Women on welfare who continue to have children should be denied additional benefits. While, I do not support this position, I have at times, struggled to support women on welfare who continue to have children receiving benefits so I understand the frustration others or the public may express in regards to welfare benefits being given to women who continue to have children while “the system” raises the child. However, it is not for to make choices regarding another women’s reproductive right and would not want someone make such choices for me on my behalf. The NASW and I both are in agreement that women should not be denied benefits based on her choice to continue to children while receiving welfare benefits. “Public policies and legislation,
During the 20th century, there were a great number of high profile, controversial Supreme Court cases. From Brown v. Board of Education to Employment Division, Department of Human Resources of Oregon v. Smith, no case stands out as much as Roe v. Wade. Roe v. Wade covered grounds that have never been dealt with before, bringing new issues and debates to the table, such as the right to privacy.
The topic of women’s reproductive rights has become a major, controversial issue in today’s society. Grounded in a history of opposition for religious, political, and moral reasons, reproductive rights have only legally been around for a short period of history. Specifically, the landmark case Roe v. Wade was the major stride that this country took towards enforcing women’s reproductive rights. The ruling for this case determined that reproductive rights are legal rights women hold, inclusive of the right to have abortions. However, many laws today are made in an effort to prevent abortions, acting as “undue burdens” that aim to create obstacles for women who seek this type of medical procedure.
Women across the U.S. were fighting for reproductive rights. The fight was intense due to women not being able to do decisions for themselves. Since the beginning of civilization, women were expected to produce children from marriage to menopause, in a constant battle to birth more children than died in utero, in infancy, or of childhood disease. The birth and mortality rates were so high that women had to have a stop to it. American white women were considered to be the ones having the most children. In 1800 American women were bearing an average of 7.04 children; 5.21 in 1860; and 3.56 in 1900. During this time the rates were so high because the typical women of the household was supposed to be the one at home cleaning, cooking, taking
1. Reproductive Rights in Canada Reproductive rights in Canada have been discussed in length for many decades, particularly in regards to women’s rights. Reproductive health is defined as the complete physical, mental, and social well-being of women based on the full achievement and protection of women’s human rights (Loretta Ross). Reproductive rights, therefore require three basic aspects for women, including the freedom to choose the number and spacing of children, with the information and means to do so, the right to have the highest standard of sexual and reproductive health, and the ability to make decisions without being discriminated against (Loretta Ross). Reproductive rights also include the freedom to have a safe and satisfying sex
Women having been fighting for equal rights for many years. Because of our genitalia, we will be paid less, we will be judged more, and we will have to fight to protect our basic human rights. Most women are born with the amazing ability to carry life; this is a blessing and a curse. Because of this ability, some people believe that a woman’s body is not completely her own, but that the government has rights to that body as well. We have been fighting to control our own bodies for many years. All women must understand that fighting for our reproductive rights is not just a simple pro-life or pro-choice battle, but a complex fight to teach proper sex education, maintain women’s health facilities, and protect our essential human rights.
Such an interesting topic to discuss so many issues. The one that stood out to me was the politicalizing of reproductive rights. How did this become a political issue? While looking into the history of abortion in Canada I found that the law against abortion was successfully challenged by Dr. Morgentaler, after many previous convictions and appeals, under the Charter of Rights and Freedoms Section Seven "Everyone has the right to life, liberty and security of the person and the right not to be deprived thereof except in accordance with the principles of fundamental justice" on January 29th, 1988. While reading, it was noted that the Canadian Health Act mandates provincial governments to fund abortions per the Charter of rights rulings. Today
I do believe that more women politicians would change the different views and struggles of reproductive rights. It may be hard for a man to understand how it feels to be a woman, a woman who is pregnant, or a woman who is pregnant and alone. If more women were in office I believe that they would be able to come with a different perspective when he came to these specific types of rights. Having fair reproductive rights do not affect everyone. A woman should be able to make the decision regarding her own body therefore, a man may not understand how or why a woman can come to their own personal decisions. Issues like this has been a deep divide by race, class, religion, and ethnicity. Today more than ever there are more feminist speaking up on
“By 2014, 82 family planning clinics across the state had closed. The consequence was calamitous. In Midland, for example, when the Planned Parenthood clinic closed, there were two aftereffects: 8,000 well-women appointments a year vanished, and so did the last place a could get an abortion between Fort Worth and El Paso… researchers found that two years after the cuts, Texas' women's health program managed to serve fewer than half the number of women it had before. The Legislature's own researchers predicted that more than 20,000 resulting unplanned births would cost taxpayers more than a quarter of a billion dollars in federal and state Medicaid support… new providers don't necessarily have the same capacity to do cancer screenings and
