Denying women the basic human right to make a decision about their body is unconstitutional and wrong.
Why are women still having to fight for bodily autonomy?
What’s happening in the US right now could have more sinister implications for the reproductive rights of women all around the world. And let’s be clear, data from the World Health Organisation shows that banning abortion has no effect on abortion rates throughout the world. It does however have an impact on women’s safety and their mortality.
Banning abortion puts us at risk of dying from a botched procedure. Going after women’s constitutional rights to an abortion really does feel like the far right is gunning for us. They intend to plant their flag deep in the wombs of the women of the world. Because, what happens in America echoes around the world. If women in the US lose their reproductive rights, we could be next.
Right now, in the US, the religious- and far-right are trying to overturn the 1973 landmark Roe v Wade ruling that recognised restrictive regulation of abortion is unconstitutional. Almost 50 years ago a US Supreme Court held that criminalising abortion in most instances violated a woman’s constitutional right to privacy.
The Court attempted to balance the State’s distinct compelling interests in the health of pregnant women and in the life of potential foetuses. This allowed the State to regulate abortion at approximately the end of the first trimester. But in May 2021 Texas adopted a law: that all abortions beyond when a foetal heartbeat can be detected, at around six weeks, are effectively banned. The ban shifted the responsibility to private citizens who would face a civil law suit if they performed an abortion, or even if they aided or abetted someone seeking an abortion. Like, if you drove your friend to a clinic, or stayed with them as support then you could face a fine of up to $10k, plus legal costs. Oh, and this law doesn’t care if you’ve been raped or if the pregnancy is a result of incest.
This rising concern for women’s rights has been triggered by a leaked draft of the US Supreme Court’s deliberations in a related case that suggests the Court plans to overturn the Roe v Wade ruling which established a constitutional right to abortion. If it does overturn the ruling then abortion in the US could be banned in 22 states. Some states have the paperwork sitting there, ready to go.
According to one source, women who are denied an abortion are almost four times more likely to be living below the poverty level. Forcing someone to carry out a pregnancy or to seek an unsafe abortion is a complete violation of a person’s human rights to privacy and bodily autonomy.
Why after 50 years are ‘pro-lifers’ and Republicans still wanting to destroy abortion rights? According to their own survey responses, anti-abortion voters are shown to be hostile to gender equality in practically every aspect. So, it’s gender war; misogyny in action. As women reach for gender equity around the world, as we grow in power and privilege, this is patriarchy’s latest effort to regain control of women’s bodies. In a patriarchal culture where sexual violence is still commonplace, preventing women from accessing the basic tool to prevent pregnancy after rape – and then jailing them if they do is, simply, gendercide.
Denying women the basic human right to make a decision about their body is unconstitutional and wrong.
The State needs to stay out of women’s wombs. We are not your country to colonise.
Anyone concerned about women’s contraceptive choices should take a look at, “Abortions, Cops and Corruption”, and see how making abortion a criminal offence against women lead to Political, Police and judicial corruption on massive scale with bombing attacks on doctors organised by those it overwhelmingly corrupted by the law the church demanded. Hundreds of women dying from the botched backyard abortion industry it caused to flourish. Make no mistake the branch stacked religious fundamentalist here in Australia that are now running the LNP Coalition, both State and Federally are every bit as dangerous as those in the USA creating these problems, RIGHT NOW!
Morrison refuses to discuss this for the simple reason, as anything else he refuses to discuss. He knows it’s a vote killer. And if given the chance after an election he would no doubt introduce the laws the ACL and his fundamentalist church demands of him implement immediately at the drop of a hat!
And here I am supposing a pregnant male agenda – no laughing matter.
The whole of civilization would disappear . . . ‘pronto’.
Are you saying trans Men aren’t real men just because they can get pregnant stef?
How about if the father wants the baby? It’s his baby too
There’s also another reason why…
In America adoption is big business. Unwanted babies are needed for the infertile. It’s happened before here in Australia and it could happen again if these laws are passed in America and set up precedence to occur in Australia. Included in those documents are statements about ‘domestic supply of infants’ aka ADOPTEES.
Is this sounding a little like “Handmaids Tale”?
As an Australian adoptee born in 1972, I am part of what’s known as the ‘forced adoption era’ in Australia, when 10,000 babies were adopted annually. This ended in 1974 when the government brought in the single parent pension. The number of adoptions dropped dramatically, indicating that most mothers want to keep their babies and can do so with community support. But what happens when there is no support to raise a child, or when women’s rights are taken away and abortion is not an option? ADOPTION.
Adoption is a practice that separates a child from their biological heritage and strips the rights of the child from their own identity. It is an unnatural process that is seen as a solution to ‘unwanted babies who need homes’. Without access to legalised abortion, the supply of ‘domestic infants’ will go up. There will be more infants available for the infertile. Criminalising abortion creates the illusion of a problem, ie. unwanted babies who needs homes, the solution to which looks like adoption.
