Women who have abortions are seldom referred to as mothers. But author and educator Judith Arcana believes that this denial has led to the dehumanization of women deciding not to have babies. For many, abortion remains a secret they can never share.
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“We need to speak of our abortions, not in an atmosphere of guilt and shame as a result of spiritual terrorism of contemporary antiabortionists, but in open recognition of our regret or loss or joy or relief–even of mourning–and in acceptance of the responsibility of our choice,” writes Arcana in her essay “Abortion Is a Motherhood Issue,” included in the recently published anthology Mother Journeys: Feminists Write About Mothering (Spinsters Ink).
Arcana says she’s amazed that abortion still carries a stigma. “I can’t bear the idea of people being raised where they’re not wanted, where there’s no healthy, loving environment. I can’t stand it. Sometimes a woman has to decide to kill her baby. That’s what abortion is. We have to deal with that or we’re abandoning these women.”
