Abortion's another thing. It's legal you know. It has been for years. Keep it that way. You know the best thing about choice. You get to choose NO. Anytime you want. I'm done dicing up the abortion debate. Have one or don't. It's really that simple. Listen carefully: I don't care if you get raped; have consensual, unprotected sex; or have a health-risk from a pregnancy, abortion is a decision between a woman and whomever SHE brings into it. Be that her partner, her spouse, her doctor or her god. I don't care what your views are. Don't want one don't have one. Easy. Peasey. Lemon. Squeezy.
I wrote those words on my blog March 18, 2011. I shared it here recently in this diary.
I’m done engaging in the fight. As far as I'm concerned it's settled law and not up for debate. When confronted with the anti-choice brigade, it’s simple, tell them: Choose no.
I'm done letting them frame the debate. I'm over the parsing and the justifications for keeping it legal. This diary is my attempt to take the conversation back.
A women’s right to choose is a basic human right. No one suffers when that choice is an option. No one is oppressed when that choice is invoked. A woman’s right to choose enhances democracy. Choice activates empowerment. Choice is fundamental.
I own my body. I own myself. I own my thoughts, my ideals and my future. My decisions belong to me. My body belongs to me. It is not a football. It is not a hostage. It is my mine. I own it. I own the conversation. I own me. I own the future.
I don't consider myself an activist, or a feminist, since I haven't earned either title. There are other, more committed people (both women and men) that do the heavy lifting of moving the conversation forward and applying political pressure. Those titles belong to them. They've earned them and for that they have my eternal thanks and support.
When I started writing this diary I expected it to be longer. It was for a while before I realized I was spending most of my time defending my position which was in direct opposition to my point.
Thanks for reading.
Updated to clarify that I was talking about a woman's right to choose and not choice to discriminate.