Elliot Institute Commends Michigan Efforts to End Coerced Abortions, Calls on Other States to Follow Suit

From The Elliot Institute

A leading researcher and expert on post-abortion issues is commending a new package of bills introduced by legislators in Michigan that aims to put an end to coerced abortions.

Five women sponsored the Coercive Abortion Prevention Act, which makes it a crime to coerce a woman into an unwanted abortion. It also requires abortion clinics to ask women if they are being coerced and provide referrals to domestic violence programs or other resources that can help them escape abusive situations.

The bill defines coercion to include physical violence or engaging in "a willful course of conduct involving repeated and continual harassment" that could cause a woman "to reasonably feel terrorized, frightened, intimidated, threatened, or harassed"-- including threatening to end the relationship or withdraw financial support if the woman does not abort.

A study of American and Russian women that was published in the Medical Science Monitor in 2004 found that, among American women who had undergone abortions, 64 percent reported that they had felt pressured by others to abort. Elliot Institute director David Reardon, one of the co-authors of the study, said that the pressure placed on women to abort can be subtle or overt, but the end goal--getting her to submit to an unwanted abortion--is the same.

"Coercion can involve playing the 'guilt trip' game--'if you don't abort, you'll ruin my life'--or threatening to withdraw emotional and practical support unless the woman agrees to end the pregnancy," Reardon said. "For a woman whose life is already turned upside down by an unplanned pregnancy, this type of emotional blackmail could be the last straw that pushes her toward an unwanted abortion."

If such tactics don't work, anger and verbal abuse can escalate to physical violence, Reardon said. Studies have found that murder is the leading cause of death among pregnant women, and in many cases, police and witnesses have reported that the killer wanted to stop the woman from giving birth to her unborn child.

"Studies have also indicated that being pregnant places a woman at higher risk of being physically attacked," Reardon said. "Although some women in abusive relationships have reported that they experienced decreased violence during pregnancy, the findings indicate that abusive men are more likely to reject the pregnancy than to accept it. One study of battered women found that the target of battery during pregnancy shifted to the woman's abdomen, suggesting hostility toward the unborn child."

Reardon said that efforts to ban coerced abortion are vital to helping protect teens and young girls from sexual exploitation and abuse. He points to an undercover investigation carried out by Life Dynamics in which a staff member phoned abortion clinics pretending to be a 13-year-old girl impregnated by her adult boyfriend. According to recordings and transcripts of the calls made by Life Dynamics, many staff members advised the caller to lie or withhold information so that she could obtain an abortion and the abusive situation would not be reported to authorities.

"Anytime a young girl comes to a clinic with an older partner, this should raise a red flag that she is being exploited and abused," Reardon said. "Tragically, these young girls are often given unwanted abortions, no questions asked, and returned to the same abusive relationship. Forcing abortion clinics to ask questions about whether she really wants the abortion could go a long way toward helping to end this kind of abuse."

However, Planned Parenthood affiliates in Michigan are opposing the bill, saying it is just another legal barrier preventing women from accessing abortion services. But Reardon argues that coerced abortion is widespread and criticized the group for putting "profits and ideology" ahead of women's well-being.

"Regardless of politics, everyone should be able to agree that no woman should be coerced into having an unwanted abortion," Reardon said. "Women's rights should not take a backseat to the ideology of promoting abortion. I hope that other states will follow Michigan's lead and enact legislation that will help reduce the epidemic of unwanted abortions."

A free, downloadable report on coerced abortions is available online at www.unfairchoice.info/resources.htm.