jdh@hou5g.UUCP (10/19/84)
When women's reproductive capabilities are no longer used to torture and enslave her (--which will be accomplished only when more healthy, positive birthing centers are made widely available, with mid-wives/doctors who have been trained to ease the birthing process for the pregnant woman and baby, not just to simplify the process for themselves --which will be accomplished only when men and women take on the responsibility of childcare equally, when childcare is seen as valid, societally valuable, and important to the entire community, when it is in fact *monetarily* important (i.e. you get paid for raising kids), when women can bear children, let someone else raise them, and not be considered "unnatural" or cruel --which will be accomplished only when more effective, safe means of birth control are created, and when birth control information and birth control are disseminated more efficiently) THEN it MIGHT be time to consider making abortion illegal. But I suspect that after all these things happen, abortion won't be such an issue any more. When the entire community is willing to take on the responsibilities of pregnancy, birth, and childcare, the entire community will have more of a "right" to discuss the legality of abortion. At this time, pregnancy, birth, and childcare are totally the private responsibility of the woman. SHE must pay for birth control (including possible doctor's visits), SHE must pay for care during pregnancy, for care during birth, for the hospital stay (if there is one), for the loss of a job, for the day care if she does work, for the cost of raising the child. Currently, the only way most women can afford this is by becoming financially dependent on someone, usually a man, or by going on welfare if there is no one else (although there are of course women who in fact succeed without men). THIS is how women are tortured and *enslaved* by their reproductive capabilities. This is how women lose their freedom. How can you have freedom in a money-based society without money? In fact, women are performing a very important, societally necessary function by having children. But in our present system, this function is too often forced on them. Women are funneled into reproductive slavery. Marriage solves nothing. Perhaps not ever having sexual intercourse would help. But we hopefully all agree that this is also torture (in general, naturally, there are exceptions). (And of course, rape can always be used on women who won't have intercourse willingly.) Also, having equal access to well paid jobs, and an equal opportunity in educational and job experience would help. To a woman who has been funneled into/trained to take a low paying job, financial dependance on someone who can support her better than she can support herself may seem the best (and is certainly the *expected*) route. She hopes that she will be able to find a man who will not use the power that her financial dependence, lack of job experience while bearing and raising children, and unequal job/educational opportunity gives him. Yet we all know the saying "Power corrupts. Absolute power corrupts absolutely". It is too much to ask men not to be influenced by the power that owning everything gives them. They often end up feeling that they even own the woman. Of Course there are exceptions. But the solution isn't that every woman should find the exception. The solution is to change the system.
robertsb@ttidcb.UUCP (Robin Roberts) (10/25/84)
jdh forgot the last enslavement which is that by the religious groups
advocating the illegality of abortion. They enslave women by claiming to
know better what role women can and cannot assume.
--
Robin D. Roberts (213) 450 9111 x 2916
TTI Zone V4 aka Buskirk the Valerian
3100 Ocean Park Blvd Death to Tyrants !
Santa Monica, CA 90405
UUCP: ..!ucbvax!ihnp4!vortex!ttidca!ttidcb!robertsb
or {cadovax,flick,philabs,randvax,trwrb,vortex,wtux2}!ttidca!ttidcb!robertsb
or ttidca!ttidcb!robertsb@RAND-UNIX.ARPAliz@tove.UUCP (Liz Allen) (11/03/84)
A (short) response to this article is in net.abortion. -- -Liz Allen Univ of Maryland, College Park MD Usenet: ...!seismo!umcp-cs!liz Arpanet: liz@maryland "This is the message we have heard from him and declare to you: God is light; in him there is no darkness at all" -- 1 John 1:5