CRJ #7

I found a quote from Eleanor Cooney’s “The Way it Was” to really sum up one of the main reasons for legalized abortions and feminism in general; “When a woman does not want to be pregnant, the drive to become unpregnant can turn into the force equal to the nature that wants her to stay pregnant” (370). Whether or not it seen as part of religious beliefs, morals, or a sense of protection for the fetus, outlawing abortions and other sexual health care for women have been continuously one way for the male population to control women. Even though in today’s society it thought that women have an equal voice and opportunity in the government system there still a greatly disproportion of men legislators to female legislators. The picture Cooney describes of Bush signing the Partial Birth Abortion Ban bill is of all men legislators smiling as the President chips away a corner of Roe v. Wade. By limiting a women’s right to abortions and the right to sexual health care does not stop the risky behavior some women take, it only increases it. Without proper education and health facilities women are more likely to have risky sexual practices. The risky sex leads to unwanted pregnancies and with abortions being limited to time frames then a lot of women are forced to carry a child to term or go through a risky, illegal, and secretive procedure that is likely to end up hurting the women as well as killing the baby. Like Cooney says, laws and restrictions are not going to restrain women, especially women with the sort of determination as pregnant women desperate to be rid of their pregnancy. It is more morally wrong to try to manipulate a woman and her “rights” in order to prevent her from having an abortion than the abortion itself. This manipulation can lead to many deathly procedures for the mothers instead of protecting the fetus.