"Bump"

I was surfing the web, thinking about all that is going on in the world of abortion that I can talk about. And  I stumbled upon a website called Bump the Show. This is a fictional web show that follows 3 women and their unintended pregnancies. The idea is to watch as they make the decision on whether they will carry their pregnancies. The viewers then go on their web boards and have discussions about the show, its characters, and what they think these women should do. The viewers actually influence the direction of the show, and ultimately the decisions these women will make.

W. T. F.

Really? What are the producers of this show thinking? And watching this show, makes me think they have never actually spoken to any women who are struggling with an unintended pregnancy if they think that this is realistic.

One of the things I found most off putting while watching the pilot episode is something one of the women said during her interview with the producers. "I think it's a really interesting experiment." "It's a really big decision, and so to have so many...so much input into it, is a really interesting idea." --Umm, what? I have talked to many pregnant women struggling with this decision, and I can't imagine any of them would react this way. Now, I understand this show is dramatized -- it is fictional, after all. But come on.

The producers of this show say the purpose is to have an open conversation about abortion and (my favorite part) "find workable solutions to the problem of unintended pregnancies". I get that this is a way of having communication on the abortion debate. I just wonder how successful it will be, and if the conversation will really be about abortion, or the way the show is presented. Also, I don't get how this show will help find any solutions to unintended pregnancies. I guess we'll have to watch to find out.

*As of the writing of this blog post, I am trying to watch the 2nd episode. My uncooperative internet is making that difficult.*

Against abortion? You know what to do...

What a funny notion. What if in order to reduce abortion people lobbied for more vasectomies? So I wrote these words after seeing a photo of this bumper. As I sat here trying to dig a blog post out of my skull, I looked at the photo again and decided to visit the website in small print at the bottom of the bumper sticker.

I did it, I visited a pro-life website just to see. I mean really it was more logical than any other pro-life mantra I’ve ever heard. I’m sure vasectomies inhibit a minute number of unintended pregnancies and in turn abortions. It also holds men accountable as a part of reproduction. The debate over choice is fought over women’s bodies, quite literally.

The idea that men who don’t want to have children should get vasectomies is sort of refreshing because it places some of the responsibility on men. I am not pretending to agree with the mission of this bumper sticker or organization. This organization claims to be both pro-choice and anti-abortion, which from my point of view is not possible. There is nothing pro-choice about being against abortion. However, I am intrigued by this organization for a few reasons. Their mission is to reduce abortion through the effective use of contraception, which is definitely a step ahead of those who believe contraception is just as bad as abortion. They also claim to take a moderate stand on abortion, so they at least recognize that there are circumstances when abortion is necessary -- still not in line with my personal beliefs, but not quite as asinine as many anti causes. Really, there is nothing moderate about accepting that women have the right to control their bodies and lives. Finally, they use the money from their bumper sticker to fund vasectomies -- sort of weird, but also sort of productive, right? Snip, snip.

Abortion will never be eliminated even if every single person in the world had access to contraception and used it 100% accurately. Contraception fails, conception can and will happen and sometimes an unwanted pregnancy will need to be terminated. Not to mention that the world is a long, long, long way from every single individual having access to contraceptive technology and information on how to use it properly.

I am not endorsing this cause, just presenting it as a really interesting spin on the pro-life movement. Know thy enemy.

A brief assortment of scenes

[ETA: you know, I forgot we had a listy-post last week. So, sorry for listmania, maybe the rhythm just got into my head without my noticing!] 

Things I Only Have To Say At My Abortionland Job

1) An abortion? And you said you just had the unprotected sex last night? Well, you can't get an abortion, but do you know about emergency contraception?

2) I'm sorry, if you had unprotected sex four weeks ago, it's too late for the morning-after pill.

3) No, I don't think you're a bad person.

4) I'm sorry, I can't give you the name of our doctors over the phone, even though I really sympathize with you wanting to look them up on ratemydoc.com before you make an appointment. They're highly trained and qualified doctors, I promise, but they get harassed and threatened when their names are public.

5) Yes, there are a few protesters, but at our particular location they don't seem to get a lot of attention from traffic, so they don't stay very long -- but keep your windows up or they'll throw things into your car.

