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Original poster

End anti-abortion harassment outside the Bournemouth abortion clinic!

73 replies

sistersupporterbournemouth · 07/05/2022 15:59

The abortion clinic in Bournemouth (Ophir Road) experiences some of the worst anti-abortion harassment in the country, with anti-abortion groups harassing and intimidating women and pregnant people accessing the clinic.

These women do not just constitute people with unwanted pregnancies, but a multitude of people who come from challenging situations, such as victims of sexual assault and domestic abuse, children, and those having to abort wanted pregnancies due to non-viability. Abortion is, for many, highly private and nerve-wrecking and no woman wants to deal with anybody gathering outside clinics to harass them or 'bear witness' to their treatment. You wouldn't tolerate this behaviour going to your GP, dentist or hospital appointment. Staff and local residents also have to endure this near-daily harassment.

At Sister Supporter Bournemouth, we have launched a petition to persuade the council to introduce a buffer zone around the clinic, banning anti-abortion groups from harassing women and pregnant people. We thought that the wonderful BCP-council-area-based people of Mumsnet would be interested in sharing our campaign and signing our petition. If you want to know more about Sister Supporter and our campaign, you can find more information here.

If you're interested in taking a more active role in sharing our campaign work, you can sign up to become a Sister Supporter Champion here.

End anti-abortion harassment outside the Bournemouth abortion clinic!
OP posts:
DomesticatedZombie · 08/05/2022 13:03

'terminology' is what our laws are built on. If we're looking to affect laws, legislation we need to be clear on our terms and terminology and what they mean. Words matter.

MissMaple82 · 08/05/2022 13:06

Women and pregnant people?? Wtf

MissMaple82 · 08/05/2022 13:10

Clymene · 08/05/2022 10:20

Who are the people who are harassing the women using the clinic? Are they mainly ejactulating people? Or are there also non pregnant people who aren't ejactulating people?

@cylmene haha when I had my abortion it was mainly all 'ejaculating people' doing the harassing of pregame women

SweetPetrichor · 08/05/2022 13:29

DomesticatedZombie · 08/05/2022 13:03

'terminology' is what our laws are built on. If we're looking to affect laws, legislation we need to be clear on our terms and terminology and what they mean. Words matter.

All fine and but it’s important that legislation supports people who sit outside of that broad term of ‘pregnant women’. But ultimately, that is not the discussion this thread was started for. There hundreds of other threads to have this arguement and having it here takes away from what the OP is asking for. However an individual chooses to identify, they deserve safe access to clinics without being hounded by anti abortion protests.

poppingmore · 08/05/2022 13:54

Supporting a campaign for abortion rights that refers to women as 'pregnant people' so not to offend, is a bit like supporting a campaign to send money for food over to a Muslim country then claiming Muslims shouldn't live near you

Do you see?

DomesticatedZombie · 08/05/2022 13:56

Well, OP hasn't been back to answer my question (whether one had to live in that council area to sign the petition), so we may as well discuss related issues.

I fully agree that all women should be able to access clinics without being hounded.

Perfect28 · 08/05/2022 15:18

No. I don't see. I'm happy to just be a person. If you want to always be defined as a woman, fine. I don't care. There's bigger issues at stake here.

Holidaycomedown · 08/05/2022 15:38

I care so much more about women being able to access abortion without fear or abuse than I do about "women and..".

Thank you for sharing OP

DomesticatedZombie · 08/05/2022 16:08

Perfect28 · 08/05/2022 15:18

No. I don't see. I'm happy to just be a person. If you want to always be defined as a woman, fine. I don't care. There's bigger issues at stake here.

So ... what brings you to the 'feminist' board, person?

Clymene · 08/05/2022 16:16

Perfect28 · 08/05/2022 15:18

No. I don't see. I'm happy to just be a person. If you want to always be defined as a woman, fine. I don't care. There's bigger issues at stake here.

Only some persons can get pregnant. Only some persons will be harassed.

FiveNineFive · 08/05/2022 16:20

Abortion Rights Cardiff managed to do this. Maybe hit them up for information?

Perfect28 · 08/05/2022 20:02

Domesticated are your views really so naive that you think only women can be feminists? Everyone should be a feminist. I am a woman and a person and many other things beside.

Metabigot · 08/05/2022 21:04

Perfect28 · 08/05/2022 20:02

Domesticated are your views really so naive that you think only women can be feminists? Everyone should be a feminist. I am a woman and a person and many other things beside.

Should everyone be a MRA too then?

DomesticatedZombie · 08/05/2022 21:14

Perfect28 · 08/05/2022 20:02

Domesticated are your views really so naive that you think only women can be feminists? Everyone should be a feminist. I am a woman and a person and many other things beside.

I find it curious that someone who is 'happy to just be a person' is on a feminist board. Which is by definition about women's rights.

You want feminists to support and defend women, but only so long as we don't go on about being women too much?

Sunflower987 · 08/05/2022 21:17

BaronessBomburst · 08/05/2022 10:16

I'm not getting behind any petition that uses the term pregnant people.
As a woman I find it extremely offensive.

