January 2012: Stand Up for Abortion and Birth Control

I was asked to pass on information about this event. Please check it out! Attend if you can.

January 22 and 23, on the 39th anniversary of the Roe v. Wade Supreme Court Decision which legalized abortion, come to DC: http://salsa.democracyinaction.org/o/1170/p/dia/action/public/?action_KEY=9086

Can't attend? Sign the petition:

"ABORTION ON DEMAND AND WITHOUT APOLOGY!

Fetuses are not babies.
Abortion is not murder.
Women are not incubators.

A woman who cannot decide for herself when and whether to have a child is not free. Forced motherhood is female enslavement. And when women – half of humanity – are not free, then no one is free."

http://salsa.democracyinaction.org/o/1170/p/dia/action/public/?action_KEY=9086

We can't afford to lose our insurance coverage. Fight Stupak!

When I had my abortion, it was covered by my insurance. My current insurance plan, which is different since I work somewhere else now, also covers abortion should I need it. The bureaucracy was a nightmare, but in the end everything worked out ok and it was covered.

If the Stupak Amendment is included in the health care reform bill, I will not have that coverage again. Hopefully I will never need it, but they wouldn't call them "unplanned pregnancies" if we were expecting it to happen. Countless women will lose their abortion coverage, or be prevented from purchasing a plan that covers it in the future. If you don't know much about the Stupak Amendment yet, google it and learn more about it. This is important. And what we do now will determine whether this becomes law or ends up in the trash where it belongs.

Abortion is not the kind of procedure you can save up for- it needs to be done right away. Due to the deep stigma in our society surrounding abortion, this is not the kind of thing many women would be able to ask family or friends to chip in for. This is a procedure that needs to be covered by health insurance. Anti-Choice activists are always looking for ways they can create barriers to care that limit women's access to reproductive health services they think we shouldn't have. The Stupak Amendment would be like plopping down a huge wall around the clinics where we need to go to for care- some will be able to climb it, but many more won't. The burden's of these barriers fall most heavily on those who already don't have much: women living in poverty, the uninsured, homeless women, etc. While some women can pay out of pocket for abortion, many cannot. No woman should be forced to bear a child simply because she is poor. Everyone deserves choice regardless of the amount in their bank account. Healthcare reform should fix that problem, not exacerbate it.

Please get involved. Defend yourself. Protect the people you love, and the countless women who need your voice now.

I kind of forgot about this blog....

... But am glad people are still finding it and appreciating it!

Another woman is blogging about her upcoming abortion, which I hope you will check out and give her your support. "I'm really having an abortion?"

Since I last posted, I've broken up with the fellow who knocked me up last year, for reasons I won't get into. Let it suffice to say that I'm so glad we don't have a child together and that I can cut ties.

I've also started grad school, learned to wake board, gone to countless dance parties, swam all summer long, and am venturing into a new romance with lovely fellow. He is smart and kind and makes me smile... a lot. Yea, I'm pretty smitten. :D

Life is good.

Every once in a while I think about how different my life would have been if I didn't have access to a safe legal abortion, and I feel overwhelmed with gratitude to everyone out there who has fought for women's rights and freedom of choice. You all rock. Thanks.

Celebrate National Day of Appreciation for Abortion Providers!

Celebrate National Day of Appreciation for Abortion Providers!
Crossposted From Planned Parenthood


Whew! It's been quite a week for Planned Parenthood and women's health, and I realize we've been asking a lot of you lately. It almost feels like our work is never done, and I want you to know that your support and actions are absolutely invaluable to defending choice and making sure women's health remains a priority to our leaders.

A key component of women's health and reproductive freedom is the right to choose safe and legal abortion — a right that I, for one, am incredibly thankful to have. But this right means nothing if there's nobody to provide it. Along with the activists, the legal warriors, and all of us who vote, march, and fight to keep abortion legal, abortion providers themselves play a crucial role in protecting women's reproductive freedom.

March 10 is the National Day of Appreciation for Abortion Providers. It's a time to reflect on the courage and compassion of abortion providers, as well as thank them for their service and attempt to turn what can be a hostile climate into a positive one. March 10 is also the anniversary of the assassination of Dr. David Gunn, the first abortion provider to be murdered by an anti-choice extremist. It is a stark reminder of the unique and dangerous risks abortion providers are willing to face to make sure women have a choice.

Today, the number of abortion providers is shamefully inadequate. More than 85 percent of counties in the United States lack an abortion provider. In rural areas, it's 97 percent. A world without trained abortion providers is a world where safe abortion does not exist. Please join us in honoring those in the trenches: the doctors, nurses, and various medical staff who provide abortions — the very people who make choice possible.

Leave your note of thanks and encouragement to the nation's abortion providers on our discussion board, and we'll deliver them: http://www.facebook.com/topic.php?uid=8934429638&topic=7907 You can also change your status update to say \"is thankful for choice and the abortion providers who make it possible: http://tinyurl.com/ch9gdf\" or \"is celebrating National Day of Appreciation for Abortion Providers: http://tinyurl.com/ch9gdf\" to raise awareness of the importance of safe and legal abortion and the heroic women and men who provide it.

I am so thankful for abortion providers and the risks they take, the hardships they endure, and the harassment they face in order to allow me and all women to have reproductive freedom. Please join me in thanking them — and once again, thank YOU for all your support.

Kendall at Planned Parenthood Action Fund

1 out of 3 ... is ME... and me!

Another voice breaks the silence:

1 out of 3 ... is ME
"One out of three women in the United States has an abortion by the age of 45. Still the experience remains shrouded in silence, and for some women, shame. This is a pro-choice abortion blog based on my personal experience."

"I'm a forty year old feminist who works to little every day to change the world."

The author of 1 in 3 is having a second trimester abortion at 15 weeks, and is one of the few, if not only woman talking about her personal experience with this. Less than 5% of abortions take place at her gestational point.

I applaud her bravery and wish her health and happiness. Her procedure is tomorrow, so please join me in sending her your support and good wishes.

Post Abortion update

I got my period in mid January, about 5 weeks after my abortion. It was a normal period.

I still haven't sorted out the insurance mess, which is partially because I'm lazy and partially because it is so confusing and bureaucratic. Planned Parenthood sent me an invoice a few weeks ago, even though according to my insurance company they owe me money and not vice-versa. Still working on that one! Advice welcome!!

All is generally going well for me, and I really appreciate the support of my friends, my boss, and my partner through all of this.

It sometimes makes me sad that some people I care about would consider my decision immoral or think that women like me should not be allowed to make our own choices about our bodies. But I have no regrets. It upsets me to realize that some women are surrounded by only people who would judge them for making such a decision and don't have anyone to talk to about it. Considering that this is a procedure that nearly one in three women have, it should be easy to find someone to talk to. But stigma creates a silencing barrier.

One group that is trying to fight this stigma is women on waves, an awesome non-profit that you should check out. Here is a place where you can read about many women's abortion experiences. Some of them are even brave enough to share their face. I'm not that brave- sorry folks.

Please know that I will continue to check my email address associated with this blog even if I do not keep posting regularly. Please feel free to contact me with questions or to vent about your experience. abortionblogger@gmail.com

Becoming Pro-choice

This is a great story about one woman's discovery about why reproductive freedom is so important:

http://abortionclinicdays.blogs.com/abortionclinicdays/2008/12/after-today-only-more-light-.html

It's great to see someone feel empowered and strong in a difficult situation.