6) For two weeks afterwards, make sure you don't put anything in your vagina! No tampons, no penises, no vibrators, no DivaCups, and don't go swimming or take tub baths. Exceptions will be made for the NuvaRing and IUD insertion only. Did I mention no penises? No penises!

7) I really mean it, no penises. Did you know your softened cervix means not only are you more susceptible to infection in the next two weeks, you're also more susceptible to pregnancy.

8) On that note, no, you're obviously not likely to become infertile. I've had clients who didn't realize that they were more fertile afterward and ended up back here a few months later, so, no.

9) No, you're not likely to die either. Both the risk of death and the risk of infertility were high in the days when abortion was illegal and so there was no legit way to train doctors to do it safely -- so I think that's where a lot of people have that idea from. Back then, untrained people using any manner of equipment could definitely injure or infect women's uteruses, but in a legal clinic in the US, the risk of dying is less than 1 in a hundred-thousand.

10) Do you have anal, oral, vaginal sex?

11) You look uncomfortable. Do you want to talk to me without your boyfriend around?

12) That will be one thousand, two hundred and fifteen dollars. Um...can you take that cash to the money-order place?
OR
That will be one thousand, two hundred and fifteen dollars. (But I saw your sleeping bag unrolled in the back-seat of your car.) Um...actually, can you hold on a minute? (Maybe I can talk to my manager.)

13) We offer IV sedation, but you can be awake during the procedure if you prefer. What's it like? Well, have you ever given birth? You know the contractions beforehand?...Way less bad than that! But worse than your period cramps. For about a minute.

14) What's going to happen? OK, first you'll...well, have you had a gynecological exam before? No? Hm. Well then, here's what the speculum will do. Yeah, it will feel kind of weird when it opens, and maybe uncomfortable. I know.

15) You're welcome -- you're very welcome! God bless you too!

Abortion rights are Human rights

An old friend came to visit me this weekend. We will be forever bonded. We began our journey together as teenagers, counseling women in crisis who needed money to have an abortion, to save their lives, and the lives of their families. Our organization had very little money and so we were always saying, no. We continued to come to work and continued to say no, saddened and infuriated by the health care system's neglect to women's health needs. The women we talked to everyday, the women we cried with, the women whose stories we listened to...about rape, incest, suicidal thoughts and threats. Stories about working three jobs with five kids to feed, about partner violence, language barriers and the ultimate fear of having a baby. Which, in reality, was going to happen without the money.

People still do not seem to understand that even though because abortion is legal, it is completely inaccessible to women if they can't afford the services, find the providers, have the information to make the right choices, and lack access to a clinic or hospital.

Now let me clarify: Sexual rights are the "universal human rights based on the inherent freedom, dignity, and equality of all human beings."

List me list them for you, as laid out by the Declaration of the 13th World Congress of Sexology, World Association of Sexology (WAS) Declaration of Sexual Rights:
1. The right to sexual freedom (free from coercion, exploitation and abuse)
2. The right to sexual autonomy, sexual integrity, and safety of the sexual body
3. The right to sexual privacy (HELLO! Including the records of all abortion patients)
4. The right to sexual equality.
5. The right to sexual pleasure (YES! It is a sexual right and FGM denies women this right)
6. The right to emotional sexual expression
7. The right to sexually associate freely.
8. THE RIGHT TO MAKE FREE AND RESPONSIBLE REPRODUCTIVE CHOICES (This encompasses the right to decide whether or not to have children, the number and spacing of children and the right to full access to the means of fertility regulation - which includes abortion!)
9. The right to sexual information based upon scientific inquiry.
10. The right to comprehensive sexuality education (Get with it United States!!)
11. The right to sexual health care (Sexual health care should be available for prevention and treatment of all sexual concerns, problems, and disorders).

Now, these rights have been clearly laid out, within the human rights framework, and it's about time for them to be recognized, promoted, respected and defended.

Justice

Guilty on all counts.

