The Lincoln Log

Ever since Roe vs. Wade, abortion has become a particularly touchy subject. My uncle frequently jokes that the secret to a good marriage is to not talk about George Bush or abortion. Why is it that most people shy away from the issue? The reluctance to face the issue is because most of the women it applies to are under 18. It be that we are uncomfortable leaving such a life-changing decision in the hands of women who are not yet able, legally, to make life-changing decisions in all other areas.

Take for instance Proposition 85, which, even though it did not pass with California voters, would have allowed us to have the best of both worlds. It would have given female minors the right to follow through with their decisions, but also simultaneously given a guiding hand to a very heavy issue by allowing parents’ input. There are many complications in an abortion such as bleeding, hemorrhage, laceration of the cervix, menstrual disturbance, inflammation of the reproductive organs, bladder or bowel perforation, and serious infection. Sometimes even more detrimental repercussions are not evident until later, such as infertility, the risk of which increases with each abortion. Few women ever return to the clinics for crucial post-operative examinations.

There is also strong evidence that abortion may increases the risk of breast cancer. A study of more than 1,800 women appearing in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute in 1994 found that for women under 18-years-old with no previous pregnancies, having an abortion after the eighth week of pregnancy increased the risk of breast cancer 800 percent. Of course, death of the mother is the most serious of all complications. Over 200 women have died from legal abortions since 1973. Proposition 85 would have required the physicians involved in the abortion to notify the minor’s parents 24 hours before hand.

Obviously, because Proposition 85 was not passed, most people thought the proposition was a bad thing for teenagers. However, stated in the Proposition, the guardian of the minor would not have been legally able to prevent the minor from getting the abortion unless they had taken it to court; then the judge presiding would have decided. Guardians wouldn’t have been able to do anything to halt the abortion short of taking it to court. Besides the fact that I think parents should be notified because they are an important part of their children’s lives—why not involve them in something as monumental as this? They have been there for everything else, from kindergarten and school plays, to driving tests and Prom. You would think a country as “family” oriented, as ours would support a development such as this. So why did people vote no on 85? The only thing that would have changed in the passing of this Proposition would have been to add another opinion to an issue that certainly could have used it. This Proposition would have kept the minors empowered and still left them their choice in the matter, but it would also have brought invaluable support and counsel from someone in a more stable position who knew them well.