't competent to agree to sterilization, for example. Bans on abortion with no or few exceptions for extenuating circumstances essentially put women in bondage and servitude.
Brilliantly stated, as usual. Thank you.
Patronizing is not quite the right word - misogyny fits much better. You need to disrespect a person to deny them their human rights to be able to choose when they have a child. Limiting women’s control of their own bodies is also about power. Many white men are having a very hard time learning to share their power; the abortion debate is just another symptom of their fear.