I tried not to pay a lot of attention to the trial of Scott Roeder, now convicted of 1^st degree murder for killing Dr. George Tiller. I read a little bit of news on it and read some of Roeder’s testimony. I am amazed that someone who talks about how murder is wrong, and that only the “heavenly father” can take a life, spent so much time thinking through how he was going to kill Dr. Tiller.

Today he has been found guilty. His sentencing will be in March.

It’s weird to say that justice has been served. It certainly doesn’t make me feel any better. But at least the antis are being shown that they can’t murder our doctors, our clinic staff, and get away with it. Scott Roeder is a murderer, he cannot justify it, and now he will pay his court mandated consequences – nothing in comparison to what we have suffered.

Now if only we could go after the anti groups that spew hatred and are also responsible for actions like these. Let’s tell Randall Terry, Troy Newman, Fox News, etc. that it’s not ok to incite violence, it’s not ok to justify killing our co-workers.

Una de las Experiencias Latinas

Choice is different for Latina women. Latina women ask about a "legrado" in hushed tones, using the word that's more delicate and more ambiguous than "aborto." They explain, "I have four children and I'm out of work and my husband just left and I just missed my period and no, no, no, no, no," leaving me to draw my own conclusions, gently suggesting, "And you're interested in information about abortion?"

Latina women not only remember the time before Roe v. Wade when abortion was illegal, but they remember their home countries where abortion is still illegal. They remember people labeling them, as people, "illegals," so why wouldn't an abortion be illegal, too? When I quote prices and describe the procedure, I slip in the fact that abortion is legal and safe. Sometimes, I forget, and then the woman is about to go and meet her doctor, and she asks quietly, "Is this illegal?"

The clinic isn't the first exposure to abortion for many Latina women. Her first exposure was a sister suffering complications from an at-home abortion years ago in Mexico. Or her first exposure was the series of pills she bought from an acquaintance, pills that promised to "bring on her period," and pills that she bought right here in town because she was too ashamed and scared to do anything else.

A lot of Latina women are good Catholics, and good Catholics don't have abortions, they tell me. And then they go on to tell me the most beautiful, well thought out reasons for choosing this path. They're willing to pour their hearts out to me and to God and to themselves, and they're willing to try to believe that they are still good Catholics who made a difficult decision for the good of their families and their lives.

Latina women are the ones more likely to go through the abortion experience alone, going to extreme measures to put on a charade of going to a clinic for a "surgery on a cyst." And they're more likely to stare blankly on the pile of forms we hand them, until an interpreter comes over and quietly asks if they need help. A lot of times, it's because they stopped their schooling after elementary grades and they can't read this complicated translation of a medical history.

And Latina women are the ones who will never add her abortion story to the litany of their experiences in America. They are strong and proud and wonderful, and this is a tiny part of their stories.

Stupid Things Antis Say

No prologue necessary. Sensitive antis: take a hike.



1. That baby could be the next Gandhi!

That baby could also be the next Jeffrey Dahmer or "Jersey Shore" cast member.

2. How would you feel if you were aborted?!

.....I wouldn't.

3. Pick on someone your own size!

Bring it on, similarly-sized anti.

4. Keep your legs closed!

Everyone has sex. Even priests. With small children.

5. Babies are miracles/blessings!

Not to the women who end up killing their children -- you know, somewhat less legal than abortion. Also, we all know where babies actually come from, and it can be pretty unmiraculous.

6. I will help you raise your baby!

No you won't. When have you even given your address and phone number to a pregnant woman for free child care? Oh right, you only give out that information about clinic staff so your anti friends can stalk them.

7. Your baby wants to see your face!

Eh. I'm not sure babies actually want to be born. It's a frightening experience for them. That's why they scream bloody murder. The real world is noisy and freezing.

8. I don't want my tax dollars to pay for abortions!

Yeah, well MY tax dollars pay for wars and bailouts for shoddy industries, but it's something I have to deal with.

9. I regret my abortion!

Your bad. Most women don't.

10. The government is Socialist!

Really? Awesome.

New Abortiony Documentary!

As I was perusing the interwebs to find something to blog about today, I came across a film that is in this year's Sundance Film Fest called 12th and Delaware. There was also a piece about the film in the LA Times today.



