Reproductive rights of women

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Reproductive rights are a very urgent and controversial issue in today's world society. The idea of reproductive regulations or governmental involvement into reproductive rights came very close to the subject of feminist movement. Reproductive issues are described as evidences of women's weakness to perform their own rights. In many states reproductive issues became one of the important topics because of its ponderability in domestic policy and social issues. Should government be involved in reproductive rights? Or it will be more appropriate, if women themselves decide and make choices according to their own positions and desires. Opinions about government involvement and reproductive freedom are very controversial and variegated.

In order to answer the question mentioned above, I chose the government of United States; its laws and regulations over women's health and reproductive rights. I will consider years from the 1970s till the 2014 and research will be done by historical-comparative method.

To understand the significance of reproductive rights for the American woman, and in turn the American identity, it is first important to understand what reproductive rights are. “The right not to have children: the options of abortion, contraception, and sterilization. Then the right to have assisted reproduction, no sterilization, the amount of children a family is allowed. Basically, reproductive rights are the control of a woman to her body and a family to their children.”Robert Blank, Janna C. Merrick, Human Reproduction, Emerging Technologies and Conflicting Rights (London: CQ Press, 1995.)

In this paper I will try to find answers to several questions like: Why does government involve in reproductive rights? What are the advantages and disadvantages of that involvement? Opinions of women and the feministic view of reproductive freedom, but the main point is should government be involved or not? Reproductive rights cover huge problems and issues, for that reason my research will be concentrated on abortion, governmental laws and regulations on it.

Proclamation of Tehran, Final Act of the International Conference on Human Rights, 16: “Parents have basic human right to determine freely and responsibly the number and the spacing of their children.” U.N document, “Proclamation of Teheran, Final Act of the International Conference on Human Rights”(A/CONF. 32/41 at 3 University of Minnesota Human Rights Library. 2009) Parents themselves, without government's interference, decide about their family. Women also have the basic human rights to choose when and how many times they can be mothers. However, in this Proclamation was given the controversial statement which claims that government also urged to dedicate principles of Universal Declaration on Human rights to provide a life compatible with freedom and dignity and conductive to physical, mental, social and spiritual welfare. Consequently, the government has the reasons to be involved in reproductive rights of women.

Why government involvement?

reproduction right women abortion

I think that involvement of government on such intimate issue like reproduction is mainly based on sociological aspects and domination of male over female.

“As co-operation between the family and the larger society is essential, else both would fall apart, the fate of three patriarchal institutions: the family, society, and the state are interrelated.” Kate Millet, Sexual Politics (New York: Doubleday, 1970), p.33. Whence I mentioned above, government involved in woman's private life being that it is interested in enhancement of its society, as far as family and state, society and state are correlated. “As both the primitive and the civilized worlds are male worlds, the ideas which shaped culture in regard to the female were also of male design. The image of women as we know it is an image created by men and fashioned to suit their needs. These needs spring from a fear of the otherness of women. Male determines female is “other” or alien” Kate Millet, Sexual Politics (New York: Doubleday, 1970), p.46. Ideas created by men shaped society as it is today, where woman cannot even rule own body because of her “otherness”. Patriarchy established by man created laws and orders oppressing and discriminating woman. For this reason, the feminist movement became much more expanded and second wave of it occurred in the early 1960s. “Feminists did not necessarily challenge the view that women had different qualities and characteristics from men, but used this to their own advantage. They argued that because women were different then they needed to exert an influence for good in the world beyond the family and so they needed equal rights in politics, employment and the law.” June Hannam, Feminism (Great Britain: Harlow, 2007), p.11

Adrienne Rich (“Of woman Born: Motherhood as Experience and Institution” 1976) believed that men are fearful of women's reproductive power. The fear stems largely from men's realization that “all human life on the planet is born of woman”, so women have unique power to create life. Consequently, if woman can give life, woman can also take life. Conclusion made by Rich claims that if patriarchy wishes to survive, it must restrict power of mother. The idea of patriarchy had the power to shape how woman must or mustn't live. Liberal political thought challenged the division between the public and the private, by suggesting that personal lives were affected by the state and patriarchy.