There is a growing number of adult adoptees advocating for the end of closed adoption. It is well known that relinquishment and adoption is a patriarchal practice that glorifies the privileged (usually white, heterosexual, middle class couples) and causes lifelong trauma to the infant. The community has been sold a story that adoption is a fairytale – give the baby to the deserving couple and it will live happily ever after. This is a myth. Adoptees don’t get better lives, they get different lives. In this process, not only is there is no support for the woman, she is often demonised, shamed and left to live a life of pain and trauma, knowing she has a child in the world she cannot access. And the infant is left to make sense of the loss of their rightful heritage over a lifetime.
In addition to this, there is another reason why pro-lifers and republicans want to destroy abortion rights…
Any woman, or support person who is criminalised for abortion, is unable to vote. Think about that for a minute.
Roe vs Wade simply took the power to legislate out of the hands of the States, and then the federal govt made no laws against it. Abortion wasn’t legal, it was simply not illegal.
Now it will be on a State by State basis. It’s a short drive to the next state in the USA.
Up to 30 states could be scrapping abortion, and then it will be birth control, and then who knows. For many Americans, even a short drive is too far financially. Abortion must be protected.
Every new baby born in the west will produce over 515 tons of CO2 in their life.
If you are concerned about Climate Change in any way, please consider having an abortion, even if you want the baby, even if you planned the baby.
Please think of the future. Think of the world you will be creating for my children, and my children’s children.
Science has shown there is a strong correlation between genetics, IQ, and political affiliation.
My kids will be far to busy raising their twenty kids to have time to deal with stupid people. So please do the right thing.
So go have an abortion today, even if you are not pregnant, it’s always better to be safe that sorry.
You’ll be creating a brighter, and statistics show whiter, future.
Totally agree Mandy……however those of us for abortion as a human right need to be clear about one question ” up to what foetal age is it ok to abort?
This is not an easy question to answer but if we are to stand by our heartfelt convictions we need to be at peace with the outcome.
Nicely put.
Hi Christian, no of course I’m not suggesting trans doing any such thing. I was
imagining ScoMo & Co & quite a few men taking on what women are expected
to deal with ie; birth itself or abortion. If it was a ‘male thing’ either way they
would jump ship.
Then why has war not ended. It’s men that have to go die in them. And I would suggest that reproduction of the species is an everyone issue. If you don’t think it has anything to do with Dads have to sacrifice, look squarely at your feminist socialists friends for the destruction of the nuclear family.
Women are under attack from the Trans movement
a representative from the women’s group had the audacity to admit that only Women can breastfeed
How dare she tell the truth !! a complaint was made and this lady from promptly sacked ..
can anyone define what a women is ?
Now that’s an assumption seeing as how I am affiliated with Arts Action For Peace – now known as ICAN, the winner
of the Nobel Peace Prize in 2017.
In my Author’s Note opening the title of ”Midnight Tulips” first published in 1985 & later performed by The Seymour
Group at The Performance Space – Six songs for voice & ensemble – my ‘note’ reads . . . [extract] “In this day of
push-button extinction no one has asked me if I want to be a statistic, a pawn, a victim of a power-crazed gang of
semi-senile septuagenarians who sit as heads of state in the Power Capitals of the World. Tell me, where do the
children play?”
“This book is dedicated to the preservation of the small every-day wonders and the people who may have eyes or
souls to see. To aggressor or victim, the searcher or salvager, or those who still believe there is time and space enough
to dream or to love. Fellow artists, fellow humans, to all of us who stand at gun-point this book is for you and about
you.”
Cold wars are here to stay.
Absolutely correct. The mobilisation of the ultra-conservative Christians in Australia as a result of things like voluntary euthanasia, marriage equality and a growing call for recognition of the gender spectrum has already reached a danger point and you can see from Morrison’s demented ranting that he will, if he remains PM, oversee a further trend towards a reduction of those personal liberties that bitterly offend the Christian conservatives. A woman’s right to choose is something else the evangelical Christians want to prohibit – as well as things like the right to protest. Morrison seems to be deliberately trying to clean out the moderates and this is allied to a grass roots rise of evangelical Christian influence over the Liberal Party. Morrison and his “friends” (he basically is such an emotional cripple, I doubt he has the capacity to have “normal” friendships) hate a secular Australia – i.e., one where there is a strong separation between church and state – and that only means they want a more illiberal and authoritarian Australia – he harks back to the social and cultural attitudes of the Menzies-era. Ironically, Menzies was far more liberal in his attitudes to those at the lower end of society. The only way to at least try to arrest this disturbing trend is to vote to make sure Morrison and his corrupt numpties are not re-elected – but my fear is they will lose this election but never go away.
How do the Muslims feel about a woman’s right to choose, on anything. I look forward to your rants on other religious groups.
I haven’t seen any evidence of other religious groups, attempting and gaining quite the same ascendancy in the Liberal Party. That’s the point here I think rather than a statement on the relative merits of various faiths.
Yes, Liz. The Lib. Party’s an ascendancy all by itself and we’re
force-fed on it. Heavy tactics.