the argument against abortion has always been on the basis of morality of killing an innocent human being who just happens to be a fetus. and this has been a great motivator to continue legislation for making abortions less accessible for women at every turn.  this revamping of law does nothing to stop women from having abortions, what it does do is force women to have more risky procedures and clouds the judgement of ppl after the procedure is done.  for the women that are put into positions of carrying a fetus against their will and desire are forced into motherhood when not ready or not willing to be one.

there are a few phrases the prolife teams use to shame women into being unwilling incubators to unwanted fetuses.  the worst of these coined terms is “if a pregnancy is the result of a rape, then the idea of abortion is understandable.”  is this decision based on a rape that has been proven in a court of law or is the woman also responsible for proving it was an act of rape, taking up to a year to pull through the justice system?  is it only violent rape or does date rape count too?  what is the difference between a fetus conceived of rape and one conceived of lust?  the fetuses of both acts are the same.  they develop at the same rate.

“if a woman is mature enough to open her legs, she should have to live with the consequences of her actions.”  this is essentially using the would be child as punishment for having sex.  the pregnancy a huge growing scarlet “a” for all the world to see.  when this is the situation, how is the woman going to view the child when it is born?  is it assumed that this will not create animosity and loathing, or is this not a concern?  neuroscience has proven that when a mother, therefore a fetus, is exposed to trauma and hazards the neurodevelopment of child that is born is abnormal and the mental capacities unstable.  so when we force women to carry babies unwillingly they are born already 6 steps behind.  even if the child is given up for adoption immediately after birth, there is a 50/50 chance that the child will suffer from illnesses induced during gestation.  a child is not a punishment.  it is a person.  everytime we slut shame women by forcing them into motherhood we are running the risk of bringing in a new generation of PEOPLE who are unable to thrive.

“when a woman has an abortion, she is killing a baby.”  this is bullshit!  this is not real and so incredibly inaccurate according to science!  for the first trimester the clump of cells is an embryo, it then becomes a fetus.  it will not be a baby until it is outside of the mother’s body.  the fetus will not have the biological factors for responding to stimuli until about 20 weeks after conception.  until the fetus can respond to stimuli it has less neural activity than an ant.  we as a collective species have no issues with killing ants, most ppl have no issues with killing vermin such as roaches, rats, mice, even opossums, which all have more neural development than a 19 week old fetus.   there are many states that are forcing women to undergo vaginal sonogram prior to an abortion forcing the mother too look at the clump of cells calling it her “baby” the entire time.  despite the humanoid shape, this is just a cluster of cells until week 20.  forcing the mother to look at her baby that she is going to kill does cause many women, especially young women, to maintain the pregnancy, but what are the long term repercussions of that?

if a woman does not want a baby and is forced or coerced into continuing a pregnancy there are many many things that can go wrong.  if a woman does not want to be pregnant she is more than likely not going to be taking the necessary precautions and actions to produce a healthy child.  diet, emotional stability, physical activity are all good things for a fetus to be exposed to during gestation.  drugs, alcohol, homelessness, poverty, malnutrition, and chaotic environments are all detrimental to neurological and physical development of a fetus causing longterm issues for the child that is born putting a strain on the family and society at large.  many times a  woman is told that “there are so many ppl out there who want a baby! you can have that baby and give it to a loving family that can’t have a baby of their own.” which seems simple and a bit utopian.  but even when a woman knows she cannot raise a child and cannot provide a stable home for the child carrying a fetus for 9 months, feeling it move and kick, having it take the calcium out of your body, expelling it from your body causes a compulsionary need to continue to provide for the squirmy little baby that they place in your arms.  many times it is a selfish desire, the mother avoiding the pain of losing what she created, what she protected, what fed off her body.

when a woman wants to have an abortion, it is usually in the best interest of all involved.  it is usually the most difficult decision she has to make, but she makes it bc the options are too devastating.  despite what radical religious ppl think, women do not want to use abortion as birth control.  it is painful, physically, mentally and emotionally.  unwanted pregnancy is usually do to proper birth control failing otr inadequate sex education.  forcing a baby unto a woman who is not willing or able to be a mother for the rest of her life the consequences are child abuse, neglect, poverty, cruelty, emotional trauma, the list can go on and on.  it is a cruel and unusual punishment for the child.

if you want to do something to prevent ppl who are not wanting to have babies from having babies, invest your time and money into campaigning for free and appropriate birth control and sex education, this is the best anti-abortion technique known to work.  picketing abortion clinics and slut shaming women who get pregnant are counterproductive to society as a whole.  harassing the drs and nurses that abort fetuses that have been exposed to drugs or alcohol or are being carried by women who know for sure they are not able or willing to take care of a child is asinine.  it is time we look at what the end result in our collective social sexual taboos and punishing women for having sex actually is-it is women leaving babies in trash cans, drowning her children, tearing the scrotum off of her son, punching children, burning children, leaving children in locked cars or in houses alone.  it is broken families and scars.  when we give a clump of cells that cannot discern light from dark more rights and freedoms than we do a person, we are destroying lives!

for an article about fetal neurodevelopment click: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/17905181

for article on woman who ripped her son’s scrotum prompting this blog post visit: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/10/24/jennifer-marie-vargas-gentials-superglue_n_4156889.html