EDITORIAL - PROPOSITION 4:   WHAT YOU DON'T KNOW CAN HURT YOU -- AND YOUR DAUGHTER

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(Editor’s note:  The name of this author has been withheld
upon request, due to privacy concerns. All details have been fact-checked
for accuracy.)

Proposition 4 would outlaw abortion for minors unless parental notification
or a judicial order is obtained.

What's wrong with restricting abortion access for teens? We already
require girls to obtain a parent's permission for piercings or other
medical procedures, right?

The answer is not so simple. If you are pro life, be aware that voting "yes" on
Prop 4 could jeopardize the health or even the life of your daughter and other
teens. As a reporter for nearly 30 years, I've interviewed countless
women, girls, fathers, counselors and medical professionals on this issue. What
I've learned is that there are many grey areas where moral clarity is
murky.

Pregnant teens fearful of talking to parents too often resort to desperate
means if safe, legal access to abortion isn't available. Here in
San Diego, before abortion was legalized, women and girls went to Mexico, where
unsterile conditions caused life-threatening infections. Some died or
were left sterile. Now there is a frightening new fear for parents: the
alarming growth of violence in Mexico. In the past four weeks, over 120 people
in Tijuana have been brutally murdered amid drug cartel wars -- some decapitated
with tongues cut out, others simply gunned down while caught in crossfire. If
abortion is made illegal for teens in California without parental notification,
how many girls -- and boys who accompany them -- may wind up in dangerous
situations south of the border?

Prop 4 requires a 48-hour waiting period even after a parent is notified. This
could be deadly for a teen with a tubal pregnancy (also called an ectopic pregnancy),
in which a fertilized egg implants in the Fallopian tube, not the womb. The
fetus cannot survive because the tube bursts within weeks, destroying the fertilized
egg. Thus there is no baby to save, but massive abdominal infection,
or peritonitis, can kill the mother if the pregnancy is not promptly terminated. A
delay of even one day in getting treatment can mean death. I know, because
my doctor once suspected I had a tubal pregnancy after I reported sharp pain. He
called on Sunday morning and insisted I miss church to come in for an ultra-sound. "If
I'm right, your life is at risk with every hour you wait," he warned.

A Catholic friend collapsed from this condition and nearly died. She
had no insurance. Pro-lifers in our office became converts, offering
to help pay for the life-saving procedure. This condition is not rare. One
in every forty to 100 pregnancies is ectopic, according to the National Institute
for Health.

At an international conference on family violence, I interviewed many victims
for a national women's publication. I was shocked to learn how
common incest actually is -- and how cruelly the legal system treats young
victims raped by a family member. Many other girls suffer other physical
abuse, such as beatings. A pregnant girl with an abusive parent could
endanger her safety if she tells her abuser he's impregnated her or
that someone else has. But few young incest victims have the knowledge
or ability to ask help from the courts. Even teens who do go to court often
can't get help in time, if at all -- and late term abortions are far
more risky and traumatic than early-stage procedures.

Shockingly, I learned that in one southern state with a parental consent law,
not a single judge would approve abortions for incest victims -- not even
when a pediatrician had photographic and DNA evidence proving that a 12-year-old
had been raped by her father, the town sheriff! In far too many cases,
incest victims have already told a judge that they were being molested--only
to have the judge fail to believe them and award custody to the abuser. A
girl already betrayed by the court system is not likely to ask a judge for
permission to end a pregnancy. Is it right to force girls victimized
both by the courts and abusive parents to give birth to her abuser's
baby?

When legal abortion is not available, desperate teens may resort to terrible
actions. I recall the case of a girl who asked her boyfriend to whack
her stomach with a baseball bat because abortion access was not available to
teens in her state. She suffered injuries and her boyfriend faced criminal
charges.

Wishing that every pregnant teen would give birth and either give her child
a loving home, or give it up for adoption is simply not accepting reality. Outlawing
abortion for teens, while it may save some babies and prevent some girls from
taking actions they could later regret, will also result in more tragic
cases of newborns abandoned or killed, babies born to drug-addicted mothers,
and young mothers dying from lack of medical care.

Young teens in troubled homes may turn to teachers, counselors, neighbors
or female relatives for help under current law. Proposition 4 would require
any such individuals to report suspected abuse to law enforcement. That
sounds like a good idea; but some counseling professionals fear it could
prevent some girls from seeking help at all.