The film is about an abortion clinic and a CPC that is located across the street from it. What intrigued me the most about it was how very insistent both directors were that they were being totally unbiased in the filming, that they were just trying to capture both sides. Other Abortioneers probably felt a lot of the same things I felt when I was watching the video above. At first I was annoyed -- I personally feel that CPCs are lying disingenuous pieces of crap. It seemed to me at first like they were trying to make the CPC "look good" or something. But the more I watched of the video clip the more I believed that they were really trying to create an accurate representation of what they saw and felt out there on that street corner in Florida. Also worth noting, the filmmakers showed the movie to both the CPC and the abortion clinic depicted in the film and both said it was fair.

Anyway, I am not how easy it would be to see this in a theater (I'm guessing pretty difficult), but it looks like it will be good, definitely worth checking out!

Holy Smokes!

We were so busy enjoying the 37^th anniversary of Roe v. Wade we (1) forgot to write about it and (2) forgot to celebrate our own birthday!

It’s true! The blog of the Abortioneers is one year old! 234 posts later, we are doing better than ever.

We cannot thank you all enough for your support and kind comments -- on the blog, via Twitter and Facebook, and in-person from our loved ones and even people who don't know that we are the writers.

We use this space to share our experiences and tell our stories. We are so proud to hear that our readers find this blog useful, comforting, and supportive.

Thanks for reading and sharing. Abortioneers do such incredible work every day all over the world. The work is not always appreciated, but it is always important.

Thank you again, and here's to another year!

Parents and Abortion

I talk to parents all the time. Usually moms. And I’ve been thinking about how they must feel, what they may experience as their child decides to have an abortion. Sometimes they just need to vent: they’re angry their daughter is pregnant; angry she didn’t tell them sooner; confused because they’re pregnant at the same time (maybe even same gestation) as their daughter who wants an abortion; devastated their daughter was raped. Sometimes, parents’ values and beliefs about abortion change in the face of their child’s pregnancy. I’ve heard dads and moms say they didn’t agree with abortion, but…their daughter was so young and had so much going for her and they wanted to protect her and they thought a pregnancy would ruin her life. So. Their minds changed. Their hearts changed.

Did any of you see Thursday’s episode of ABC‘s “Private Practice?” The 15 year old daughter, Maya, of two doctors, was pregnant. One of the parents was very anti-abortion, but was adamant her daughter have an abortion. At one point, she screamed, “Do I believe I’m going to hell for forcing my daughter to have an abortion? Yes! Do I regret it? NO!” Though some of how this parent handled the situation annoyed me to no end (I thought it was narcissistic and over-the-top), I had to ask myself how I would feel. How would I feel if my daughter was pregnant? How would I react if she didn’t want an abortion?

I’m a parent. I have a daughter. I’m fiercely pro-choice and am grateful that my daughter will have the right to choose whether she continues a pregnancy or not in the future; but, if my daughter came home at age 14, 15, 18 even and said she was pregnant, how would I respond? How would I want my daughter to be treated when she called a clinic to make an abortion appointment? How would I want the person to talk to her? What would I want from the person who took my call? I would want them to take time with me, with her. To listen to us cry. To let me rant. To tell me they’re sorry and it must be hard. If my daughter had no clue how far along she was, I would want them to bend over backwards to help her find out, even if it meant going out of their way to stay at work a little longer, just to give her an ultrasound, so she could sleep that night, instead of waiting one more god forsaken day. I would want staff who were not burned out.

On the day of her abortion, I would want her to be treated gently and kindly. Like she was the only patient. I’d want to be with her - if she wanted - during the abortion. I would want desperately to hold her hand, kiss her forehead, help her breathe, and tell her it would be okay. I would be a hot mess if I had to wait in a room, far from her, not allowed to be with her during her procedure. I would want the staff to smile. To be warm and reassuring. I’d want them to acknowledge me, too, as part of the story. I would want them to acknowledge that I, too, might need support. And maybe all that I’d need would be a pair of knowing eyes, looking at me, nodding as though they understood.

