Pro-choice hypocrisy: Sex selection abortion worse than abortion of convenience
When it comes to abortion, I thought “pro-choice” meant giving women the freedom to choose to terminate a pregnancy for reasons that make sense to them.
Not always, apparently. It turns out that some of the staunchest pro-choice advocates in New Jersey are shocked when adults overseas practice abortion for reasons that make sense there – but which offend the sensibilities of the domestic pro-choice crowd.
Specifically, many in Asia are choosing abortion when a fetus is female, because they want sons rather than daughters.
For pro-choice voices here, it’s not the practice of abortion they object to. It’s just the sexism of those overseas that they mind so much….
But why, if it is wrong to choose to abort a fetus overseas simply because the fetus is female – why is it not also wrong to abort a fetus here for some other – just as arbitrary – reason?
Pro-choice politicians and editorial writers here like to pretend that most abortions are done for “serious” reasons – rape, incest, or the mother is only 12 years old….
Here are some statistics, from… Guttmacher…
“The reasons most frequently cited (for having an abortion) were that having a child would interfere with a woman’s education, work or ability to care for dependents (74%); that she could not afford a baby now (73%); and that she did not want to be a single mother or was having relationship problems (48%),”…
These are all, in the broadest sense, reasons of convenience….
Morally, these “domestic” reasons for abortion are not much different than deciding to terminate a pregnancy because you’re hoping for a son instead of a daughter.
~ George Berkin, NJ.com, August 18
[Photo via unmultimedia.org]

The late Benazir Bhutto condemned and denounced abortion across the board. However, she singled out the practice of sex selection abortion for special comment when she discussed this practice and added, “that innocent, perfectly formed child is aborted for no other reason than that she is female.”
Am I right in assuming that those that are prochoice help women in all situations? They give to prolife causes, help women find adoption resources, lead women to the nearest Pregnancy Resource centers? They help women that choose life by being with them and supporting them throughout all 9 months and beyond?
Cause it’s all about “choice.”
amiright?
proaborts only care about the fetus until it is sucked out of the womb in pieces
Carla says:
August 18, 2011 at 12:50 pm
Am I right in assuming that those that are prochoice help women in all situations? They give to prolife causes, help women find adoption resources, lead women to the nearest Pregnancy Resource centers? They help women that choose life by being with them and supporting them throughout all 9 months and beyond?
Cause it’s all about “choice.”
amiright?
(Denise) As I’ve previously pointed out, having a baby and giving the baby up for adoption is not a popular choice. I support this choice. I also applaud the trend toward open adoption.
There are reasons why it is not a popular choice and those reasons are, IMO, not the result of propaganda but are deeply embedded into the biological and psychological realities of pregnancy.
I don’t know about “pro-choicers” but most females should be familiar with Crisis Pregnancy Centers and the help they offer to females with problem pregnancies. CPCs advertise frequently on TV so even young girls, teenagers and 12-year-olds, etc. ought to be familiar with the possibility of help.
Denise Noe,
Who is talking about what is “popular?”
These are the answers to my questions.
No, no, no and no.
If you are prochoice on abortion you are proabortion.
Denise Noe, it’s funny (as in funny/strange) that no matter what the topic, you always seem to bring it back to adoption, when adoption wasn’t even mentioned.
And I agree, Carla – they *should* be for pregnancy centers which provide real help to women and children, but so often they aren’t, perhaps because many of them are so blinded by their ideologies and their need to justify their own abortions.
I do believe there are different supporters of abortion. One type (some of the ones that regularly post on here) are avid supporters of abortion and encourage it as the best option for a lot of women. Some are simply indifferent and treat it like just another option (I notice a ton of pro-choice men fall into that category). Then there are the “necessary evil” types. I think the last category is where a lot of the outrage against sex-selective abortions comes from, judging from my conversations with people. And that’s a good sign! If some people can see the evil of sex-selection, they are more likely to make the logical connection to other “reasons” that are used to justify abortion. I think even the basically indifferent people can be swayed with the evidence of what harm abortion causes.
The hardcore abortion as supporters? Not so much. :(
“The reasons most frequently cited (for having an abortion) were that having a child would interfere with a woman’s education, work or ability to care for dependents (74%); that she could not afford a baby now (73%); and that she did not want to be a single mother or was having relationship problems (48%)”
All of these things tie closely into financial security. Is the author claiming that this is a trivial thing?
