When we use militaristic language such as ‘battle’ we focus our attention on ‘fighting,’ instead of loving. I would love to engage in conversations with fellow UUs that are centered in love and compassion – for the Earth and for all people living on and with our Earth.
In Canada, there is a heartbreaking problem for chronically ill patients – when people with severe disabilities seek accommodations and care, the very first option/‘suggestion’ they are presented with is ‘assisted suicide,’ or what we might refer to as ‘death with dignity.’
I was absolutely horrified upon hearing this … in my mind, most proponents of death with dignity have been those with terminal illnesses who wish to die on their own terms, at times of their own choosing, rather than face prolonged pain and suffering as their illnesses progress – particularly illnesses that have no cure or even possible treatment options that would improve quality of life. The idea of people with severe mental health conditions (including myself) and others with chronic (but NOT life-threatening) conditions being encouraged to simply end their lives, rather than being offered the care they need to thrive (which is absolutely available), is just … like I said, heartbreaking and horrifying.
This may seem tangential, but I hope some may see the inextricable connections between encouraging people to end their lives, and encouraging people to refrain from creating life.
The arguments you put forward about encouraging people to terminate pregnancies and/or ‘choose’ sterilization are simply discriminatory toward those living in poverty and those without access to the community resources, healthcare, and general support that more affluent people are afforded.
Please consider the extensive evidence that when people do have access to health care and comprehensive community support – when we are not struggling to survive day-to-day – we DO choose to have fewer children, and/or no children at all. The birth rates in ‘developed countries’ (I apologize, I despise that term) are SIGNIFICANTLY lower than those in … good hell I’m not even going to say that.
The reality of our world is, wealthier people and those with ‘higher education’ (good grief so many problematic phrases) choose to have fewer children, when they have the ample resources enabling them a far greater variety of options for the kinds of life they wish to lead … greater educational and career options, etc. This is not only the case in ‘other countries,’ but in neighborhoods and homes directly adjacent to people with greater wealth.
I truly don’t understand how people cannot see that wealthy people – including young people – have so, so many more choices re: pregnancy and bearing/raising children. YES absolutely people who wish to terminate pregnancies, of any age or class, should absolutely have those desires fulfilled. NO ONE should ever be forced (or even ‘encouraged,’ which usually is just strong social pressure) to carry a child against their will.
But the fact remains that affluent people of all ages have more options. They can terminate all the pregnancies they choose, for so many more ‘socially acceptable’ reasons, whereas communities of historically and currently marginalized people simply do not have access to the resources to make those choices.
Who would we be taking ‘choice’ and ‘consent’ away from, were we to implement policies to control/decrease population growth? Never the wealthy. Disproportionately ‘encouraging’ people living in poverty to control/decrease the growth of their families is genuinely anathema in my mind, so, so contrary to values that I hold for equity, inclusion, accessibility, universal access to health care, housing, clean water and air, etc. If we truly wish to control/decrease population growth, we should be working for economic justice, period. The wealthier and more educated humans are, the fewer children we choose to bear – without any external pressure or control or ‘encouragement.’
How could we possibly encourage/pressure people to ‘choose’ not to bear children without our own personal prejudices coming into play? How often do we hear (or even think ourselves) – “They can’t afford to care for the child, they shouldn’t have children;” etc.
How about we focus our efforts and energy, rather than discussing the potential ‘benefits’ of ‘addressing overpopulation,’ on ensuring that ALL PEOPLE have access to the information and resources and community care and support that will empower us all to ‘choose’ options for our lives that are simply inaccessible to the vast majority of our current human population?
Thank you, to anyone who read this extensive ‘wall of text.’ I whole-heartedly support this AIW. Thank you to the writers.