Women who miscarry their babies may be charged with murder

[AnnieLobeseder]

Some states in America are allowing for women who miscarry to be charged with murdering their foetus

This article truly made me feel sick. Certainly food for though for anyone claiming there's no further need for feminism in a civilised society.

Apparently this law was brought in originally to prosecute men who may cause the death of a foetus while beating a pregnant woman. But so far, the law has largely been used to prosecute women instead of men.

Even more depressing, I lifted this article from another thread on MN, where the horrors of the erosion of women's rights were briefly mentioned, then it turned first into America-bashing, and then a very lengthy bunfight about abortion.

[Catitainahatita]

Annie: I am/was on the other thread and I can assure you that my contributions have been made as a defense of women's rights and in no way have been America bashing. I think I have been Mexico/Nicaragua/the Phillipines bashing though, to be honest.

The article you link to is frightening as are the links to events in Mexico and the Phillipines which I linked to in that thread.

I think the situation in some states in the US is worrying, especially the way the debate is being framed in terms of "equal rights" for the embryo/foetus as a way of hiding the obvious disregard and lack of importance given to the pregnant woman.

Finally, I also make a long point to the same effect on the push for "educating" women about what abortion entails. I think this is simply evidence of women being considered incapable of moral or rational thinking on their own. It also suggests that women are not able to understand what an abortion is, which seems to suggest that as a sex we are stupid.

The whole thing makes my blood boil.

[AnnieLobeseder]

Thanks for posting cat. I'm sure you'll agree though, that the original point of that thread got lost in a hail of buns over abortion, which sadly derailed the thread. Which is why I re-posted over here.

[Catitainahatita]

Yes and the over generalisations and tit for tat over whether the US was better/worse than the UK weren't very cheering either.
What's your take on the whole "prolife" movement in the US?
My point of view is very coloured by the situation I experience in Mexico, where only one federal entity allows elective abortion (Mexico City's Federal district a bit like Washington DC but bigger) up to 12 weeks and the rest and rabidly anitchoice. Most state constitutions have recently introduced amendments to their constitutions to explicit that "life" begins at contraception. From a legal point of view this is ridiculous, but it stems from the push to ensure legalising elective abortion doesn't happen in their own states. This is despite the fact that the legal codes of all the states stipulate that abortion can be carried out in some exceptional circumstances( the provisions vary from state to state). In my home state it is permitted if the woman has been raped; her life is endangered by the pregnancy; or, she is a woman "of good reputation" who has managed to keep her pregnancy secret. And people argue until they are blind in the face that being anti choice is not based on misogyny nor value judgements on the women seeking them.