Case in point, Joan.
Financial security isn’t trivial, but unless you vote we line up poor people for slaughter then death isn’t a solution.
If I had a choice between my siblings and more material goodies for myself while growing up, I’d choose the siblings. Seriously, once our toys were outgrown, mom sold them at yard sales. Is it really worth the death of a sibling just to have more toys or brand name clothes? Should one of us have died so the others wouldn’t have to wear hand-me-downs? Should one of us have died so that mom could buy a better cut of steak or a bigger television?
Eventually, we will all lose our parents. Who will be our family if we have no siblings because of abortion? Will the abortionists come over for family BBQ’s? I think not.
I’ve been around and I can tell you that even the poorest American is wealthy compared to many people in the world. People who abort their children for lack of money sometimes actually have enough money but they are frightened of the increased responsibility. Abortionists have been cashing in on people’s fear for years.
Joan, no those things aren’t trivial any more than a family in India that has to pay a hefty dowry for a daughter and risk financial ruin might elect to abort a baby because she is female.
50% of all babies aborted in the US are female. Where is the outrage over their mothers aborting THEM? Or the hypocritical pro-aborts only get slightly uncomfortable when females are targeted overseas? If it happens in the Planned Parenthood in their town its all peachy? Because hooking up with a guy after meeting him at the bar and then wanting an abortion is somehow less trivial and so its okay even if the fetus that is aborted is female? I just don’t get where you pro-aborts are coming from. What is and isn’t okay with you guys?
Jack I think you’re right about the different types of abortion supporters. But at the base of it all is people who just haven’t thought very carefully about the logical end of their beliefs. If there is nothing wrong with abortion itself, then it doesn’t matter what the woman’s motives are. People may or may not find them to be persuasive motives for themselves, but it’s really irrelevant b/c the fetus has no value and the act itself is not immoral
There is indeed the most hope for the necessary evil camp because they are in the most intellectual peril. They admit the fetus has value, but think it can be overriden by other concerns. Few of them are honest enough to admit that those ‘other concerns’ would not justify the taking of human life so they dance around on the definition of life and what reasons are a good enough justification. Logical consistency and sound principles will find no home here.
It is telling that the most intellectually honest abortion proponents would be regarded by the masses as the most chilling. Peter Singer anyone.
Jack wrote:
Case in point, Joan. Financial security isn’t trivial, but unless you vote we line up poor people for slaughter then death isn’t a solution.
:) I seriously admire those who can deliver a substantial, excellent point (like that), fully wrapped with high-quality emotional evocation, and all in less than 25 words! That’s not one of my strong suits, as some may’ve noticed! :) Do you give lessons?
Lol! My lesson is be in a snarky mood and have too short of an attention span to write long comments! ;)
CT, I agree. People like Singer give me chills.
Let me me play devil’s advocate for a moment. Some feminists may be very concerned about gendercide and its implications, but feel that abortion is just the tool and not the real problem. To them abortion rights are good because they give women full bodily autonomy, but using it as a tool of misogyny is bad. Other forms of sex selection such as PGD and infanticide achieve the same result and abortion should not be singled out.
Alright, I am done playing devil’s advocate and I am not sure if I can properly articulate how much I disagree! But, I’ll try. First of all, other forms of sex selection are also terrible, but there is a reason that abortion is the preferred method especially in India and China. Frankly, it is cheap, easy, and accessible. And, also, especially compared to infanticide there is an acceptability about it. The baby is hidden and worldwide abortion propaganda has convinced many that it is not really a human life. So it becomes like so many other abortions in that it is an ethical alternative to achieve a greater good. The feminist embrace of abortion has led to the embrace of sex selection abortion whether feminists like it or not.
Today’s abortion politics is all about how people should have the “choice” to decide who is worthy to be born and who is’nt. This elitist and eugenic mindset is the hallmark of the modern “pro-choicer”. This gets played out in much of Asia in the form of gendercide and feminists fail to realize the connection to their own worldview. In both practical and ethical terms there really is no separating abortion from sex selection and nothing can be done about this problem until abortion is ,at least, restricted and stigmatized.
Also, even if there were no sex selection abortions, why can’t feminists undestand why abortion itself is immoral? For instance why do they not have a problem with 90% of down syndrome children being aborted? Do they not see the evil of this? Don’t they see the consequence of us having a society that is more callous as a result of this? Is it because it does not skew the sex ratio? Because the social order will not be disrupted? Is it any less unethical and barbaric than sex selection abortion?
