Pro: Reclaiming Abortion Rights

by Katha Pollitt

Paperback, 2015

Status

Checked out

Genres

General Nonfiction

Politics, Government, Law and Public Policy

Nonfiction

All Topics

Publication

Picador (2015), Edition: Reprint, 288 pages

Description

Forty years after the landmark Roe v. Wade ruling, "abortion" is still a word that is said with outright hostility by many, despite the fact that one in three American women will have terminated at least one pregnancy by menopause. Even those who support a woman's right to an abortion often qualify their support by saying abortion is a "bad thing," an "agonizing decision," making the medical procedure so remote and radioactive that it takes it out of the world of the everyday, turning an act that is normal and necessary into something shameful and secretive. Meanwhile, with each passing day, the rights upheld by the Supreme Court are being systematically eroded by state laws designed to end abortion outright. In this urgent, controversial book, Katha Pollitt reframes abortion as a common part of a woman's reproductive life, one that should be accepted as a moral right with positive social implications. In Pro , Pollitt takes on the personhood argument, reaffirms the priority of a woman's life and health, and discusses why terminating a pregnancy can be a force for good for women, families, and society. It is time, Pollitt argues, that we reclaim the lives and the rights of women and mothers.… (more)

User reviews

LibraryThing member Devil_llama

An unapologetic argument for abortion rights. The author argues against the limits being imposed by states, and also against the position that abortion is murder, many contraceptives are abortifacients, and that religious believers have the right to impose their particular form of belief on others

who believe differently. She does not spend a lot of time on euphemisms, and tends to dismiss the pro-life label unless she is talking specifically about a group. The only down note was that she seems sympathetic to the idea that declining birth rates in some parts of the world, such as Russia and Germany, are a negative thing. She only loses half a star, because she also recognizes the problems of rapidly growing populations. A must read for anyone who is wishy-washy, sitting on the fence, or thinks the proper approach is to condemn abortion while arguing for women's rights to have one.

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LibraryThing member greeniezona

I love Pollitt, so I knew I was going to love this book. I am so tired of all the hand-wringing way we talk about abortion in this country, and this book was a near-perfect antidote to that. I want to buy copies and press them into the hands of anti-choicers in my life. In the meantime, it's

certainly changed the way I talk about abortion and reproductive justice issues. Not that I was so apologetic about it in the first place, but still.

Pair with Mother Nature by Sarah Blaffer Hrdy for straight talk perfection.

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LibraryThing member larryerick

Every so often, over the years, I come across a book that tremendously sharpens and solidifies my thoughts on significant issues that draw on my own values system. This is one such book. While the books subtitle implies that it is about abortion rights -- which is most certainly is -- it goes way

beyond that to the role and rights of women in our society, and, of course, it does that because abortion rights cannot be separated from the total female experience. Make no mistake about it, the author covers abortion issues with laser-like efficiency, from every possible angle. As the book title states, she is "pro" -- but wait, "pro" what? She even gets into the various shades of what that means. Pro abortion, pro choice, pro death, pro what? But even as she presents the many "pro" arguments, she offers abundant "anti" views, and discusses them in great depth, never being too biased to state their merits, where merits exist. If I see any downsides to this tome, it comes in two areas. The first is that the second half of the book feels more relaxed and, thus, unfocused, compared to the first half. Part of that comes from the utter efficiency and clarity with which she "presents" her case. But just like the Q&A after many presentations gets stuck with audience questions that were amply answered during the presentation, there is a certain level of redundancy toward the end as she tries to fill any possible gaps in what came earlier. The second issue of concern is her lack of acknowledgment of the conservative right's faith-based arguments against abortion and woman having any rights in general. There is indeed a section dealing entirely with Bible verses, which she uses effectively against the "Anti" position. Also, at another point, the author points out how differently the liberal, more secular, science-based, pro community drives support for its "cause" versus the Christian faith-based anti community. What she skips over is how very differently the faith-based mind works. In its essence, faith says something exists for no other reason than because someone said "because I said so" and for no other reason. The book has great value for those who value science and logic. And it will give give values clarification to those who have religious foundations but still appreciate science and logic. But, let's face it, for a great many fundamentalists, this book will sail right over their heads, and be damned as the devil's work -- just because.

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LibraryThing member ASKelmore

After the shit show that was the (legislative side of the) election in the U.S. earlier this month, I needed to read a book that would both make me angry and inspire me. I hadn’t heard about this book before I saw it at our local bookstore, which surprises me, as I thought I was on all of the

feminist killjoy mailing lists.

Pro is a well-researched, well-argued look at why abortion rights are so important. That “pro” stands for pro-choice, and it is explored from multiple directions and through different lenses. Ms. Pollitt’s main argument is that those who are “pro-life” aren’t actually pro-life, but more interested in policing the sexuality of women. This isn’t exactly ground-breaking; feminists have been saying this for years. But this book differs in that it lays out literally all of the arguments in favor of banning abortion (either at all stages of pregnancy, or at specific stages, or for different circumstances) and knocks each on down, showing the inconsistencies as well as the impacts these views have on very real women.

The book is over 200 pages long but it only has eight chapters, because each chapter is devoted to going really in-depth into an area of discussion. Early on she shares with us the data on U.S. views on abortion, and how they aren’t really that consistent with the actions U.S. voters support. She then explores the idea of “personhood,” and whether those who oppose abortion really do view the blastocyst, embryo, or first trimester fetus as a person with the same rights as the pregnant person (ultimately arguing that they don’t, because of the other actions they take). This is followed by an exploration of whether women are actually people, some myths about abortion, and then the concept that it isn’t so much abortion, but what abortion represents (woman’s increased control of her life) that pro-life people oppose. Finally, she ends with a look at why compromise isn’t actually an option, followed by what it would mean to truly support women as mothers.

The only problem I have with this book is one that I have with any book that talks about reproductive rights, and it is the complete lack of recognition of the trans issues involved. Yes, it is usually women who are the target of laws restricting abortion, but trans men can also get pregnant, and are victimized by these laws as well, and there’s just no mention of that.

The author claims the target audience of the book is people who aren’t really sure where they stand on the issue, and I agree that these folks might find this book interesting. I think it’s also great for those of us who are very clear on where we stand but could use a little additional education.

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LibraryThing member arosoff

This isn't a book that aims to change the minds of people who are intractably opposed to abortion--as Pollitt herself says. It's a rallying cry to pro choice advocates and the confused, to remind us of what's really at stake--a woman's right to control her body and by extension her place in

society. Instead of placing the baby at the center of the argument, Pollitt frames the argument where it should be: around women who make the choice, around the attempts to control women's bodies, sexuality, and economy.

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