Who's getting abortions? Not who you'd think

[Warpy]

NEW YORK - In American pop culture, the face of abortion is often a frightened teenager, nervously choosing to terminate an unexpected pregnancy. The numbers tell a far more complex story in which financial stress can play a pivotal role.

Half of the roughly 1.2 million U.S. women who have abortions each year are 25 or older. Only about 17 percent are teens. About 60 percent have given birth to least one child prior to getting an abortion.

A disproportionately high number are black or Hispanic. And regardless of race, high abortion rates are linked to hard times.

Much, much more at http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/22689931/

[Traveling_Home]

1. FYI - I remembered seeing this recently - Drop in abortion rate shows society changing, not the law

http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/columnists/chi-080109chapman-column,1,4392398.column

The abortion debate has raged since 1973, when the U.S. Supreme Court gave abortion constitutional protection, but the basic law of the land has proved immutable. Abortion is legal, and it's going to remain legal for a long time.

Laws often alter attitudes, inducing people to accept things—such as racial integration—they once rejected. But sometimes, attitudes move in the opposite direction, as people see the consequences of the change. That's the case with abortion.

The news that the abortion rate has fallen to its lowest level in 30 years elicits various explanations, from increased use of contraceptives to lack of access to abortion clinics. But maybe the chief reason is that the great majority of Americans, even many who see themselves as pro-choice, are deeply uncomfortable with it.

In 1992, a Gallup/Newsweek poll found 34 percent of Americans thought abortion "should be legal under any circumstances," with 13 percent saying it should always be illegal. Last year, only 26 percent said it should always be allowed, with 18 percent saying it should never be permitted.

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[Warpy]

2. A lot of it is demographics

Not as many of us boomer women are still of an age to need them like we did back in the 70s and 80s.

[qwlauren35]

3. That's very real.

And some children of pro-choice boomers are actually pro-life or on the fence.

I think I can understand why older (25+) women choose abortion - they know their own minds. They are more likely to know what they do and don't want in life, and they are choosing not to have children.

I have always thought of abortion as a very sane, logical, practical and responsible decision for a woman to make in the face of an unwanted pregnancy. She's not bringing a child into the world that she can't love, or will resent, or neglect or abuse, and she's not going to hand it over to the government, in case no one wants to adopt it.

I have always felt that girls/teens are more likely to romanticize pregnancy and children, at the same time that they are more gullible when it comes to the pro-life message. I feel strongly that the pro-life movement creates a trap for many of these girls, pressuring them into a role that they are totally unprepared for, and possibly not interested in, i.e. motherhood.

It's another reason why I'm pro-abortion. I understand the importance of women being able to choose. They're grown, and hopefully understand the decision they are making. But CHILDREN??? I think that scaring them into carrying a child to term is a form of abuse. If we're not going to send a 17 year old boy to war, we shouldn't pressure a 17 year old girl to become a mother.

[JenniferB]

4. .

scary