I have just finished reading the opinion piece by Julio Cespedes on a possible abortion tax, and I have to say I am thoroughly disgusted. Even on the most basic level, a tax on abortion (already prohibitively expensive, it can easily reach $500 and is infrequently covered by insurance) would serve to make this perfectly legal choice unavailable to millions of low and even middle-income women.
A state mandated tax on abortion would simply be used as a tool by anti-choice governments to effectively overturn the so-called “infamous” Roe v. Wade decision that legalized abortion. There would be less legal abortions but an increase in dangerous back-alley abortions, the medical consequences of which would cause a spike in the demands on health care as women who resort to coat hangers and other unsavory options seek medical care.
On a deeper level, the tragedy of abortion is most often times the failure of society to adequately inform men and women of sexual health issues and common sense, not, as Mr. Cespedes implies, the “death” of a “baby.” A tax on abortion says that society and the government values the rights of a bundle of cells that does not even measure brain waves above the rights of women.
The moral and ethical dilemma here isn’t whether or not the government is profiting from “murder,” but the fact that such a tax punishes women for being sexually active. If Mr. Cespedes and others wish to see a decline in the number of abortions, they should instead lobby for a repeal of abstinence-only sex education in this state and many others. Every study conducted by an unbiased group (read: not the religious right) has proven that abstinence-only education doesn’t keep teens from having sex and in fact increases their likelihood of STIs and unplanned pregnancies, which naturally leads to more abortions.
[Vice presidential] nominee Sarah Palin’s 17-year-old daughter was raised with abstinence-only education, and her mother is a loud supporter of this dangerous practice. She’s still very much pregnant at 17. That’s what I would consider a tragedy. So if people would like to see a decrease in the number of abortions, a tax that would make the medical procedure effectively illegal in many states, which only increases the number of back-alley abortions and punishes low income women, would be a decision smothered by the personal morals of a few that punishes the many, takes away constitutionally granted rights and doesn’t achieve their goal anyway.
Instead, let’s raise our voices together for comprehensive sex-ed that includes abstinence as a healthy option but also informs teens about birth control, condoms, sexual orientation, healthy relationships and anatomy. Taxing cigarettes didn’t make smokers stop smoking; it only vilified smokers and made them a little poorer. A tax on abortion only serves to demonize women even more than they already are for seeking a safe, legal resolution to an unwanted situation, or put it out of their reach completely.
Gaby LaRoche is a senior majoring in human sciences. She can be contacted at [email protected].