Mary Wollstonecraft's book, A Vindication of the Rights (1792) was the most influential text written by a woman to come out of the French Revolution. She suggested that women's sphere of capacity was motherhood and that rising of children could contribute to the development of the state. In my opinion this idea of woman's contribution leads to the control of reproductive freedom of women and restrictions of their rights.

Why government should be involved in reproductive rights?

The government takes care of its citizens. As it was mentioned before, strong tie between the development of the country and its citizens obliges government to reinforce various laws and amendments on reproductive issues. Advantages of governmental involvement include safe and inexpensive abortion, if the health of the woman is under risk.

Milestone decision of the United States Supreme Court on the issue of Roe v.Wade legalized abortion and the woman herself could choose abortion in earlier months of pregnancy without legal restriction, and with restrictions in later months, based on the right to privacy. Roe v. Wade legalized abortion but it doesn't mean that in every state of America woman has access to safe and free abortion. Here occurs another problem of reproductive freedom and another argument for involvement-social condition of women. In fact, society determines the conditions of her health and the health of her child.

“Masses of poor and working-class women lose access to abortion, when there is no government funding available for reproductive rights health care. Without the right to safe, inexpensive, and free abortions they lose all control over their bodies. If we return to a world where abortions are only accessible to those females with lots of money, we risk the return of public policy that will aim to make abortion illegal” Bell Hooks, Feminism is for everybody: Passionate politics (Cambridge: South End press, 2000), p.28 Without government support level of maternal health in country will decrease, because illegal abortion causes danger for life of woman. “The researchers found that abortion was safe in countries where it was legal, but dangerous in countries where it was outlawed and performed clandestinely.” Elisabeth Rosenthal, “Legal or Not, Abortion Rates Compare”, www.nytimes.com, (October 12, 2007). If women have class privilege to safe abortions, they will have the right to choose. However, materially disadvantaged women suffer from lack of choice whether to be mothers or not.

Why are women against of government's involvement?

One of the main arguments in being against government involvement is that since women had the right to vote and other privileges, then they must have the right to control their own body. The slogan: “Our bodies, ourselves” Our Bodies, Ourselves-book about women's health and sexuality produced by the nonprofit organization “Boston Women's Health Book Collective”, first published in1971. came to the existence after expansion of areas of women's right. “If women do not have the right to choose what happens to our bodies, we risk relinquishing rights in all areas of our lives; Losing ground on the issue of legal, safe, inexpensive abortion means that women lose ground on all reproductive issues.” Bell Hooks, Feminism is for everybody: Passionate Politics (Cambridge: South East press), p: 29. This statement explains feminists' attitudes towards reproductive rights of women. Access to abortion is generally described as a major reproductive right. Consequently, abortion is a controversial issue in which people choose to be pro-choice or anti-choice. Pro-choice supporters argue that the woman has a right to control what happens to her body. Anti-choice supporters believe that the unborn child has rights to life and that it is wrong to kill a human being.

Pro-choice believers argue that a woman has full rights to control what happens to her body, including the termination of pregnancy. Another part of the pro-choice argument is that when a woman is raped, pregnant due to incest, or pregnancy can cause harm to the woman health or even to her life, abortion is a necessary option. Some of the supporters believe that when the woman cannot raise the child and under different circumstances cannot give upbringing or when contraception has failed, abortion is a reasonable choice. “The abortion issue captured the attention because it really changed the fundamentalist thinking. It directly challenged the notion that a woman's reason for existence was to bear children” Bell Hooks, Feminism is for everybody: Passionate Politics (Cambridge: South East press), p: 27.

Why do women decide to make abortion?

