Reclaiming Our Children: A Blog About Healing After Abortion

My letter to the NY Times about Friedlander case that never got printer

Abortion, Coercion and Violence

 While there were obviously many issues contributing to the heart wrenching story surrounding the death of Amy Friedlander and her children, Molly, 10 and Gregory 8, her coerced abortion three years ago is sure to have played a significant part in the demise of the marriage, and perhaps even the murders.

Gary Perez, Amy’s father, states in the Journal’s October 21 article by Shawn Cohen, “ She was very upset, and she was having difficulty coming to terms with it. When she expressed this to her husband, he told her to 'Deal with it.' "

Sadly, when we speak of abuse and coercion, very often, even when abortion plays a major factor, it is left out of the equation. The truth is, countless women are coerced into abortion everyday by husbands, boyfriends and parents , and very often are threatened by violence if they fail to comply.

 For all the talk of a woman’s right to choose or freedom of choice, the reality is, many times women are given no choice, or are put under tremendous pressure through threats of abandonment, or even violence. Even more upsetting is that  much of the women’s movement has become more concerned with the legality of abortion than the actual women they profess to be representing , not addressing or even denying the coercion and violence that many women experience and that has, in fact, even led to deaths.

 I hope that any pregnant woman reading this that is being pressured to abort will recognize it for what it is, a sign of abuse, and seek outside help.