Oh, and something I forgot to add is that abortion-on-demand also cheapens sex and allows women to be available for sex-on-demand for men. This has created so many problems from STDs to the breakdown of the family. When feminists claim that abortion is the great liberator of women, I disagree in more ways than one.
@Denise — we must not forget that the odious Larry Flynt, creepy Hugh Hefner, and the late Bob Guccione were/are avid supporters of abortion ‘rights.”
@Denise — we must not forget that the odious Larry Flynt, creepy Hugh Hefner, and the late Bob Guccione were/are avid supporters of abortion ‘rights.”
Yes, they were. It tells you something, does’nt it?
..Follow the money…
@Denise — we must not forget that the odious Larry Flynt, creepy Hugh Hefner, and the late Bob Guccione were/are avid supporters of abortion ‘rights.”
“Yes, they were. It tells you something, does’nt it?”
Good grief – the obvious point is that if we’re thinking that “proves” anything, then we have an easy task of finding no lack of creepy people that are against legal abortion, are “conservatives,” etc.
Good grief – the obvious point is that if we’re thinking that “proves” anything, then we have an easy task of finding no lack of creepy people that are against legal abortion, are “conservatives,” etc.
Abortion is always being heralded as the great liberator of women, but in reality it is men like Flynt, Hefner, and Guccione who who are the most pro-abortion and for obvious reasons. The sexual revolution freed men from their responsibilities. Lefty and Libertarian men are always pro-abortion, pro-porn, pro-drug, etc.
Abortion is a woman’s choice, however choosing to abort because the baby is a girl instead of a boy is just wrong. I was raped and considered getting an abortion, not only because of the trauma I went though but I was also worried the baby would be a constant reminder of my vicious attack. In the end I kept my baby and I love her with all my heart. I don’t regret my choice and I also believe every woman has a right to decide for herself.
http://www.peoplesinsight.com/articles/3-pregnancy-and-motherhood/95-pregnant-by-rape
Cynthia, may God bless and protect you and your daughter.
Although I love the threads to stay on topic and be all ship and shape and squared away I have to share this excellent article on twin “reduction.”
http://www.slate.com/id/2301322/
Cynthia,
I am grateful that you chose life for your daughter and found what so many other rape survivors find. Healing. The love you and your daughter share is beautiful! I personally know women that have found what you have in their children conceived in rape.
My questions to you-
Why would you advocate for the death of children conceived in rape(just as your daughter was)knowing it is the killing of an innocent human being?
Why would you be for the innocent child to be given the death sentence while the perpetrator of the crime of rape does not?
Why do you hide behind “it’s a woman’s choice to decide for herself?”
It is a woman’s choice to decide for herself whether to beat her kids but I won’t walk away from that situation either.
This little gem was in the comments section of the article you linked to Cynthia.
Sick, sick, sick.
Do what’s best for you. The rest of your life is a long time to look your rapist in the eyes.
never mind the famous pro abortion male abortion. supporters beware of ALL pro death men. real men detest abortion and this is where the women get it wrong. male pro aborts just want to have a little fun with you and toss you in the trash and if you get pregnant the baby can get tossed away with you. these men will eventually move on to a woman who gives them the thrill of the chase
Cynthia: “Abortion is a woman’s choice, however choosing to abort because the baby is a girl instead of a boy is just wrong.”
But you’re pro-choice, so it doesn’t matter if you think it’s wrong — folks should be free to abort for whatever reasons they want. Right?
Imagine a State where your reasons for choices determined crime. Wow.
“But you’re pro-choice, so it doesn’t matter if you think it’s wrong — folks should be free to abort for whatever reasons they want. Right?”
Right
Cynthia
God bless you and your baby.
Imagine a State where your reasons for choices determined crime. Wow.
Rasqual, sometimes that does apply, and as a pro-choicer I’ll say that sex-selection seems to me to be a “worse” reason for choosing to have an abortion versus not wanting to have a baby, period.
On the “reasons for choices” – it comes up numerous times. Was the alleged perpetrator competent, understanding of the law, etc.? Or, somebody breaks into your house, are you allowed to shoot them? In some states, it depends on if a good enough case can be made that you truly felt your life was in danger. Were you really terrified, or had you always just wanted to fill somebody full of lead?
(Personally, I think the breaker-and-enterer should get filled full o’ lead.)