I just think we can do more sometimes. More for the moms. More for the dads. More for the boyfriends and friends and aunts and uncles and cousins. Sisters and brothers. Look at them, knowingly. Listen to them. Yes, it’s all about the patient, the woman.

It’s about all the people in her life, too.

Abortion was legal

I bought a $50 Biofit Uplift bra at Victoria’s Secret’s annual Semi-Annual sale. It cost $29. I was inspired to rummage through the sale bins full of properized underwear—where even the black bras are pink—after reading all my friends’ bra statuses on Facebook. I didn’t think much about cancer when I was trying the bras. Rather, I was fascinated by Biofit’s conscientious coverage and adherence to the curve of my back.

I do think about cancer most of the time. I’m not exactly sure why, but I imagine it has something to do with following tailpipes all day long as I traverse this quaint city teeming with BMWs and garbage trucks on my own two feet.

If I was Focus on the Family, and I had $3 million to blow on a Superbowl commercial, I wouldn’t talk shit about abortion because abortion doesn’t tip anyone’s iceberg. I’d talk about this industrial nation full of comfy geniuses rattling out inventions of convenience so we can do more and never sleep.

I’d say, Yo, 100 million viewers! Don’t believe in global warming? What about cancer? Then I’d thumb my nose at prime time, and tell everyone to shut-off their televisions, and go play outside while there’s still trees. (This is most likely why no one who has $3 million wants to sponsor me.)

Please enjoy this random timeline:

In the beginning: Obviously, at some point something didn't have an abortion, but eventually (approximately the fifth pregnancy) someone or something was pregnant, and it wasn't right, so she did the life dance, and the pregnancy shimmied right out of her. Abortion becomes commonly sought and unconditionally available prior to quickening.

1550: An unhealthy and painful device designed to narrow an adult women's waist to 13, 12, 11 and even 10 or less inches, the invention of the corset is attributed to Catherine de Médicis, wife of King Henri II of France. She enforced a ban on thick waists at court attendances and started over 350 years of whalebones, steel rods, and midriff torture.

1700s - 1800s: The US Constitution is adopted. The Bill of Rights unfolds. The Industrial Revolution launches its fangs into the atmosphere.

1906: The electric washing machine is first mass-produced.

1910: By 1910 all but one state [We dare you to guess which one.] criminalizes abortion except where necessary, in a doctor's judgment, to save the woman's life. In this way, legal abortion is successfully transformed into a "physicians-only" practice.

1913: The first modern brassiere to receive a patent is invented by a New York socialite named Mary Phelps Jacob.

1928: Maidenform, responsible for grouping women into bust-size categories (cup sizes), is founded by Ida Rosenthal. Abortion is still illegal in the US.

1940s: 60% of the 25,000,000 wired homes in the United States have an electric washing machine. Many of these machines feature a power wringer, although built-in spin dryers are not uncommon.

1973: The right to have an abortion in all states is made available to American women when the Supreme Court strikes down restrictive state laws with its ruling in Roe v. Wade. The Abortioneers imagine that January 22, 1973, felt much like the intersection of 14th Street and U Street felt on November 3, 2009. Sigh.

2008: Leeds University invents a washing machine that needs just one cup of water and the Biofit Uplift bra is released.

2009: George Bush and Dick Cheney pack up and move out.

2010: Kenmore invents a whole new spin --a totally new way to care for clothes using SmartMotion Technology. The Elite Washer produces the custom clean of 5 motion washes.

January 21, 2010: EPA Increases Transparency on Chemical Risk Information

Hey! Where are my abortion breakthroughs!?

"Keep Ya Head Up" by Tupac

This Tupac song is always inspirational to me because it recognizes that life is hard for women, and women give our lives to our children, families, and communities every day. One day I was jammin' this song for at least the 1,000 time, and I noticed this portion of the first verse:

Time to heal our women, be real to our women

And if we don't we'll have a race of babies

That will hate the ladies, that make the babies

And since a man can't make one

He has no right to tell a woman when and where to create one

So will the real men get up

I know you're fed up ladies, but keep your head up

I love this song. The survival of women will determine the future of our world. Reproductive choice is about healing, loving, and entrusting women with their own livelihood. I could criticize the possesive language in the song, but the semantics don't matter; the song recognizes the divine nature of women's role in the future of all people.

