Lisa Moris lismarie@bu.edu 617-755-4066 CAS ’03
A lot of people have misconceptions of what being pro-choice entails. I will try to clarify what it means to be pro-choice and a feminist. In a recent response to an article published on the march in DC revolving around the anniversary of Roe vs Wade a lot of negative commentary was written. Before taking a stand, one must comprehend the opposing side to make a valid and justifiable argument. Alexander Paiva claimed that feminism is not about gender equality. Apparently, he has bought into the social stigmas of man-hating women who want to rule the world. Well, let me correct your rather rash assumption. Feminism is not about obliterating the male sex; it is about creating a society in which each member is equal. By dictating to women what decision should be made in terms of their reproductive health their fundamental right to make their own decision is violated. Who are we to assume what decision is best for others? Although it would be nice to believe that unwanted children are placed into loving homes, it realistically does not happen. For instance, in the past several years the Department of Social Services has lost several hundred children in the state of Florida. How are we to know that these “unwanted” children will actually be placed in safe homes as some of you claim? The concept of having the choice is to also provide women with different alternatives and resources to their reproductive health. If we were to strenghten our sex education classes and target the high risk communities on contraception use, it may lower the increased rates of teenage pregnancy. We do support preventative measures such as contraception availibility, family planning counseling, and other useful resources. Providing the communities with less access to this vital information gives them the tools necessary to make a good decision. People who are pro-choice recognize the importance of giving a woman or anyone for that matter the right to make their own decision. Pro-choice supporters are advocates of contraception, EC (the “morning after pill” not to be confused with Ru-486 the “abortion pill”), and other methods of reproductive decision making. It is important to get the facts straight. If you are not sure of what someone stands for please do not make invalid comments; it makes your argument weak and uninformed.
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