Pro-choice

This article in today's Guardian about late-term abortions is interesting. And rare, in that we hardly ever get to hear voices of women who have had abortions, let alone late-term ones.
And as it's 40 years since abortion was made legal in the UK, I will state right now that I am a part of the pro-choice majority.

One of the big problems I have with anti-abortion campaigners is that pro-choicers are not saying that everyone should have abortions all the time, which is how we seem to be portrayed in their narrow view. We're saying that individual women have the right to choose whether they have an abortion or not. We're not stopping women who believe it's morally wrong from choosing not to have an abortion. All that we're saying is that each individual woman should be able to make up her own mind. Anti-abortion campaigners, on the other hand, are saying that no-one should be allowed an abortion, ever, that it should be against the law. If your religion tells you something is wrong, that's different. You can choose whether or not to be a part of that religion and its beliefs. It's when personal or religious views start trying to dictate laws for the entire population that it's wrong. No-one should have the right to force their views on others, especially through the legal system. Pro-choice allows individual women to choose for themselves. Anti-abortion campaigners believe women should not even get that choice.

I'm so thankful I live in a country where abortion is legal and safe. I see the 40 years as a reason to celebrate the tolerant, free society that we live in.