It has been said that “abortion is the guarantor of a woman’s right to participate fully in the social and political life of society”.11 Unfortunately, this is the reality for many Australian women. Without control over their reproductive lives, women are often unable to get an education, pursue a career, or even maintain their role as a respected and valued member of society. But is abortion a solution, or part of the problem?
“The premise of male domination throughout the millennia (is) that it was nature which made men superior and women inferior. Medical technology is offered as a solution to achieve equality; but the premise is wrong … It’s an insult to women to say women must change their biology in order to fit into society.”
If society were to be structured such that tall people could not function properly, would we expect tall people to be grateful for legal access to surgery to shorten their legs? Would such access be a sign of our respect for tall people. Of course not. The appropriate way to value tall people would be to restructure society so that they could participate, and still remain tall.
If pregnant or parenting women can’t fully participate in society, then surely the solution is to change society, not to force women to give up part of their unique abilities as
women. It is a further insult to expect women to be grateful for the opportunity to give up their children. At best this is the better of two bad alternatives, at worst, it is expoitation.
Abortion therefore, is a sign that society has failed to meet the needs of women, and that women have had to settle for far less than they deserve. Abortion is not a solution for women, but part of the problem, enabling society to continue to devalue womens’ unique capacity to bear children.
The question should not be whether a woman has the right to choose, but rather, should she have to choose – between being a valued, respected member of society and the life of her own child. When we fail to cherish motherhood, we force women to make such a choice, which is really no choice at all.
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11 Kate Michelman, former President of the US organisation, the National Abortion and Reproductive Rights Action League (NARAL), quoted in The New York Times, May 10, 1988.