Me too.

bigmumsRbootyful · 08/05/2022 21:18

this is disgusting and i suggest that you remove it its horrible

SammyScrounge · 09/05/2022 01:37

Metabigot · 08/05/2022 09:50

IMHO it's more for the transwomen to not feel offended by being leftout of 'womanhood' that is making the language change.
Not the transmen who in most cases are happy to get away from the biological part of being female.

Show quote history

Pregnancy and/or abortion are no business of transwomen who are biologically male. To take offense at that simple fact is insane. To encourage the delusion is even worse.

SamphirethePogoingStickerist · 09/05/2022 10:18

All fine and but it’s important that legislation supports people who sit outside of that broad term of ‘pregnant women’.

So, you want an even broader term than the one that covers every human being that can become pregnant?

That's the bloody problem. There is no broader term. Not without decimating the language in ways that makes all sorts of things impossible to recognise, monitor, support. Language is about clarifying communication. Not obfuscating it. And all this gender ideology claptrap does is ibfscate all sorts of data, muddies all sorts of communications.

It isn't "being nice", it is has an underlying reason for fucking up how all things female are described. That used to sound like the mot paranoid of conspiracy theories - until the day I heard about Karen White and then all the other men who are palced, because they ask to be, in the women's estate. Lots of other examples, but this one, incarcerating women with men who have been found guilty of sexual assualts on women and children? And reporting their crimes as "A woman was found guilty..."? Nope!

That is why all of the calls for 'broader terms' a more inclusive language can fuck off. Such stuff direcrtly impacts the health and safety of women. THAT is what you are asking for @SweetPetrichor

SamphirethePogoingStickerist · 09/05/2022 10:22

Holidaycomedown · 08/05/2022 15:38

I care so much more about women being able to access abortion without fear or abuse than I do about "women and..".

Thank you for sharing OP

It's pretty much the same thing in different clothes though.

MRAs chanting to scare the shit out of women acessing legal medical help

Well meaning people obscuring the language to placate some unknown person, removing the legal reality of 'women'

Both have a negative impact. Both need to be challenged. Both help decimate the legal status of female, woman. Neither can be tolerated.

SweetPetrichor · 09/05/2022 12:59

SamphirethePogoingStickerist · 09/05/2022 10:18

All fine and but it’s important that legislation supports people who sit outside of that broad term of ‘pregnant women’.

So, you want an even broader term than the one that covers every human being that can become pregnant?

That's the bloody problem. There is no broader term. Not without decimating the language in ways that makes all sorts of things impossible to recognise, monitor, support. Language is about clarifying communication. Not obfuscating it. And all this gender ideology claptrap does is ibfscate all sorts of data, muddies all sorts of communications.

It isn't "being nice", it is has an underlying reason for fucking up how all things female are described. That used to sound like the mot paranoid of conspiracy theories - until the day I heard about Karen White and then all the other men who are palced, because they ask to be, in the women's estate. Lots of other examples, but this one, incarcerating women with men who have been found guilty of sexual assualts on women and children? And reporting their crimes as "A woman was found guilty..."? Nope!

That is why all of the calls for 'broader terms' a more inclusive language can fuck off. Such stuff direcrtly impacts the health and safety of women. THAT is what you are asking for @SweetPetrichor

Well I suppose we shall have to respectfully agree to disagree on this. People will always have opposing views, it will just come down to the balance of human opinion in the long term.

Ijustreallywantacat · 09/05/2022 13:04

Thank you for sharing. Can’t believe people are getting so worked up about the wording. It says women too. This is very important and worth sharing

Metabigot · 09/05/2022 13:27

Ijustreallywantacat · 09/05/2022 13:04

Thank you for sharing. Can’t believe people are getting so worked up about the wording. It says women too. This is very important and worth sharing

Language really matters, this erosion of the word woman to dissociate it from biological functions must stop.

This article may have said women and pregnant people but if this carries on the 'women and' will eventually fall by the wayside

itsmeagainlol · 09/05/2022 14:06

Totally lost your audience there OP

JustAnotherPoster00 · 09/05/2022 14:19

SweetPetrichor · 08/05/2022 12:49

I can’t believe you’d rather all argue about terminology when the point of this thread is boosting support for people going through a tough time and facing bias.

Its not really a surprise, the right wing have managed to reverse Roe vs Wade, GC feminists, who would rather argue about terminology as abortion rights are taken away from them, align with the same right wing on gender issues, so theyll absolutely be able to say they are women, they also be forced into giving birth no matter the circumstances whether its by rape, incest or in one states case ectopic so rights will be removed from women under the guise of the culture war, theyll come for gay marriage next and the GC feminists will be right behind them cheering them on, you cant stop abortion you can only stop the safe ones

Clymene · 09/05/2022 14:25

Yes that's right, we're all a load of homophobes @JustAnotherPoster00 Hmm

You do realise that Bournemouth is a town in ENGLAND and Roe vs Wade is in the UNITED STATES?

Last I looked, we're different countries with not much in common beyond a shared language.