Mathoms, etc.

Every election, Roe v. Wade is brought up. A friend of mine told me this morning that a deeply religious classmate of ours has been wanting to send a petition email about abortions, but she hesitated sending it to me, not knowing if I would get mad. So we got into a short discussion (I didn't want a whole big debate) about this. It is a very controversial topic, and not so black and white as people make it out to be.

Growing up in a primarily Catholic country, we were always taught that abortion is wrong (I still remember those movies they showed in Religion class *shudders*). But as I got older, my views became more and more conflicted. I still believe that life begins at conception, but I also believe that a woman should be able to control her own body. Pro-choice doesn't mean you're FOR abortion. It is an option, the last resort, in cases of rape, incest, the mother's life is in danger, or the mother knows she will be unable to care for the child. Or maybe she's in an abusive marriage. The gray area keeps expanding. Women who end up needing or wanting an abortion go through enough of a moral crisis. They don't need other people telling them that what they're doing is wrong or right.

In the Philippines, the Church says that contraception isn't allowed, and if you get pregnant and don't want the child, you can't have an abortion. Who suffers? The poverty-ridden people who already have no means of supporting their numerous children, much less a new baby. The parents think that their children will be their way out of poverty. These kids end up working too early, not getting an education, begging in the streets, or even worse, prostituting themselves. Sometimes the parents themselves pimp their own children. How is that honoring the right to life and the children's rights? And because it is illegal, if a pregnant woman tries to get an abortion, she puts her life at risk by going to unregulated places with unsanitary conditions.

There have been doctors and other abortion clinic staffers murdered by pro-lifers. Again, how is this PRO-LIFE? I respect the rights of the unborn, but what about the rights of the Already-Born?