National Public Radio [US] covers the outcry-in the name of "prolife!"- against redefining contraception as essential preventive care and thus making it more affordable and accessible. Marjorie Dannenfelser of the Susan B. Anthony List makes the tired old, non evidence based claim that more contraception leads to more abortions. Another antiabortion commentator, Sandy Rios, complains, "We have $14 trillion in debt, and now we're going to cover birth control?…Are we going to do pedicures and manicures as well?" In the audio, you can hear her complain about coverage of breast pumps and domestic violence counseling as well. Dannenfelser should not be invoking the name of Susan B. Anthony, who opposed abortion as prenatal lifetaking and as a perpetrator and result of injustices against women-and who deemed voluntary family planning essential to its abolition. Rios has no business trivializing women's need for and right to voluntary contraception, breast pumps and domestic violence counseling, especially considering how much the high US abortion rate is driven by hidden contraceptive access problems, domestic violence, and an overall lack of publicly dedicated and robustly funded medical and social supports for mothers. What *really* causes more abortions? Dismissing women's real, crying reproductive health needs and rights.
What *Really* Causes Abortions?
