Many are against family planning, against giving women knowledge to control their own bodies and make their own decisions. And they consider anyone who even talks about freedom of choice as an abortion promoter and advocate, even though most of us who support the right to choose could never exercise the option ourselves. We just don't want anyone making the decision for us and don't feel comfortable making it for anyone else. Yes, abortion is one of the options that Planned Parenthood counselors discuss with women who find themselves unexpectedly pregnant, but the organization is more about helping to illuminate the consequences of behavior so girls and women can make better choices about getting pregnant in the first place. About 90 percent of the activity of Planned Parenthood's southeast Michigan chapter is in prevention, education, counseling and prenatal care.
Abstinence is a key part of the conversation.
So is adoption. It's about letting women take control. That's the biggest power of all. Some people still resist letting women have that kind of power, especially poor women, who have the least access to birth control and can benefit most from it. Countless studies show that the more educated a woman is, the fewer children she is likely to have, and the healthier and better off they will all be.