Reproductive Politics

If you missed it, I recommend you read Sarah Terzo's  cri de coeur  about the frustration she faces as someone who is a pro-life atheist. Her experiences confirm that the American pro-life movement is overwhelmingly Christian in orientation. While many non-Christians, atheists, or agnostics likely self-identify as pro-life, my impression is that the activists largely approach reproductive politics as an outgrowth of their Christian faith and theology. Ms. Terzo publishes an absorbing blog, ClinicQuotes , that focuses on the stories and statements of people who have changed from being pro-choice to pro-life. As far as I can tell, her body of work and her methods of activism betray nothing that would make her undesirable as a pro-life ally. Recently Ms. Terzo contacted several 'crisis pregnancy centers' to ask if they would let an atheist volunteer at their center, and they were pretty clear in rejecting her offer of help. I get the impression that she was doing this to...

Should we be worried that some Americans and British couples are choosing to go through life without kids? Kathleen Parker, writing in The Washington Post , surveys a bunch of articles and news stories and sees a cultural trend of foregoing parenthood to live a life of high disposable income, full nights of sleep, and  worry-free adulthood. It is, overall, a really great column and worth reading in full, and I agree with her primary thesis, which is that parenthood can be a pain (in the neck, rear end, and in other places and ways), but is worth it: Mysteriously, the inevitable pain, suffering and sacrifice of parenthood are also part of that joy. What is a rose without thorns? Life without death is imponderably meaningless. I would argue that without death, there would be no love. Indeed, what makes parenthood so relentlessly amazing — both the beauty and the beast of it — is the possibility of losing the thing you love more than your own heartbeat. Putting someone else’...

In the wake of Ariel Castro being sentenced to prison for the next millennium (literally), James D. Conley (an American Roman Catholic bishop)  wrote a column of the "what does this represent about the culture" variety in First Things.  Conley's thesis: Pornographic addiction is powerful, destructive, and all too typical. Ariel Castro’s addiction is no excuse for his actions, but it points to a deep and sobering reality: Free, anonymous, and ubiquitous access to pornography is quietly transforming American men and American culture. Are Ariel Castro's crimes the direct or indirect result of contemporary American porn culture? Readers posting in the First Things  "comments" section raised a lot of thoughtful and pertinent objections to Conley's analysis. I summarize here and add my own thoughts: Are incidents of sexual assault in fact on the rise, and, if so, in a way that correlates with a rise on the use of pornography? Is it possible that incid...

Earlier this summer, my university sent around an email to faculty reiterating the federal government's Title IX policy-- and, by extension, our policy-- regarding accommodating the needs of pregnant and parenting students. They did not explain why we were, at that moment, being reminded of it, beyond 'FYI.'  Having read a story today published in Insidehighered.com (IHE), it now makes more sense. A student studying to be a chiropractor at Logan College missed the latter part of an academic term due to a difficult birth and recovery process. When she asked her professors how and when she might make up missed assignments, she was told that her absence from school-- to give birth and recover-- was not excused. The student, Brandi Kostal, eventually contacted the National Women's Law Center and filed a complaint against the College.  The question that most interests me here is what the professors and administrators at the College were thinking in failing to acc...

Of course not. But this is the kind of nonsense we get when people shamelessly piggyback on a tragedy to score political or culture war points. We also get this kind of analysis when someone is paid to analyze events on cue but has nothing of substance to say regarding something terrible and complex. Watch Mike Huckabee's statement here: I understand Huckabee is trying to make a larger point about the culture, rather than drawing a direct line from the ACA's contraceptive mandate-- which does not mandate taxpayer funding of abortion pills, by the way-- to the Newtown massacre. Still, this is what happens when a tragedy occurs: We extrapolate from an isolated event and determine that it encapsulates, or is the ultimate representation of, something about our society that must be addressed. It is possible, however, that an event is sui generis and cannot then serve as a platform for useful long-term policy reform.  We reduce the cause of a tragedy-- which may ultimat...

The coat hanger made its appearance-- or reappearance-- in American culture this week in two odd ways. First, the show American Horror Story -- which defies brief description-- recently featured a woman attempting to perform a self-abortion with a wire coat hanger. You'll have to read the Salon article about the episode, but, intentionally or not, the show's producers built a case for abortion-as-necessary so over the top that it almost  undermines itself. Second, the owner of a dry cleaning business in Ohio placed pro-life messages on the coat hangers that go back to customers with their clothes. The owner of the business seemed genuinely obtuse regarding the symbolism at work, although there is some evidence that people had been complaining about the hanger messages for a couple of years. A blogger who broke the story called this "the worst marketing decision ever." I posted a link to the article on a Facebook page I maintain for my students, and one of them...

After reading American pro-life books, articles, blogs, and news sites for a while, one starts to notice recurring narratives: assertions, stories, themes, and ideas that are worked into whatever is being discussed. Taken as a whole, these narratives draw a picture of the world view of pro-life activist. I started working on a list, and I thought I'd share it with you. Items are in no particular order. Take a look and let me know what you think.  Pro-life narratives: Abortion causes breast cancer. This is an example of how abortion does not empower women, but harms them.  Many women who have had an abortion deeply regret it. Women are fooled into thinking that an abortion is what 'they' want, when in fact they will come to realize that they have been exploited.  There has been an increase in the abortion rate since, say, the 1950s, and that is due to the 'sexual revolution,' including the invention of birth control pills and the promotion of a culture ...

The pro-life movement may have lost the most recent battle-- the reelection of President Barack Obama-- but they are winning the war of hearts and minds. So says Michael J. New, professor of political science, frequent contributor to conservative publications, and data-driven critic of studies that support pro-choice policy positions: I want to encourage you not to despair. We continue to make good progress. In fact, I would argue that our biggest successes during the past twenty years have neither been political nor legislative. Our biggest success story is that we have succeeded in changing the hearts and minds of millions of Americans. What is his evidence? First, he notes that the number of abortions performed annually (NB: the ones of which we are aware) have declined "from 1.6 million in 1990 to 1.2 million in 2008." This could be for any number of reasons, but Professor New attributes it "partly to the state level pro-life laws we have passed." Profes...

Ireland , Northern Ireland , and Uruguay have all been in the news lately because of controversy over modest attempts to move away from restrictive (or total) bans on abortion. The context in France, meanwhile, is completely different. Abortion is available 'on demand' in France through the first trimester of pregnancy then more restricted after that. The French government is expected to pass a law that provides free contraception for all and funds all abortions, even for minors. One gets the sense that this move is not terribly controversial. Furthermore, minors in France already have widespread access to contraceptives and are not required to seek parental consent to have an abortion. The differences between French and American political cultures are interesting, too. In France: The link between free access to contraception and lower abortion rates is accepted. Not only is it appropriate that minors have access to contraception and abortion, it especially important t...