12 Comments
founding

In the Turnaway Study, it was determined that women don’t regret having an abortion. They often regret giving up their babies for adoption. It’s a very readable study and addresses a lot of the myths surrounding unwanted pregnancies.

https://www.ansirh.org/research/ongoing/turnaway-study

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Speaking as an adoptive parent, I am very concerned about the changes anti abortion states want to make to their adoption laws. My immediate concern is to the potential for coercion and premature termination of parental rights. Additionally, radical right wing anti abortion proponents, including Amy Coney Barrett, have this false and corrosive belief that if they outlaw abortion, and women are forced to give birth they will magically decide to place the child for adoption and all will be well! These radicals are so focused on their religious beliefs that they refuse to see anything other than their own narrow and self serving view.

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More on the problems with adoption here - https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2023/04/10/living-in-adoptions-emotional-aftermath

It is no solution to lack of access to abortions.

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founding

I have never understood the adoption as the solution to abortion argument even if the adoption process is smooth sailing. Pregnancy itself takes a physical and sometimes a financial emotional and social toll on women. And giving birth can be traumatic. I’ve known many women with chronic pain after birth that never completely resolves (outside of what the medical profession considers birth complications)

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I read that article. Anyone with an interest in adoption should read it too. As an adoptive parent I can attest to the fact that adoption is not the rosy picture that many pretend it is. I am very grateful that our daughter’s adoption has gone so well. But, it was hard work. Harder and different work than having a biological child. Every adoption is born of a variety of losses. The child looses their biological family and has to reconcile the fact that their family gave them away (no matter what terminology you use, the basic facts they were given up). The biological parents have to grapple with loosing their child and the stigma of placing a child for adoption and the adoptive parents frequently have lost their ability for a biological child due to infertility. If you don’t deal effectively with all of these losses, the outcomes will not be good for anyone.

The bottom line is adoption is a very psychologically complicated process and should not be held out as a reason for restricting women’s access to abortion.

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founding

It's unclear how much Republicans care about winning elections. They were already having trouble in purple states and areas and this just cements it. They can no longer have any expectation of winning the presidency. The plan seems to be to hole up in the red states and try to use the federal courts to advance their policies. If they were to lose control of a red state like Georgia, Florida, Texas, Ohio, etc. because of this that might cause a reaction. Unfortunately that still seems very unlikely as all four of those states voted by wide margins for their Republican governors.

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founding

Also I think the Republicans will try to fund a 3rd party spoiler for the presidential elections I think the No Labels “party” is part of that effort

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founding

That would make sense although I don't think it will work 🤞 They're caught in a trap because they have big problems if Trump is the nominee, but they also have big problems if he's not. Fortunately they don't control enough states to steal the presidency, and that's why last year's elections were SO important, because that's what was at stake.

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founding

Also once they win elections they attempt to undermine the democratic process and are succeeding.

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founding

Oh yes definitely. Their margins in the red states are wide enough though that it can't really be attributed to suppression or the like; unfortunately it seems that the majorities of voters in these states chose to elect authoritarians who would oppress the minority. We'll have to see whether what's happening this year changes that.

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If this stands, which I can’t see how it will on so many levels, it would put every currently available medication at risk. So it will affect all people. Overruling medical science by someone with zero training and qualifications is an extreme danger to all of us. We must put a stop to the christofacism that has taken over the country before it’s too late.

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Agree. This approach will primarily impact women's access to medication suspected of harming fetuses.

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