Often, the "pro-choice" versus "pro-life" debate fails to acknowledge the reality of women's lives and is reduced to meaningless sound bites that make good fundraising copy but lousy public policy. Jessica Arons, Director of Women's Health and Rights at the Center for American Progress has just published a compelling new whitepaper: "More Than A Choice - A Progressive Vision for Reproductive Health and Rights." Arons, who is known for her ability to bring together diverse voices and craft a vision for the future, has produced a progressive blueprint for reproductive health and rights.
From the report:
"The core values that ground a progressive understanding of reproductive health and rights in the United States are easily stated but necessarily complex. At the Center for American Progress, we embrace equally the rights to have or not have children, with a partner of one’s choosing, in a time and manner that honors one’s conscience and life circumstances. So many factors shape such weighty decisions that it may be difficult to tackle them all simultaneously, but, at a minimum, it is critical that the reproductive health and rights policies supported by progressives address the reality of people’s lives and the context in which such decisions are made.
The decision to have a child, for instance, is connected to plans for education and career, as well as family. A healthy pregnancy requires quality medical care, a safe environment and emotional well-being. Parents must be able to provide love, attention and stability to their children, facilitated and supported by decent housing, schools, employment, child care, health care, and other societal structures that strengthen family life. In order to prevent or plan for parenthood, people need reliable education about sexuality and access to safe and affordable contraception and abortion care.
Simply put, reproductive rights are about more than just abortion.
Check out the entire report.
3 comments:
I also wanted to note that the report included the perspectives of CAP’s Women's Health Leadership Network. The network is a diverse group of seventeen women from around the country who represent a new generation of leaders in the reproductive health, rights, and justice movements. Included in the network is Women’s Bioethics Project Board member Lisa M. Stone, JD. Good job to all.
World estimations of the number of terminations carried out each year is somewhere between 20 and 88 million.
3,500 per day / 1.3 million per year in America alone.
50% of that 1.3 million claimed failed birth control was to blame.
A further 48% had failed to use any birth control at all.
And 2% had medical reasons.
That means a stagering 98% may have been avoided had an effective birth control been used.
Bill Clinton once said that abortions should be available , safe and RARE. He is a very wise man.
I'd like to see an ultrasound in every clinnic to provide a more informed choice,
before going through with something they may regret.
I'd also like to see effective birth control made available to all who can't afford it.
Have you seen ( HOT OFF THE SHOW! Throw-away babies )
a blog by Sharon Hughes?
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