Letter 177
"The debate over the proposed abortion bill is leading down the same old rabbit trail--abortions for rape or incest."
That "same old rabbit trail" has alot of significance. It is to remind people of the repurcussions of what banning abortion entails.
"A common response from pro-lifers is to say how few abortions are due to rape or incest. This is a point that needs to be made."
I don't care how rare it is. And by rare you need to be specific. It is actually THOUSANDS of women every year. I suspect that you say it is an important point to be made because you recognize that banning abortion will hurt at least SOME rape victims and you want to skip over this reality as quickly as possible.
" However, the rape question also feeds a fear that people already have in their minds: "What if our daughter is raped? What if my sister is raped? What if I'm raped?"
Yeah, so what if I am? And you need to also acknowledge the fear that people already have from the fact that they have ALREADY been raped! And this fear is a legitimate one considering the rates of sexual violence in this country. It is worth noting that countries that ban abortion tend to have the highest rates of rape. But what alot of people don't even consider is that even without the rape experience, ANYONE can have an unintended pregnancy. There are numerous accounts of people changing their minds about abortion once they themselves were affected by an unplanned pregnancy.
"We need to do all we can to help the woman who is pregnant through rape. What does she need?"
I agree that we need to do all we can to help these women. And that includes letting them abort. What she needs is choice.
"Before we can answer that, we need to examine what her specific problems are."
The problems for survivors will be unique to the individual.
"Researchers say that women feel dirty, helpless, and insecure after having been raped."
Common sense. But I think it is interesting that you note the feeling of helplessness. That is very important. They have had their power taken away from them. To restore that power is crucial. And I am sure that strangers coming in and telling them that they don't know what is best for them so they need to let others decide is really going to help them feel less insecure.
"They experience shame or guilt, as if they were somehow responsible."
And I have no doubt that if she goes aheads and decides to abort, you will do everything in your power to make sure she feels that way again.
"They feel violated,"
Because they were.
"But almost never will you hear it said that pregnancy is the primary problem."
NOT true. I also think it is notable that you state pregnancy isn't the primary problem. You don't say that it is not a problem at all.
"There are many, many examples of women who say that they have at least learned to accept and live with the fact that they have been raped. However, many who had abortions say they will never be able to accept the fact that they killed their own baby."
How about instead of reinforcing the societal stigma against women who abort, which most likely lead to them having such feelings in the first place, you work towards helping the women do MORE than just "learning to live with it." Better yet, work towards rape prevention itself.
"Through abortion she becomes not only a victim of someone else's actions, but of her own as well."
She became a victim again because of people like YOU who villify these women.
"Let's not victimize the rape victim twice."
Agreed. And let's do that by making sure they are not forced into another decision against their will by having the abortion option taken from them.
"She needs love, not abortion."
She needs love. To best show that love, we must respect her wishes regarding abortion.
You FAIL!
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