I wear a button that says:

"Until One understands the heart of a woman nothing else about abortion makes any since at all."

-Dr. George Tiller

Murdered May 31, 2009

It reminds me that working in reproductive health and education is about healing women's hearts, "And if we don't we'll have a race of babies, that will hate the ladies, who make the babies."

Who watches the Super Bowl for the commercials?

I was browsing the internet and stumbled upon this little gem. One of my favorite, love-to-hate-'em, college football players is going to be in a Super Bowl commercial. This is not your ordinary Super Bowl commercial - scantily clad women enticing men to drink really terrible beer, eat junk food, etc.

Oh no. This commercial is sponsored by Focus on the Family. Oh take that, Gator Fans, your beloved Tim Tebow is going to be in an anti-abortion ad during the Super Bowl. I can't seem to find a sneak peek of this ad. All I know is that he and his mom are going to talk about how her doctors recommended she have an abortion during her pregnancy with him because she was sick while doing a mission trip to the Philippines.

Interesting -- it was recommended she have an abortion, but she made a choice not to. She made a choice! I honestly am glad that she got to make a choice. And now she will go on national TV and promote denying that choice to others. Splendid.

And why the Super Bowl?

Day of Social Justice

Today was my day to blog and I had so many things to talk with you about: pre-op counseling, clinic finances, provider security, reproductive health in emergency settings. I was itching to write!

But today was also the Martin Luther King, Jr., holiday, and between going to a meeting, going to a cemetery, going to a memorial exhibit, and scrambling to get some work done, not only did I neglect to blog before 8pm, I also neglected to eat before 8pm.

I'll be back later in the week with some thoughts and stuff. In the meantime, don't forget to donate to organizations doing relief work in Haiti: how about MSF/Doctors Without Borders (emergency medical treatment in the direst of situations), CARE (large-scale capacity for mobilizing needed Stuff like water purifiers, mosquito nets, obstetric kits), or Partners In Health (healthcare provider for the most marginalized with 20 years of continuous presence)? Read this or this (two among many very knowledgeable aid bloggers) to get a sense of where your contribution will be of most help (and least hindrance).

Thanks for reading. See you soon.

Abortion in movies

It's good to be back.

I realized this past month (once I left my like-minded, sex positive, wonderful feminist group of friends) that it is really hard for me to be around people who do not have the same values and ideas about abortion, gender, and sexuality as I do. As I left the group of women I surround myself with at school (and outside of school for that matter) I did not anticipate how different and uncomfortable I would feel in situations that challenged my core values and forced me to "defend" my position.

I traveled abroad for a week for holiday and my travel companions were two boys. Little did I know what the next 10 days would entail. I felt completely alone without my "backup," and unable to articulate to them what was wrong with statements like "that's so gay" or "when you say partner, you sound like a lesbian."

I am so used to talking about abortion, sex, masturbation, etc. with people who feel the same way, that I realized I was totally unprepared to have discussions with people who don't feel the same way, or simply DON'T KNOW.

It is this realization that reminded me, this is part of my "job or mission" as well. To be able to talk to people outside of my pro-choice, feminist group and hear what they have to say. To try and remain calm when I feel infuriated, and instead impart my knowledge in hopes that some of it sinks in and stays with them. It is enough... when you hear the words "I never thought about that" or "That's a good point. Now I'm not sure how I feel."

I realized I will not always be immersed in my safety net of women, because there is a world that exists outside of us. Which brings me to this past Thursday, when I attended a screening of abortion documentaries, in light of the upcoming anniversary of Roe v. Wade. The films were wonderful, and I felt at home with the other ladies in my program by my side, surrounded by people I didn't know, with their friends and partners, who had all gathered for the same cause: to continue the fight for abortion rights, to keep it safe, legal and accessible for every woman.

Obvious Child from Gillian Robespierre on Vimeo.