Incest victims often have mixed emotions. They may blame themselves, or refuse
to seek help if they know it could put their parent, brother or uncle in jail. Babies
fathered by close relatives are at high risk of hereditary diseases and other
problems, which is why marriage between close blood relatives is illegal. Traumatized
children need help to find safe haven, break the cycle of abuse and counseling
to encourage legal intervention to protect them; but none of that will
happen if they are discouraged from coming forward.

What about teens who take medications that can cause birth defects, such as
some psychiatric drugs? "Going off medications can trigger psychosis,
violence or convulsions."

A local Planned Parenthood representative told me about a mentally retarded
girl who was raped in an institution. "The teen had the mental capacity
of a two-year-old." The institution took her off medications that controlled
physical problems because the drugs could cause birth defects. "If you
saw her, you would think it was a horror film," my friend recalled. She
died of respiratory failure.

Another counselor told me of a pre-teen so young and tiny that her ribs protruded
in pregnancy; all feared she would not survive a birth. Thankfully, she did.

A male acquaintance recalled his own anguished tale upon learning that his
girlfriend was pregnant when both were in their teens. "Then she found
out she had leukemia," he said. "Without chemotherapy, she could
not live long enough to deliver the baby," her doctors told them. But
chemo on a pregnant woman was out of the question because of the serious birth
defects it would cause. So they chose abortion. Chemo worked, and
the mother's life was spared. Many years later, the father believes
it was the right choice; even though he's never had other children.

I once worked with a woman who as a teen was raped by a teacher. She
was afraid nobody would believe her, and she did not want to bear the child
of a rapist. She couldn't get an abortion in her hometown, so she
took a bus to another city. As she stepped off the bus, she was hit by
a car and thrown into the air. Her face was crushed against the pavement. Her
parents learned of her pregnancy after a hospital called to tell them their
daughter was in a coma.

She remained in the coma for many months, forcing her parents to make a heart-wrenching
decision: authorize the abortion of their grandchild, or risk their daughter's
life, since doctors warned that few patients had ever survived giving birth
while in a coma. They gambled with her life and won. She
had a healthy baby and eventually regained consciousness, but remained severely
disfigured for life.

What would you choose? Should this teen's wish to get an abortion
have been honored?

There are, of course, medical risks of having legal abortions, as well as
psychological trauma for some. But the risks from illegal abortion are higher; and
so are the health risks of young girls giving birth.

I've raised a teenage daughter. I always hoped she would confide
in me if heaven forbid she wound up in trouble. But for teens who won't
or can't talk to their parents, I believe there should be safe places
to obtain medical care and counseling.

That doesn't mean I am anti-life. I believe counseling should
inform girls about all options; including adoption and help for unwed
mothers who want to keep their babies or simply need a safe haven. Drug
addicts should be offered treatment. We should have healthcare for Moms
without insurance. These steps would encourage women to choose life when
there is a healthy mother and healthy baby. But ultimately, I think any
girl or woman old enough to give birth should have a right to make an informed
choice about what happens to her body. Shouldn't her life matter, too?

Forcing teens to give birth is no guarantee that their babies will be protected. Voters
may choose to ban abortion for teens, but we can't force a teen parent
to choose adoption once a child is born. If a young mother is irresponsible
or addicted to drugs or alcohol, her baby faces a higher risk of neglect or
abuse.

If Prop 4 passes, what happens to misguided teens who take the law into their
own hands? Will doctors be required to report suspicious symptoms if a teen
says she's had a miscarriage? This already occurs in some places where
abortion is illegal. Will we prosecute every young mother for murder if she
uses a coat hanger to self-abort or obtains an illegal abortion--assuming she
survives such butchery long enough to face prosecution and imprisonment?

After reading a poll showing this measure may pass, I knew that I had to share
what I've learned through my unique experiences as a journalist and a
woman.

If you value the lives and health of young women, please vote no on Proposition
4.

This editorial is solely the opinion of the author and does not necessarily
reflect the views of East County Magazine or its publisher.


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Comments

Prop 4

I think a young girl is in greater danger of being victimized if the perpetrator knows he can hide behind secrecy. For example, if an "uncle" knows a parent will find out about a trip to a clinic, it may deter his advances. Also, I am mystified why pro-abortion supporters do not consider the safety/health of the unborn female. Where is her "choice" in the life/death decision-making process? She needs an advocate. She needs Prop.4.

Thank you for publishing my reply.