In the wake of a judge overturning a law that would mandate a 72-hour waiting period for women seeking abortions in South Dakota, I thought I'd write a little something about my problem with these waiting periods in general.
The waiting periods are put in place so women have some time to think over their decision before going through with the procedure. Or so these lawmakers say. I don't disagree with the idea of wanting women to think things through, it's an important decision that shouldn't be taken lightly. However, what these rich white men in Congress and state legislatures fail to realize, is that women already DO think long and hard about that decision.
It's safe to say that most sexually active women do have a game plan, or an idea of what they would do if they ever got pregnant. Many of these women discuss that plan with their partners, to make sure there's no conflict, should the situation ever arise. I know that when my period is even an hour or two later than expected, I immediately start thinking about what I would do. It's fair to assume that when a woman goes in for her abortion consult, she has already thought a great deal about her situation and she's made up her mind.
Go to imnotsorry.net. Go on, I'll wait here. Notice how many of the stories mention how hard the decision was, that the women and their partners thought it over, going back and forth. They mention how scary it is go undergo the procedure, and how painful it is. That there were times when they weren't sure they were making the right decision. The sad thing is that many women who get abortions wouldn't do so if they had the means to become mothers, but they knew they couldn't in their situation.
Now, I do think women should make informed decisions as well. The problem is that when the state steps in to make sure they're informed, the information they are mandated to receive is biased, emotionally based propaganda aimed at making sure she "knows" she's about to do something "evil." Most women in the country are misinformed about the procedure, but not in the way the anti-choice movement says they are, claiming that women who get abortions don't know what they're doing. Rather, too many people think all abortions are the horrible, gory procedure associated with late term, emergency abortions; or that what's being aborted is a small infant that can think and feel pain (and talk, sing, and narrate, according to one propaganda video); or that abortion will cause breast cancer and infertility, or that it will lead to depression and suicidal thoughts. If anything, busting those anti-abortion myths and promoting unbiased, science-based information to all women will help women decide what to do with their pregnancies.
Some see waiting periods as a necessary roadblock, out of fear that abortion shouldn't be too easily accessible. This is also a condescending sentiment, thinking women will get abortions without thinking if there's nothing in their way. What waiting periods actually do is make women take a lot of time off work, and force many women in rural areas in middle America to stay in a hotel for 2-3 nights - so while she's losing a chunk of her paycheck, she also has to pay out the ass to put herself up in a hotel, because the nearest clinic still takes hours to reach by car.
If a woman does take getting an abortion lightly, she probably shouldn't be having kids anyway. However, most women who experience unexpected pregnancies do give their decisions a lot of thought without any government intervention. The waiting periods imposed on women in several states are unnecessary and paternalistic.
Now to get really political: it's ludicrous that Republicans claim to want less government, yet try to pass these laws that interfere with women's personal lives. I suppose "less government" only means fewer laws interfering in the lives of rich, white men, but women still need restrictions on their lives, because clearly they can't be trusted.
Showing posts with label abortion. Show all posts
Showing posts with label abortion. Show all posts
Friday, July 1, 2011
Thursday, May 26, 2011
Partner Consent Laws
I'm tired of hearing people complain that women shouldn't be allowed to "go behind their boyfriends' backs" and get abortions without telling them. I get it, men should have a say in the decision, and for the most part there is a conversation before a woman gets an abortion. That is, in healthy relationships.
The problem with partner consent laws is that they compel women to get the consent of their partners regardless of who they actually are - whether that partner is a long-term boyfriend, a one night stand she may not be able to contact, an abusive partner, or a rapist. There are plenty of cases where getting that consent is either impossible, causes emotional hardship, or puts the woman in physical danger.
Yes, you can argue that those women can go before a judge to get the requirement waved, but that takes time. Getting an abortion is a time sensitive issue, women generally only have a window of a couple months between finding out they're pregnant and the 12 week cutoff point. First a woman finds out she's pregnant, at which point she may be 2 weeks along, 4 weeks, maybe even 6 weeks. Then she has to see a doctor, which may mean waiting a few days, maybe more than a few depending on where she lives, and she has to take time off work and in rural areas she may need to travel hours by car and get a hotel room just for the clinic consultation. Then, once a doctor has confirmed she is pregnant and she's talked to a clinic about getting the procedure, she has to wait - most states, even the most liberal ones, have a waiting period of two days. Getting to a judge adds more time onto this, time she may not necessarily have. In fact, having to track down her partner and get his written consent for the procedure can be time consuming as well.
Besides, if she has to go before a judge, plenty of people will be concerned about women lying just to get around the system. Then she may have to prove to a doubtful judge that abuse has, in fact, occurred.
It needs to be assumed that in a healthy relationship, a woman would tell her partner she's pregnant, and would listen to what he has to say about the issue. That's not to say a good woman does whatever he thinks is best, of course, but that she would at least take his thoughts on the matter into consideration. It also needs to be assumed that if a woman does not tell her partner, she has a legitimate reason why not. Either way, we need to trust women more, instead of demonize them to the point where we feel the law needs to step in in order to force them to be rational, moral actors in society.
The problem with partner consent laws is that they compel women to get the consent of their partners regardless of who they actually are - whether that partner is a long-term boyfriend, a one night stand she may not be able to contact, an abusive partner, or a rapist. There are plenty of cases where getting that consent is either impossible, causes emotional hardship, or puts the woman in physical danger.
Yes, you can argue that those women can go before a judge to get the requirement waved, but that takes time. Getting an abortion is a time sensitive issue, women generally only have a window of a couple months between finding out they're pregnant and the 12 week cutoff point. First a woman finds out she's pregnant, at which point she may be 2 weeks along, 4 weeks, maybe even 6 weeks. Then she has to see a doctor, which may mean waiting a few days, maybe more than a few depending on where she lives, and she has to take time off work and in rural areas she may need to travel hours by car and get a hotel room just for the clinic consultation. Then, once a doctor has confirmed she is pregnant and she's talked to a clinic about getting the procedure, she has to wait - most states, even the most liberal ones, have a waiting period of two days. Getting to a judge adds more time onto this, time she may not necessarily have. In fact, having to track down her partner and get his written consent for the procedure can be time consuming as well.
Besides, if she has to go before a judge, plenty of people will be concerned about women lying just to get around the system. Then she may have to prove to a doubtful judge that abuse has, in fact, occurred.
It needs to be assumed that in a healthy relationship, a woman would tell her partner she's pregnant, and would listen to what he has to say about the issue. That's not to say a good woman does whatever he thinks is best, of course, but that she would at least take his thoughts on the matter into consideration. It also needs to be assumed that if a woman does not tell her partner, she has a legitimate reason why not. Either way, we need to trust women more, instead of demonize them to the point where we feel the law needs to step in in order to force them to be rational, moral actors in society.
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