[In this article, I discuss abortion as it pertains to women and women’s rights, and primarily refer to people receiving abortions as “women” with the pronouns “she/her.” Reproductive justice has an impact on far more people than just individuals who identify as female. They too deserve these rights as they are also profoundly affected by the issues explored.]

The topic of abortion is one viewed with distaste by many. Despite an increase in positive media representation of and support for women receiving abortions (i.e. the movie "Obvious Child," the strong backlash to the federal defunding of Planned Parenthood), there continues to be a heavy stigmatization around both the act and discussion of it, as well as a proliferation of false information and scare tactics aimed at dissuading women from making the choice to get one. A prime example is the “Abortion - Important Facts to Consider” page for the Women’s Care Center in Rochester, NY, which is quite similar to many others that can be found with a simple Internet search. It’s loaded with false information and emotionally manipulative allegations aimed at coercing women into choosing to continue an unwanted pregnancy, under the guise of caring about women being “well informed.” Luckily for you, I’ve done the research and I am here to debunk some of the more commonly perpetuated myths surrounding abortions:

• Firstly, the idea that a legal abortion is a dangerous procedure is just not true. Less than 1 percent of women who receive one experience a major complication, and it is safer than having your tonsils removed or getting a shot of penicillin.
• Women’s Care Center asserts, like many anti-choice groups, that having an abortion significantly increases a woman’s chance of developing breast cancer - a claim that has no basis in fact. NARAL reports that a 2004 volume of The Lancet, a well-respected medical journal, analyzed more than 50 unbiased studies and determined that there is no link between women who have had an abortion and an increased risk of breast cancer. Furthermore, many more studies have been done analyzing women worldwide and no correlations have been found.
• Additionally, there is the myth of the psychological phenomenon “post-abortion syndrome,” which NARAL also reports no scientific or medical study has been able to corroborate. Since 1987, multiple studies have been done and all have shown that no such psychological syndrome exists. One study from 2000 revealed that two years after the abortion had taken place, “72 percent of the women surveyed were satisfied with their decision to have an abortion, 69 percent said they would have the abortion again, and 72 percent reported more benefit than harm from their abortion.” Those within the small percentage saying otherwise had a medical history of depression prior to the procedure.
• Women’s Care Center also states that to have an abortion raises the chance that you will abuse the children you have later in life “because of lowered self-esteem and other emotional consequences” - a statement that is not only ridiculous but also deplorably offensive. In fact, NARAL describes a 2010 study published in Perspectives on Sexual and Reproductive Health that not only showed no correlation between abortion and self-esteem or emotional issues, but also that laws mandating women be told that there is a connection actually affects women’s mental health by causing unnecessary anxiety. The exploitation of the emotional state of a woman facing one of the most difficult choices in her life, especially with a false claim that her character will be negatively affected by it, is disgusting and needs to be stopped.
• No matter whether or not abortions are legal, women who wish to end an unwanted pregnancy will seek them out, safe or otherwise. Banning abortion does nothing more than put women at severe bodily risk by forcing them to seek out makeshift “clinics.” On a global scale, NARAL reports that approximately 50,000 women die each year from complications that arise after being forced to terminate unwanted pregnancies under unsafe conditions and using dangerous methods. In the United States, 87 percent of all counties have no abortion providers, making it difficult even in a nation where abortions are legalized for women to have easy access to a safe procedure.

The primary issue within the abortion debate is a disregard for women as human beings. When abortion is discussed, a woman is spoken of and treated as if she is just a container for a fetus. Rather, the fetus is existing within the woman and is subject to the decisions she makes regarding her body. Every human being has the right to own their own body. In current abortion discussions, women’s rights and needs are erased, when they should be prioritized above all others. Having access to abortion is a fundamental right - it maintains women’s control not only over their own life and future, but their physical self as well.

The time has come to stop treating abortion like a dirty word and a dirty act. To stop speaking of it in hushed terms and spreading lies aimed at eliminating its existence. To start celebrating women’s authority over their bodies and control of their fate. To start supporting the choices that women make in regards to their wellbeing, as well as their fundamental right to make those choices in the first place. Abortion is a legitimate and important medical procedure, one which the legalization and accessibility of is essential to supporting women’s achievements outside of limited societal expectations and establishing gender equality.