My thoughts on Abortion and Women's Rights

I believe in Women's Rights. From the time I was a little girl, I have believed in Women's rights. I remember when I was 5 years old, I noticed how boys always received preferential treatment vs girls. My brothers didn't have to clean the house or learn to cook dinner or wash the dishes like my sisters and I did.
When I became a teenager, I loved watching "That Girl" and "The Mary Tyler Moore Show." I saw that women were finding their place in America and I vowed that I would be "That Girl" too.
As a teenager and a young woman, my girlfriends and I followed politics and we protested against the laws that were unfair to women and minorities. We protested for Equal Pay for Equal Work. We protested for Civil Rights and Equal Rights for All.
Our songs supported these movements: "I am Woman! Hear Me Roar!.. I am strong! I am invincible! I am Woman!"
These were tumultuous times, life changing times. Women were chastised for protesting. Conservative Right wing extremists, then and now - including some of the Republican Prez Candidates, ridicule us, calling us "Women's Libbers" or worse. These conservative Republicans long for the pre-fifties times of old, when women were subservient and catered to them. They continue their attempts to take away our rights and take us back to the pre-fifties.
I wish I could take you all back in a time machine so you could relish the changing times and successes we've achieved in America. Both the Civil Rights and the Women's Right Movements have made such dramatic changes in America. I remember we all had such conviction about the need to change America for the better. We all knew we were in the midst of monumental change and we knew we had to continue our fight and our protests if we were to make a better world.
During the 70s in particularly, Women evolved. We dramatically changed. We found our Voice. In the 60s we fought for, but in the 70s we finally realized we were ALL Equal! If we worked hard enough, we could be successful not only in the home but in our careers -- in Life.
We've also seen monumental changes in Healthcare. We didn't have Medicare until the sixties. Prior to that, seniors were left to fend for themselves. They often died, due to lack of proper healthcare.
Women's Healthcare dramatically advanced through these time. In the 60s came the development and popularity of Oral Contraceptives (Birth Control pills).
There was quite a transition for women during these times. We were still being counseled at Church and by our parents to be "Good Girls." However, the world was offering us so many freedoms. I was fortunate to meet my boyfriend (now husband) as a teenager and also to be hired into my corporation as a young career woman. There were so many choices I didn't have to make. I Thank God for Blessing me with a Wonderful Husband and two Wonderful, Handsome, Loving, Caring Sons!
Some of my girlfriends were not so fortunate. Poor choices in men and some poor career choices caused them to have to make difficult decisions. Even though birthcontrol was available, two of my friends had to make decisions about abortions.
The Republicans would have you think these are easy decisions. Some Republicans are even advocating no birth control and no sex until you are married and until you are ready to conceive, hardly a realistic notion.

Abortion is not a decision anyone wants to make. However, it is a decision some women consider when they become unexpectedly pregnant. I remember the tears, the fear, the agony these two women went through when they made their decisions. The first thing you have to remember is, sex is a choice made by a man and a woman. One night of Sex is all it takes and a Woman is left with a Lifetime of consequence. Yet, in most cases, the man (who usually initiates the action) doesn't face ANY consequences. It is the woman who may be abandoned, left alone, left to make a life changing decision like this on her own. Many of these women are in desperation because of the poor choices they made on that ONE Night. These were young women, starting off in life, new at the job, new on their own.
After their abortion experience, both women went on to have full lives. Both of them found husbands and had families of their own. Neither can hardly speak of their earlier decision. I spoke to one of them recently. She is sad about her decision. She now thinks differently about abortion. We both wondered what would have happened had she changed her mind back then.
A Woman's Right To Choose:
Sex has been happening since the beginning of time. Sometimes an unwanted pregnancy occurs. Once this happens, there are so many scenarios. I wonder about all the backroom abortions and women's deaths that occurred prior to legalized abortions. I also think about all the women who married someone they didn't love because they were pregnant and felt obliged to marry the guy. I think about all the murdered women, murdered by their spouses -- were they trapped in an unwanted marriage because of pregnancy? I think about rape victims and women whose lives are jeopardized by pregnancy.
I cannot and will not make decisions for these women. This is their choice, not mine.
I strongly support Birth Control for ALL Women.
I strongly support Birth Control being on the formulary of EVERY HealthCare Provider.
I strongly OPPOSE Republicans trying to deny Women their Freedom and their RIGHT to Choose!