According to the research of Guttmacher Institute the main reason is that a child will blemish to the education and work of the woman. The second reason is woman does not have enough possibilities to give upbringing to the child. The third reason based on relationship problems, specifically, woman doesn't want to be a single mother. Some women are not ready to have the child. Lastly, the most important reason was that their partners' wish for them to have the abortion. Guttmacher Institute, Reasons U.S women have abortions (New York, 2005), p: 110-118. A woman can be oppressed by decisions of her husband, family, society and government, because she couldn't realize her own goals and perspectives. Just because of the thinking about woman's existence, “talented, creative women whose lives had been changed by unplanned and unwanted pregnancies”. “We witnessed their bitterness, their rage, their disappointment with their lot in life” Bell Hooks, Feminism is for everybody: Passionate Politics (Cambridge: South East press), p: 26. As a result, innocent child ties his mother to life which she didn't want. Consequently, abortion is the most appropriate way to women who are not ready to give life to the child.

Since the legalization of abortion after Roe v.Wade in 1973 have passed more than four decades, but debates on issue of reproductive rights are still unsolvable. During these decades liberalism and achievements of the feminist movement in United States allowed women to make their own choice on reproductive issues. However, in the recent years situation is going to be or already had been changed.

In spite of positive impact of Roe v.Wade, the court did not guaranteed abortion access for all women. After passing of Roe, rivals of the abortion rights started to conscript for abortion ban. Opponents with the help of Supreme Court decisions have created many state restrictions which made vulnerable women: women with low incomes, young women, and women live in rural places; women depend on the health care of the government. “State restrictions are not limited with the bans on abortion but also include clinic bombings, physical attacks, and even murders of abortion providers.” “History of abortion”, http://www.prochoice.org/about_abortion/. (2010).

Current situation in U.S: consideration of the possibility that the Roe v. Wade will be overturned made abortion banning to be existed in some states under all or de facto all circumstances. Other states still have pre-1973 abortion bans. However, some states are moving in the opposite direction by passing laws arranging parameters of Roe v.Wade: interference in woman's right is prohibited but it can be if it is necessary to protect the life and health of the woman.

“Different organs of state apparatus have different interests in abortion. “The state, because it is not a unitary actor nor coterminous with government nor constant from state to state, does not have a priori, fixed reducible interests in the regulation of human sexuality and, by extension, abortion.” Vicky Randall and Georgina Waylen, Gender, Politics and the State (New York: Routledge, 1998), p: 58. Since the country ruled by the government which has various, and sometimes controversial positions, the choice position of U.S Congress consequently differs. The choice composition in U.S House:

Ш 173 pro-choice members

Ш 22 mixed-choice members

Ш 237 anti-choice members

Ш 1 member's choice position is unknown

The choice composition in U.S Senate:

· 42 pro-choice senators

· 12 mixed-choice senators

· 46 anti-choice senators NARAL Pro-Choice America, “The status of women's reproductive rights in the United States 23^rd edition. (Durham, North Carolina: NARAL Pro-Choice America, 2014).

As it is indicated in a list above, anti-choice positions in both branches are more than pro-choice positions. Choice positions of executives likewise legislatives are divided into two: President Barack Obama is pro-choice and vice president Joe Biden is mixed-choice. Consequences of opposing positions on issue of abortion determine that final decision is not precise yet. Link between the politics and the private life is very durable because term “biopolitcs” explains that the state applies laws and regulations to ensure provide healthy and an ordered population.

In 2000, 13 states had at least four types of major abortion restrictions, by 2013 their number increased to 27 states. The proportion of women living in restrictive states went from 31% to 56% during this time period. The number of states supporting of abortion rights fell from 17 to 13. The proportion of women of reproductive age living in supportive states fell from 40% to 31% between 2000 and 2013. Minnie Nash E, “Laws affecting reproductive health and rights: 2013 state policy review, New York: Guttmacher Institute, 2014, <http://www.guttmacher.org/statecenter/updates/2013/statetrends42013.html>, accessed Jan. 9, 2014.