Encompassing the specific points and pieces of the reproductive war that I have discussed thus far, I believe that abortion and the reproductive rights umbrella is indeed a feminist issue. In an era when reproductive rights are being especially combated, as they are in the present (Murray, 301) feminists need to be clear and fervent about where we stand and what we are fighting for. Though perhaps a very controversial opinion, I believe that “pro-life” women are counterproductive to this fight. Jeanne Mancini, the President of the biggest anti-abortion event, the March for Life, claims that she has talked to an substantial amount of women who have regretted having an abortion. Many of these women label themselves as “pro-life feminists” and
The concept of human rights is a multifaceted one, thereby making it a frequent topic of debate on a global scale. Furthermore, defining human rights is a complex and volatile issue that brings up many crucial discussions such as, what it means to have ‘rights’, who deserves these suggested rights and to what extent can a person exercise these rights. These types of discussions can be controversial despite most of us, especially in a liberal democracy, where we tend to view human rights in a similar manner. When examining human rights even further, there are clear ties to equality, another issue that affects nearly everyone through means of privilege or prejudice. A crucial aspect of achieving equality between the sexes is giving women the right to control what happens to their own reproductive organs without the approval of men. Lynn M. Morgan, medical anthropologist scholar and author of “Reproductive Rights or Reproductive Justice? Lessons from Argentina” seeks to address the discrepancy between a human rights framework versus a social justice framework to tackle the issue of reproductive rights in Argentina. She initially addresses the fact that using the human rights framework, often used in Argentina by pro-choice activists, can be problematic. As explained earlier, the concept of human rights is convoluted by its very nature. Hence, Lynn Morgan argues that this issue should be addressed using a justice framework instead, a typically US centric approach. It is clear
Throughout American history, women have faced many challenges to earn equal rights in almost all aspects of life. Although changes have been made, today there are still battle to be won. One of these issues is the struggle for improving reproductive rights. Women are often judged for their maternal decisions, whether that is in choosing surrogacy, abortion, and even those who choose different forms of contraception. Over the years, Planned Parenthood and other health services have recieved a negative connotation for what services they provide, especially on the basis of providing abortion services. With our new president in office, women are concerned that their reproductive rights, such as the right to have an
Women’s reproductive rights are a global issue in today’s world. Women have to fight to have the right to regulate their own bodies and reproductive choices, although in some countries their voices are ignored. Abortion, sterilization, contraceptives, and family planning services all encompass this global issue of women’s reproductive rights.
Abortion has been one of the hottest topics concerning women’s health care and reproductive rights. Tune into any presidential debate and you’ll notice candidates spending as much time discussing the topic as immigration, foreign policy, climate change, and gun control. There are a lot of misconceptions about the pro-choice movement but it can be explained in very simple terms. Being pro-choice does not mean pro-abortion, it simply means accepting that women have the choice to choose what they do with their bodies, not the government or anyone else. I believe strongly in this issue and believe that we should look at our past and not go back to a time where women did not have the same rights as men over their bodies. We are trying to become equal, not return to an era of submission. No man or government should have the power to control a women’s body; every person has a right to his/her own body. Abortion should be kept an easy, accessible, safe, and legal option for all women regardless of beliefs. We should be taking strides forward toward equality, not steps back. In the mid-twentieth century, second wave feminists saw major struggles of women and sought to radically improve and change the security of women and reproductive rights. We have fought hard for many of the rights we have today, but everyday we are challenged by those who want to oppose and erase our efforts.
In In Re A.C. the trial court ordered a cesarean be done at the request of the hospital administration without her informed consent and against her mother’s wishes in order to save the life of her fetus because physicians felt she would not live long enough to give birth. This case presented one of the earliest controversies surrounding the maternal-fetal conflict and a pregnant women’s rights to informed consent, privacy and bodily integrity. Any situation where the pregnant woman’s well-being or wishes conflicts with fetal benefit creates a maternal–fetal conflict. Past and recent court decisions “aimed at protecting the fetus as separate from the woman have challenged the rights of pregnant women to make decisions about medical interventions and have criminalized maternal behavior that is believed to be associated with fetal harm or adverse perinatal outcomes” (American Congress of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG), 2005). Since being pregnant does not limit a woman’s right to informed consent, right of privacy and bodily integrity; any medical procedure taken on behalf of the fetus must require consent by the pregnant woman directly if possible and not forced by the courts or state interests.
The issue of contraceptives is mainly seen as a reproductive rights and women’s rights issue; touching on the Pro-Life v Pro-Choice debate. With contraceptives, women can be seen to be given equality (promotes equality). It allows them autonomy and choice. It allows women to have control over their own bodies and select choices as they see fit. Having religiously affiliated organizations refusing to fulfill the requirements of the ACA limits the autonomy of female employees. It can also be argued that this issue infringes on the employees’ First Amendment rights. Proponents of the mandate believe that religiously affiliated organizations, particularly for-profit organizations, are responsible for providing reproductive services (including