Contains eighteen essays that offer a pro-rights perspective on the issue of abortion, examining the topic within the historical framework of the second half of the twentieth century, and discussing the reasons why abortion continues to be one of the most violently contested issues in the United States.

The abortion debate in the United States is confused. Ratings-driven media coverage highlights extreme views and creates the illusion that we are stuck in a hopeless stalemate. In this book Charles Camosy argues that our polarized public discourse hides the fact that most Americans actually agree on the major issues at stake in abortion morality and law. Unpacking the complexity of the abortion issue, Camosy shows that placing oneself on either side of the typical polarizations -- pro-life vs. pro-choice, liberal vs. conservative, Democrat vs. Republican -- only serves to further confuse the debate and limits our ability to have fruitful dialogue. Camosy then proposes a new public policy that he believes is consistent with the beliefs of the broad majority of Americans and supported by the best ideas and arguments about abortion from both secular and religious sources.

Abandoned is an oral history of the Pro-Life movement, and a plea for protection of the innocent children threatened by abortion.

In this hard-hitting timely book Judith Orr, leading pro-choice campaigner, argues that it’s time women had the right to control their fertility without the practical, legal and ideological barriers they have faced for generations. Donald Trump’s presidency threatens abortion rights within the US and his global gag affects women worldwide today – 47,000 women die annually from illegal abortions. In Britain, anti-abortion campaigners attack women’s rights under existing law. Elsewhere, women cross borders or buy pills online. In the US, Ireland, Poland and Latin America restrictions on abortion have provoked mass resistance, Combining analysis of statistics, popular culture and social attitudes with powerful first-hand accounts of women’s experiences and a history of women’s attempts to control their bodies, the author shows that despite the 1967 Abortion Act full reproductive rights in Britain are yet to be won. The book also highlights current debates over decriminalisation and argues for abortion provision fit for the 21st century.

This twenty-fifth anniversary edition places abortion politics in the context of reproductive justice today and explains why abortion has been—and remains—a political flashpoint in the United States. Before Roe v. Wade, hundreds of thousands of illegal abortions occurred in the United States every year. Rickie Solinger tells the story of Ruth Barnett, an abortionist in Portland, Oregon, from 1918 to 1968, to demonstrate how the law, not back‐alley practitioners, endangered women’s lives in the years before legalized abortion. Women from all walks of life came to Barnett, who worked in a proper office, undisturbed by legal authorities, and never lost a patient. But in the illegal era following World War II, Barnett and other practitioners were hounded by police and became targets for politicians; women seeking abortions were forced to turn to syndicates run by racketeers or to use self‐induced methods that often ended in injury or death. This new edition places abortion politics in the context of reproductive justice today. Despite the change in women’s status since Barnett’s time, key cultural and political meanings of abortion have endured. Opponents of Roe v. Wade continue their efforts to recriminalize abortion and reestablish an inexorable relationship between biology and destiny. The Abortionist is an instructive reminder that legal abortion facilitated women’s status as full members of society. Barnett’s story clarifies the relationship of legal abortion to human dignity and shows why preserving and extending Roe v. Wade ensures women’s freedom to decide for themselves what is best for their health.

Explains how abortion politics influenced a fundamental shift in conservative Christian politics, teaching conservatives to embrace rights arguments.

In this hard-hitting timely book Judith Orr, leading pro-choice campaigner, argues that it’s time women had the right to control their fertility without the practical, legal and ideological barriers they have faced for generations. Donald Trump’s presidency threatens abortion rights within the US and his global gag affects women worldwide today – 47,000 women die annually from illegal abortions. In Britain, anti-abortion campaigners attack women’s rights under existing law. Elsewhere, women cross borders or buy pills online. In the US, Ireland, Poland and Latin America restrictions on abortion have provoked mass resistance, Combining analysis of statistics, popular culture and social attitudes with powerful first-hand accounts of women’s experiences and a history of women’s attempts to control their bodies, the author shows that despite the 1967 Abortion Act full reproductive rights in Britain are yet to be won. The book also highlights current debates over decriminalisation and argues for abortion provision fit for the 21st century.