Anti-choice supporters claim that legalization will lead to the increasing of abortion rate. Nevertheless, controversial fact is that in 2011 abortion rate in U.S was at the lowest point since its legalization in 1973.

www.guttmacher.org.

Between 2008 and the latest year the annual abortion rate fell 13%. The data analyze doesn't investigate pure reasons of rate falling but suggestion is that one factor is birth control and contraception. When women have access to preventive measures or when they decide themselves to be a mother or not, need for abortion falls.

The results of the debate which lasts for four decades, since the legalization of abortion in 1973 after Roe v.Wade, are still imprecise. The government of the United States is divided between positions of pro-choice and anti-choice, but as it's seen from information above, there are more anti-choice positions. This means that abortion laws and restrictions will be stricter than in 2013. The link between political opinion and general condition of abortion right in U.S is that 19 states have laws restricting legal status of abortion, 4 states have laws which ban abortion if Roe will be overturned, and 8 states have laws that signify their intention to restrict the right to legal abortion by the permission of the U.S. Supreme Court. Twelve states will have pre-Roe abortion bans, and 7 states have laws that protect the right to choose abortion prior to viability or when it is necessary to protect the life or health of the woman. Guttmacher Institute, State policies in brief: Abortion policy in absence of Roe ( New York: Guttmacher Institute 2014)

The government has the reasons to be involved in reproductive rights of women only under the specific conditions by using only advantages of that involvement. The advantage of the governmental involvement includes access to the safe and legal abortion for low income or poor women, and in cases of rape and incest. In my opinion, laws that protect the rights to choose abortion if life or health of the woman is under risk, and woman can make abortion prior to viability, are the most suitable for women and that laws do not harm rights of women and her family. The lowest abortion rate in 2011 proved that legalization of the abortion will not lead to the decrease in birth rate and to the increasing of number of women who make abortion.

Women should decide themselves because they know better their own body and the government should solve social problems which force women to make abortion, because “the need for abortion is itself the consequence of oppression.” Germaine Geer, The whole woman (New York: Anchor Books, 2000) p: 95. If the government has liberal policy on birth control, and access of woman to legal abortion will not be restricted, I think that, need for abortion will decrease. As I mentioned above, the government should resolve social problems which lead to the abortion before it will be involved in women's right.

Bibliography

1. Blank R, Merrick J. (1995.) Human Reproduction, Emerging Technologies, and Conflicting Rights. London: CQ Press.

2. Geer, G. (2000). The whole woman. New York: Anchor Books.

3. Guttmacher Institute. (2014) State policies in brief: Abortion policy in absence of Roe. New York: Guttmacher Institute.

4. Guttmacher Institute. (2005). Reasons U.S women have abortions New York: Guttmacher Institute.

5. Hannam, J. (2007). Feminism. Harlow: Pearson Education.

6. Hooks, B. (2000). Feminism is for everybody: Passionate Politics. Cambridge, MA: South End Press.

7. History of abortion. (n.d). Retrieved April 2, 2014, from http://www.prochoice.org/about_abortion/history_abortion.html.

8. Millet, K. (1970). Sexual Politics. New York: Doubleray.

9. NARAL Pro-Choice America. (2014).The status of women's reproductive rights in the United States. Durham, North Carolina: NARAL Pro-Choice America.

10. Nash M.E. (2014). Laws affecting reproductive health and rights: 2013 state policy review. New York: Guttmacher Institute. Retrieved March 28, 2014 from http://www.guttmacher.org/statecenter/updates/2013/statetrends42013.html.

11. Proclamation of Teheran, Final Act of the International Conference on Human Rights (1968) U.N. Doc. A/CONF. 32/41.University of Minnesota Human Rights Library.

12. Randall, V. Waylen G. (1998) Gender, Politics and the State. New York: Routledge.

13. Rich, A. (1976) Of Woman Born: Motherhood as Experience and Institution. New York: W.W Norton.

14. Rosenthal, E. (2007). Legal or Not, Abortion Rates Compare. The New York Times, New York, NY (12/10/07). Размещено на Allbest.ru