Women have been struggling for centuries to gain their independence and rights as individuals. Throughout history, we have won the right to vote, work the same jobs as men, and even are now able to make the decision of who we want to marry, at least in the United States.
But is that it? Do we stop there? Let’s really think about this and ask ourselves, “Are women really free?”
A few of the issues at hand regarding women are the usage of birth control and abortion. These two topics have been debated for many years and with the feminist movement arising, they are hard to ignore.
Birth control is a contraceptive that is used to prevent pregnancy. It has been argued for years because there are people who believe it to be morally wrong. The Catholic Church and some protestant denominations believe that birth control violates the rule of natural law. They believe that sex was created to create life and create life only.
Nowadays, men and women believe that sex is something a lot more than making babies, and birth control
is a lot more than just preventing pregnancy.
Kelsey Riker, junior, musical theatre major and active member of the feminist collective, says that there are a ton of positives to birth control pills.
“In my opinion, the advantages of birth control far outweigh the negatives. Safe sex rocks, and it is a far better alternative than having people left in the dark about sex and ending up with unplanned pregnancies, which then may lead to bigger problems. Some women are on the pill as a precaution against rape. The fact that that is a reason is a totally different topic (rape culture exists). Furthermore, so many women are on the pill simply for regulation of their menstrual cycle. The sexually inactive and lesbians alike are, in fact, allowed to be on the pill, and it has nothing to do with ‘birth control,’” said Riker.
Abortion is an even trickier topic to argue, because it deals with the life and death and what is meant to be a baby.
People who are “pro-life” believe that abortion should be illegal, because abortions are actually killing a human being. Even though the fetus has not officially been born, they still are the beginning of a living entity. Basically, people who are “pro-life” believe that abortion is equivalent, if not exactly, murder.
Some would respond to this by saying that a woman should have her own rights to her body and be able to make her own choices on what she wants to do to it. If the government tries to interfere and regulate a woman’s body, then she no longer has control over it.
A reason that feminists believe that abortion is acceptable is when a woman is raped. If the victim becomes pregnant after the rape, she most likely will want to have an abortion. She was not asking for sex or to get pregnant. Sometimes, we have to look deeper into the circumstances of the situation before we can automatically assume that a woman is trying to murder a baby.
Women have the rights to their own bodies. Who is to tell us what we can and cannot do with them? No one but ourselves; it is our choice! Women, stand up for yourselves and your body. You are the boss of it and don’t let anyone tell you differently.