Associated Press
Nearly 40% of pregnancies in New York City resulted in abortions? That number seems both unbelievable and deplorable. Truth be told, it was the most shocking headline I have read in some time – maybe ever. Two out of every five? If a disease killed two out of every five babies there would be a unified international effort to combat such a horrific killer. I am truly at a loss. More to come when I can find the stomach.
From Ed Morrissey at Hot Air
The breakdown by ethnicity is, perhaps, even more startling. Almost 60% of all pregnancy outcomes in NYC for African-American mothers were abortions; among Hispanics, 41.3%. Asians and whites had relatively low percentages of abortion outcomes (22.7% and 20.4%, respectively). ABC points out that the overall number is actually an improvement over 1998, when the citywide rate for abortion outcomes was 46%.
But some care should be taken with these numbers. It’s not a measure of pregnancies, but of pregnancy outcomes. The data does not show the residential status of the mothers at the time of the outcomes, but only that the outcomes took place in New York City. It is entirely possible that significant numbers of women seeking abortions come to New York City to get them from outside of the city; in fact, it’s probably more likely than not, considering the concentration of abortion services in major metropolitan areas. Women seeking abortions may go outside their local area even if abortion services are readily available anyway in order to maximize their anonymity through the process. That trend would seriously skew an “abortion rate” statistic.
Dolan gathered with other religious leaders on Thursday to draw attention to the city’s high abortion rate. The city health department last month released statistics that showed 39 percent of pregnancies ended with induced termination in 2009.
READ THE REPORT HERE.
“I re-affirm Cardinal John O’Connor’s promise of a quarter-century ago that every woman facing a difficult pregnancy will be provided with free, confidential help of the highest quality from the Archdiocese of New York,” said Archbishop Dolan.
While the numbers have declined in the last decade, the religious leaders said they are still too high.
In 2009, there were 225,667 pregnancies in the City with 126,774 resulting in live births and 87,273 resulting in abortions. In addition to those abortion numbers, there were 11,620 spontaneous terminations.
Forty-six percent of all births in the Bronx result in abortions—the highest among the five boroughs, according to the report.
Blacks had the highest number of abortions with 40,798 with Hispanics having the second highest at 28,364, according to the report.
In response, the Chiaroscuro Foundation, a non-profit organization that supports alternatives to abortion, pledged that it will spend $1 million in 2011 to address the City’s abortion rate—nearly double the national average of 23 percent.
“Like it or not, the legality of abortion is a settled question in New York for the time being,” said Greg Pfundstein, executive director of the Chiaroscuro Foundation. “That doesn’t mean we have to accept the fact that in parts of the city nearly half of all pregnancies end in abortion.”
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Abortion-rights advocates were quick to respond. Outside, several women passed out condoms and held up pro-choice signs.
In a statement, Mary Alice Carr, NARAL Pro-Choice New York’s vice president for communications, said, “These men continue to meddle in women’s lives and preach a gospel of shame and stigma,” adding that pro-choice groups “will never stand quietly by and watch self-proclaimed moral authorities attempt to interfere in the reproductive lives of others.”
I find that statistic sad, but not surprising.
Women who know they can’t support a baby (um… women in poverty, who are WAY more likely to be women of color) are often unwilling to bring a life into the world. Women who don’t have healthcare, women who don’t have a job, etc. Women who don’t have access to birth control (hello poverty again!) are more likely to have an unintended pregnancy.
Instead of lamenting this fact, how about we do something about it? Let’s start funding public health, funding access to contraception, funding education so women can get good jobs, funding comprehensive sex-ed (which has been shown to reduce the number of unintended pregnancies, which reduces the number of abortions…)
Oh wait. I forgot this is a republican website. We don’t believe in doing the things that would reduce abortions. We just want to rant about the horrible people who do these things, while we continue to cut health care, education, and access to contraception. Right.
Melissa I appreciate the comment but am deeply troubled that you make some of the assumptions that you have regarding this site. It is Republican Redefined after all, so even a somewhat curious mind might lead you to believe that something might be different around here. I am pro-life, but I have quite a different take on the issue than most. I think if you read this, you will see that on full display.
As to your other points, I don’t know a single Republican that wants to “cut health care or education.” If you are speaking of those matters as they relate to abortion that may be true for most, but I would caution you not to assume that it means all.
On a more general note, I often criticize those on the Right that “rant” as you put it, about those they believe to be “pro-abortion.” I think such a label does the cause of saving babies a a great disservice because it frames the debate in an improper context. That said, I am equally disgusted when I hear people from your side of the debate cast aspersions on all of the Right as if you know the motivations of our hearts or even our minds. As I stated, I am pro-life but I believe the issue is more accurately characterized as a religious position rather than a political one. Accordingly, my being a Republican has NOTHING to do with my position on the issue.
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