At the end of the films, one of the filmmakers talked about how important it is to continuously tell people how abortion happens to 1 in 3 women (which I already do) and how our fight is not over in face of bills like the Stupak Amendment, restrictions like waiting periods and parental notification laws and clinic violence (which I also do).

Then she said, "I know we don't always surround ourselves with people who have the same views on abortion..." and my friends and I looked at each other, eyes wide and mouths open, and said "Yes we do."

So, here is my long-winded message... are we just "preaching to to the choir?"

Is it necessary to step out of our comfort zones and mingle with people who are anti-choice? Who think abortion is a sin? Who think feminism has "destroyed" women? Who think "ego" is the reason trans people alter their bodies? Who think you choose to be gay?

All of these opinions I heard over my break from school, my separation from my friends and family who hold the same core values and who are my constant support group. I was alone and had to defend my and "our" position, and although I felt angry and like I couldn't get my words straight sometimes, for me, it was good practice to be faced with those opinions in stark contrast to my own and force the other person to question their values while forcing me to define mine.

In the end, I will most likely surround myself with other pro-choice, liberal people, mostly because I like talking to them and not always having to argue or defend my position :) But when possible, I think it is important to be able to articulate why we fight for abortion and sometimes, not always but sometimes, you will hear "I had never put myself in those shoes, or looked at it from the woman's perspective."

And once again, it is all worth it.

What if I name my baby Abortion?

Here, have some tasty Multimedia Friday satire:


New Law Requires Women To Name Baby, Paint Nursery Before Getting Abortion

Dr. Eugene Glick lives on

Dr. Eugene Glick passed away on Sunday. Perhaps you've read the book the size of a collection of poetry called Surgical Abortion or watched him speak about about providing illegal abortion in Voices for Choice (see embedment). You may have cried out loud (col) in solidarity when you heard him say: I felt good about the fact that I could help somebody when I knew they were really hurting. I knew it was against the law, but I also knew the law was wrong. I really felt that this was crazy. That this was a law that was bound to be changed.

I still remember the conundrum that fascinated me first when I entered Abortionland--the graying of abortion providers. And by fascinated, I do mean deeply and existentially fearful of our future. The only thing that gives us this choice? --A tight group of compassionate, bohemian, warrior doctors who witnessed women rot to death due to septic shock...

Dear diary: The graying doctors are dying.

Certainly, not every passionate provider is *gray* and reaching an age where death may be inevitable. I have had the good luck of regularly meeting with expert doctors all over the country. (Note: vagueness of the who, what, when, where, and why that may draw lines of solidarity between us have been omitted due to stalkerish, terrorist activity.) In fact, my docs are young spry things capturing the world of truth, integrity, and wellness like rock stars and serving it to every deserving woman on gleaming, silver platters.

You come in for an abortion at the tryingest time in your life. You're cared for, and you leave precisely satisfied at the very least. Abortioneers do that for you.

Dr. Glick was an Abortioneer.

You may understand: Once you’ve bounced around in Abortionland for a while, you do find faith and hope tucked away in cargo pant pockets. You meet the second generation, post-Roe v Wade, genius providers and realize they don’t necessarily cover every county in the country, but you also meet researchers and entrepreneurs, artists, foundation officers, educators, and politicians who WANT and WILL find reproductive health care for every woman in this world. They have tailored their lives to fight peacefully and methodically for abortion so that you don’t have to if you can’t or don’t want to.

You may be fairly new to Abortionland—a freshman or sophomore, a student in training, still catching your bearings, and finding your niche. You may notice that a good number of young providers and medical students for choice are women who have had, do, or may have abortions, miscarriages, and babies. You’ve noticed that lines of gender, race, and sexuality blur in the reproductive justice movement, and you feel more comfortable as a living, breathing human-being than you’ve ever felt before. Sometimes you are sad and scared due to the violence and harassment we endure. You mourn the first degree murder of one of our wise leaders, Dr. George Tiller, and you whisper gratitude into the air in the likely event that Dr. Glick may still hear you.

You have a wild and lovely imagination, and you envision a world where your truth is not absurd. Every so often, you put the oxy-moronic, current stats behind you because you imagine the day when people know that the voices of choice are sitting beside them, quickening inside them.