Planned Parenthood is at the center of yet another huge controversy. Recently, a 24-year-old woman died at one of the Chicago clinics shortly after having an abortion.
It's a tragic story for more reasons than one. It's heartbreaking to hear of someone so young dying unexpectedly, but undoubtedly this family's pain will be used in the ongoing war against a woman's right to choose.
Tonay Reaves was rushed to the hospital after she began bleeding heavily after the procedure. Her death was ruled an accident by the Cook County Medical Examiner, but both her pregnancy and the abortion were listed as contributing factors.
Immediately, Pro-Life groups jumped on the story, villainizing abortion rights as a whole. Troy Newman, president of Operation Rescue and Pro-Life Nation, said in a statement to The Christian Post:
In light of this tragedy, which is yet another in a long list of Planned Parenthood abuses, we call on President Obama to immediately withdraw all Federal funding and personal support from Planned Parenthood.
I won't dispute there are risks. There are risks with every single medical procedure. Heck, there are risks with taking birth control pills and aspirin. But the truth of this matter is, legal abortions are typically very safe procedures for women. Less than 0.3 percent of patients have a complication that even requires hospitalization, so a death is incredibly rare in this country. The risk does increase as the pregnancy progresses. Even still, there was just one death in 29,000 when the abortion occurred between the 16th and 20th weeks of pregnancy.
For most women, this certainly isn't an easy choice. There are many devastating personal circumstances that can lead her to it. What Newman and other pro-life advocates propose won't end abortions, it will just increase the number of women who, in desperation, opt for illegal, back alley procedures. Is that really what we want women to have to turn to? That would only result in more deaths, wouldn't it?
Do you think a woman has the right to a legal abortion?
Image via alexandralee/Flickr
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Comments 69
People also die having babies...in hospitals....shouldnt pro life people try to stop women from getting pregnant all together knowing this?
OMG! I love that movie! I was thinking of that exact same quote when I read the title of the article.
i do NOT believe in abortions, but it is a woman's right to do it if she wishes. I think those that use it as BC need serious help! i know someone that has had three, after having my first child i no longer talk to her. i just cant see how it would be worth it to destroy an innocent life. but if we are going to keep it legal then i think there should be better laws and medical support for cases like this.
I highly doubt that abortions will EVER become illegal. There are too many level heads on both sides of the issue that recognize the necessity of keeping it legal.
Having said that, it should not be funded by the government. It should also not be considered a woman's *first* choice, rather, a last resort when all else has been considered. Further, sex ed programs should make sense, include abstinence education and Natural Family Planning (it is NOT religious, it is basic knowledge of how a woman's body works) as well as other forms of birth control, and should take place starting around 6th grade, when kids are old enough to process the information. Before that, the mindset SHOULD be "sex is off limits. Period."
As for this particular case? I don't think any of us can or should judge. We have no idea of the circumstances surrounding the abortion (I haven't clicked thru any articles). Maybe it was her first, maybe her tenth. Maybe it was necessary, maybe it wasn't. I don't know.
But I do agree with the sentiment that the government shouldn't be funding PP - they make plenty in private donations, and could easily exist on their own.
its just hilarious how those of you who comment that are for abortions are 100% for it. When it comes to how a mother raises her child differently than you would, all of you are like "poor child", "mother should be ashamed to do that to her child". If that same mother would have aborted that same child, then it would have been "poor woman" "she deserves her right to choose"...And these are the same people who would prefer to rescue a puppy or keep their cat over keeping their babies.... blah, blah hypocrites. Event you mothers who have the nerve to say that is you dont breast feed your baby you might as well give them poison. Its hypocrisy.
Its a shame when a mother aborts her child, nothing more appalling than that. I get the point that the mom doesnt want to be reminded of her rapist if she keeps the child but leave the child with someone who does want that baby. Its not the baby's fault! It is a living being, its an organism since conception. This living being feeds off of the mother since then. That is why we take our vitamins from day one to help its growth, to nourish. Do your investigation people. THere are other options if you dont want that baby who depends on you as its mother, its defenseless. Give the baby to someone who will want it. LET THE BABY HAVE THE RIGHT!!!!!
Karma.
This is why abotion agencies should have to meet the same standards as an hospital. It is a medical procedure, a surgery that is performed (if that is what you want to call it). Yet they have different guidelines then hospitals.
And yet when pro-life people have pushed for the same standards in the past, pro-choice people say it will hinder a woman's choice. Maybe - but it will also keep her safer.