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"...a life is a relation to the world, and the individual defines
himself by making his own choices through the world about him."
The Second Sex - Simone de Beavoir |
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It is understandable that, back in the early days of the history of humanity,
women became pregnant over and over. We didn't understand how our bodies
worked and lived out our lives at the whim of circumstance and nature.
Women got pregnant way more often than anyone wanted to, and I can only
imagine the effort it took to keep an ever-increasing family going. Quality
of life was not something you could worry about. You were busy getting
through the day. I get that.
That is not the case today. We not only understand how our bodies work,
we do heart transplants and re-attach severed limbs; we do liposuction,
and get our faces lifted. We don't walk as much - we drive cars, take
buses and planes. We rely on alarmclocks, coffeemakers, the Internet,
football, day spas, fast food, dry cleaning, movies, lawyers, and television
to be there for us - along with the rising sun, each morning. We have
a long list of expectations and desires that reach far beyond daily survival.
We want convenience, time with our family and friends, to pursue our interests
- in short to enjoy our lives.
These expectations extend to our children. From the moment of conception,
we imagine who they will be when they grow up, invest them with our hopes
and dreams, and worry about whether as adults they will complain about
us to their therapists. We plan, worry and feel responsible for their
futures. We are concerned with their quality of life. We can do that now.
With our advances in medicine and technology comes expanding possibility,
and with that, the expectation of opportunity and the freedom to pursue
it. The urge toward individual freedom began long before we had the knowledge
and tools we have today. We've been working toward this since the beginning
of time. Our Declaration
of Independence, our Constitution
and its amendments were designed in the spirit of maintaining an environment
of maximum freedom among an infinitely varied population. Most of us take
these documents, and what it took to put them in practice, for granted*.
But the freedom they afford us, we make us of daily. Basic to that freedom
is the right to decide when we will take on the responsibility of bringing
a child into the world.
It doesn't matter whether you have children, want or don't want to have
children, are married, divorced, single, having sex, abstaining, or homosexual.
The issue of Reproductive Choice concerns us all. It's about quality of
life, everyone's life. Protecting our right to choose is as pro-life as
it gets - it affirms the protection of freedom for each of us to live
out whatever life we choose for ourselves.
And,
isn't that what we all want?
* Don't mistake my appreciation for the spirit of the Declaration of Independence
and Constitution as implying I'm satisfied with where we are now. There
is much more to do in the name of basic human rights, but within the context
of history - these are major strides. I look forward to more amendments.
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click for sites on reproductive choice  |
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Contraception is pro-life - yOurs!
• choose your method
• work towards better ones
click
for information on contraceptive methods available to you 
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