NetNews Usenet Archive 1993 #3/NN_1993_3.iso/spool/talk/abortion/58246

Internet Message Format | 1993-01-28 | 4.8 KB

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From: [e-mail] (Kate Maloy)
Newsgroups: talk.abortion
Subject: A Book and an Offer
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Date: 26 Jan 93 21:23:00 GMT
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Organization: University of Pittsburgh
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I am a coauthor (with Maggie Jones Patterson of Duquesne University)
of a recent book entitled BIRTH OR ABORTION? PRIVATE STRUGGLES IN A
POLITICAL WORLD, published by Plenum Press.  The book received a very
positive review in the Washington Post Sunday Book World (front page,
October 4), and Maggie and I have also done numerous recent interviews
for newspapers and radio throughout the United States.
    As the title of the book suggests, BorA is based on interviews
with women and couples who have faced unplanned or medically threatened
pregnancies.  Roughly half of those we talked to chose birth, half
abortion.  We collected about 100 stories in all, 50 of which appear in
detail in BorA, along with our analyses of the many factors that influenced
people's decisions.  The stories range over 50 years and many varied
circumstances.  We talked with single women, married women, couples,
teenagers, and victims of rape, addiction, abuse, and homelessness.  Our
intention from the beginning was to hear these stories without judgment
and to tell them without political motivation.  Our reason for this
approach was our notion that the political debate neither represented
the full reality of this issue nor served those who actually had to
confront it.
    In fact, the main thing that emerges from the stories in our
book is a private reality utterly at odds with the public debate.  We have
found, for instance, that when women describe their personal experience
with the need to choose, they virtually never use the language of the
political debate.  They do not mention rights, and they rarely ponder
when life begins.  Instead, they consult a moral standard that has to do
with matters of human responsibility, relationship and caretaking.  (Many
of you will recognize the research of Carol Gilligan, Mary Belenky and
others in this--and we both cite and confirm their findings.)  Their
concerns are the same regardless of whether they choose birth or choose
abortion, and these concerns have to do with the quality of their
relationship with the man, their ability to love a child, their financial
and psychological resources, their employment status.  They all regard
the need to choose between birth and abortion as a complex matter.  They
do not subscribe to the blacks and whites of the debate.  They also do not
reflect the anger and judgmental qualities of the debate; rather, they
tend to respect the choices of others who have been through this, even
when their choices differ.
    We believe these stories and their many insights have profound
implications for public policy and can even point the way to common ground--
not for extremists from either side but for the majority of people who
want women to control their reproductive lives but also rue the very high
rate of abortion in this country.  Ultimately, we believe that private
accounts of choice across the decades demonstrate the pointlessness of the
fighting over this issue.  All indications are that the abortion rate is
not affected by the law--only by policies that address the real-life
concerns of people who must decide this matter, finally and irreversibly,
about one or more real pregnancies.  Such policies incorporate the moral
standard of responsibility and caretaking.  Examples would be a national
health-care program, family leave, aggressive birth control research,
sex education (which should INCLUDE and not override parents--see our
book for a model program), strong anti-poverty measures, and a community
awareness movement about sexual responsibility (similar to MADD anti-
drunk driving efforts).  If as a nation we can agree that we have a
disgraceful rate of unplanned pregnancy, teenage parenthood, and abortion,
policies such as these could reduce them all.  European nations manage
this; we could, too.
    I realize this is a long account of this book, and I hope I have
not overstayed my welcome in my first post.  Perhaps I can revive any
waning interest out there by making the following offer:
    Because my coauthor and I want these personal stories to have
as broad an impact as possible, we have arranged with our publisher to
offer BIRTH OR ABORTION? at 25% off the cover price.  Total cost to anyone
interested would be $20, including S/H.  If you would like to order
a copy (or copies) you can e-mail me for an address.  We would have to
receive payment before shipping.
    Also e-mail me with any questions you may have about the book.
    Thanks for your attention.  Sorry for the amount of space taken up.