I think I would probably be pro-choice regardless…
because I see issues of birth control and reproductive choice as personal and private. But I have another reason for being passionate about it, going back to my childhood. I’ve discussed it before, but here it is:
When I was 12, a cousin, also 12, was raped by a family "friend", a 45 year old man. He told her that no one would believe her—and sadly, at first he was right. My cousin, beautiful, intelligent, a gifted musician and artist, was also a very sensitive girl.
When she discovered she was pregnant, in the days when abortion was illegal, after her parents hadn’t believed her, my cousin felt her life was ruined, so she committed suicide.
My mother and I had believed what she said, tried to convince her parents—and were told to stay out of it. After her death, especially when they discovered she had been pregnant, her parents took another hard look at the guy.
He got drunk and confessed…I was told. After the police stopped my uncle from beating him to death, they took the guy into custody.
Decades later, I discussed it with my mother. "How could they not have believed their daughter over that man ?" I asked.
Mom sighed. "That was unforgivable; and I think they never forgave themselves. They didn’t live much longer after losing her."
When I was 12, a cousin, also 12, was raped by a family "friend", a 45 year old man. He told her that no one would believe her—and sadly, at first he was right. My cousin, beautiful, intelligent, a gifted musician and artist, was also a very sensitive girl.
When she discovered she was pregnant, in the days when abortion was illegal, after her parents hadn’t believed her, my cousin felt her life was ruined, so she committed suicide.
My mother and I had believed what she said, tried to convince her parents—and were told to stay out of it. After her death, especially when they discovered she had been pregnant, her parents took another hard look at the guy.
He got drunk and confessed…I was told. After the police stopped my uncle from beating him to death, they took the guy into custody.
Decades later, I discussed it with my mother. "How could they not have believed their daughter over that man ?" I asked.
Mom sighed. "That was unforgivable; and I think they never forgave themselves. They didn’t live much longer after losing her."
