Abortion due to the sex of fetus

[fatagainkathsigh]

I'm a lurker in the feminist section and rarely post at all on mumsnet, though I lurk every day!
I just wondered what the feminist stance on this story is:

www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-17136213

Surely a woman's right to choose, no one's business why a woman should terminate a pregnancy.

If for example a woman had three boys and was desperate for a girl, wouldn't it be okay to terminate if the fetus was male? Surely it's part of a woman's body and is just a bundle of cells until 24 weeks????? Why the outrage?????

Would love to hear all of your views, from a feminist perspective.

I'm not sure anyone would agree with your 'it's just a bunch of cells til 24 weeks' comment .
It's difficult. I am pro choice, but this does leave me conflicted tbh.

Do you really think that gender preference is a good enough reason?

In a way, I can see your logic as to disagree with a woman's total right to abortion based on the 'it's a mere group of cells/it's her body' does then leave the back door open to the 'right to life argument'.

But honestly? If someone wants to abort because of gender I think they have a very skewed attitude towards parenthood and life in general. (Excepting for cases of genetic disorders expressed in specific genders, that is.)

Good point fata: Also a woman might want a blonde baby or one that wasn't ginger.As you say it's just a bundle of cells - mainly female bundles of cells of course.

(I also agree with you, fuckity. I am very uncomfortable with abortion after a certain number of weeks, and 24 weeks makes me very edgy indeed if not on medical grounds. But I am not sure I want to erode the right to abortion either, IFYSIM.)

I am pro-choice, but the idea of a woman wanting to terminate purely because she isn't carrying her desired gender leaves me incredibly sad.

I agree with sheep. Aborting a foetus just because it is the wrong gender is just horrible. At the risk of being flamed, I would be interested to know if decisions like this are based on how females are viewed in different cultures.

I think you should go back to lurking tbh.

It is not a bunch of cells before 24 weeks. It is someone's son or daughter and I am disgusted to think that you would consider my child is just a bunch of cells until next week.

I am pro-choice. I had to have an abortion years ago due to a serious health problem which wasn't compatible with life.

But IMO if you get pregnant you know you will get a boy or a girl. Don't get pregnant if you don't mind which you get.

Or don't get pregnant if you do mind which you get.

I am militant on this. I don't like these reasons for termination but I don't see that they are worse than "I'm not ready" or "I don't like children at all" or "I am not happy with my partner". I am vehemently pro life because I put the woman's life first at all points until the very moment the baby is born. She is the carrying vessel. She gets to decide, whether or not I like her reasoning.

Most of the abortions due to sex of baby worldwide are to get rid of girls. Many societies value male babies above female ones. Infanticide is still happening as well, and female children die young quite a bit as they are not fed properly - food going to male children instead / not worth wasting food on them.

I am sure (though have no stats) that most sex related abortions in the UK will be amongst people from cultures where female babies are considered inferior / worthless.

This comment really fucked me off:

"The Society for the Protection of Unborn Children (Spuc) said sex-selective abortion was an "inevitable consequence" of easy access to abortion"

NO you fuckwit, sex-selective abortion is an inevitable consequence of females being considered a waste of space in large areas of the world.

nice point Sardinequeen. You could argue that SPUC have got this absolutely the wrong way round. Valueing women properly for their own sakes and allowing them full control over their own bodies and their reproductive futures could help these societies to see men and women as fully equal and in the long run prevent baby girls being seen as lesser.

But it's no sadder than a boy being aborted because the mother doesn't want a boy is it? I don't think you can say this procedure devalues girls. It works both ways.

What did I say on the other thread... Something about how sex selective abortion is a result of not seeing females as having any worth which is a POV that organisations like spuc are only too familiar with

makes me angry that they are using this story to peddle and justify their revolting ideas

I would take offense at the bundle of cells thing, have lost babies before 24 weeks but lets face it, we're all just a bundle of cells, aren't we? Just some slightly bigger bundles than others. So I've talk myself out of that, now.

I don't think it's okay to terminate a pregnancy if you want a baby, unless it's for medical reasons, and I find it hard to think of.

fuckityfuckfuck if you can find me some statistics to show that boys and girls are being aborted in similar numbers in the UK because of their sex then you might have a point.

Given that around the world it is girls who are being aborted or killed at birth, and that this is a recognised problem in certain communities in the UK, I think you will trouble finding stats to support your idea.

I genuinely don't get it. Either it's a woman's right to have complete control over her body and that a fetus up to 24 weeks doesn't have and rights at all and so the woman can do what she wants, and so surely abort for whatever reason she wants; or abortion on demand should not be allowed.

It's hypocritical. If you can abort because you don't want any baby then why can't you abort if you don't want a son/daughter?

Personally

But termination on grounds of gender isn't just an issue for girl foetuses. That's my point. The boys that are terminated aren't any less important when it comes to this issue. They're still healthy foetuses being terminated due to parental (and yes, possibly cultural) preference.

fata I don't know why you are putting 24 weeks in. If you think that logically women must have total control over their own bodies, which seems to b the gist with calling people hypocritical (which people?), then abortion up til birth is the answer.

fuckity read this article about india and then tell me there is a global problem with males being aborted and killed at birth because they are male.

I can find some more if you like

article in the economist

something random on google with some numbers

" To put this in perspective, compare this incredible number of missing women – 200 million, to fatalities from all 20th century wars - 190 million"

SQ: I think you might be saying that abortion is worse than war.