Mar
6
Written by:
BMTT Staff
3/6/2010 9:59 PM
This article answers some of the comments related to the controversial documentary film: Maafa 21: Black Genocide in 21st Century America and provides startling statistics about abortion.
Commentary on Abortion: Black Abortions in Particular
By Marlon Aldridge, Sr.
Recently, Black Life Issues and Action Network presented the documentary Maafa 21: Black Genocide in 21st Century America in two locations in Dayton, Ohio. The Black Man’s Think Tank co-sponsored both screenings.
In short, the two hour film delivered a well-researched, well-documented history of the eugenics movement (e.g., selective population control) from its beginnings at the turn of the 20th century and followed its development until contemporary time. The film indicted elitist Whites, large corporations, Black leadership, the U.S. government, and Planned Parenthood as co-conspirators of a plot to drastically reduce the number of Black U.S. citizens. The film left few stones unturned. In what follows, I answer some of your comments and concerns and explain our motive for promoting this controversial film.
Did you know that more unborn Black babies die from abortions each year (444,000 U.S. deaths in 2005)1 than do all Black people from the top 113 causes of death (290,000 U.S. deaths in 2006)? 2 In short, an unborn Black baby is 1.5 times more likely to die than you or I.
Since 1973 (year of Supreme Court decision in Roe vs. Wade), over 45 million unborn babies have been aborted in the U. S. Thirteen million of those were Black (29%).1
From some of you that saw the film, I received the following comments:
“A lot of factual information [was] provided, however in my opinion the film is being used as a propaganda tool of the anti-abortion movement to get Black folk to react to the history of Planned Parenthood, rather than the health care for women they currently provide…. Women have the constitutional right to decide what they choose to do with their bodies.” (F.S.)
“You were right the movie floored me. I have heard that conservative republicans are backing this movie hoping to suppress women's rights…. have you heard anything about that [?]” (B.L.)
Let me answer those comments:
“... In my opinion the film is being used as a propaganda tool of the anti-abortion movement”.
This statement implies presumably that the majority of Black people are pro-choice or pro-abortion and that anti-abortionists deceive us with propaganda while pro-abortionists do not. A Pew Research Center survey found that 40% of Blacks were against abortion, 50% were for abortion, and 10% were undecided.3 Therefore, a large number of Blacks are against abortion and, theoretically, are split on this issue. As far as propaganda is concerned, it is highly unlikely that pro-abortion advocates do not deceive the public with its own propaganda. As evidence, notice that I changed the phrase pro-choice, which is the most common term, to pro-abortion. Pro-abortion has a negative connotation while pro-choice doesn’t. In my thinking, this is propaganda. Moreover, propaganda is an attempt to deceive. In this film, there was a ‘lot of factual information’ backed by documented evidence. However, I will admit that counter-arguments from eugenicists and pro-choice proponents were not presented. This could be perceived as deceitful.
“... To get Black folk to react to the history of Planned Parenthood, rather than the health care for women they currently provide”
I see nothing wrong with Planned Parenthood providing pregnancy prevention services or safe contraception to women. Women should have the right to choose when they want to have children, but keep in mind that the majority of abortions are the result of unintentional pregnancies (e.g., unprotected sex). There are very small instances where abortions have been justified such as the mother's life may have been in danger if she were to deliver her child or carry it to term, or the mother may have been raped, or the baby may have been born severely deformed. However, if we were to classify the majority of abortions which result from unintentional pregnancies like other illnesses or diseases such as heart disease, diabetes and cancer, it would be the leading cause of death among Black people. As mentioned earlier, it would dwarf all other diseases as the leading cuase of death for Black people. In fact during 2005, 2.4 million Americans died from diseases listed in the International Classification of Diseases, Tenth Revision (ICD-10).2 By contrast,1.2 million unborn babies died the same year due to abortions.1 However, abortions were not listed in the ICD-10 while complications due to pregnancies, homicides, and unintentional injuries were.2 I find this very ironic.
“.... Women have the constitutional right to decide what they choose to do with their bodies.”
I assume that by ‘constitutional right’ that the commenter was referring to the Supreme Court decision of Roe vs. Wade. This decision affirmed a woman’s right to privacy and disallowed a states’ right to restrict her freedom or liberty during her pregnancy. I respect a woman’s right to refuse motherhood but prefer creating environments where women choose not to abort. Simply taking a pill could do the trick. Re-establishing the strong family supports that were in place within Black communities prior to Roe could also do the trick. As mentioned in the film, prior to the Roe decision, Black women were far less likely to abort their babies than were White women. Today, this ratio has changed. I argue that the proliferation of abortion clinics in the inner cities was more likely the cause for this ratio change. I also argue that another likely cause was the disintegration of the Black family after the passage of civil rights legislation in 1964 and 1965. At one time, Black women could usually count on family support to help them raise their children. This may no longer be the case.
Some of the reasons argued before the Supreme Court in favor of abortion were that pregnant women or new mothers had to quit school or work; may not have been able to return to work because their employers had no duty to rehire them; could not receive welfare benefits while pregnant; may have been unfit to be parents; and may have had complications with birth or had children born with birth defects.4 In other words, it was argued that women had a fundamental human right to avoid these possibilities as guaranteed them under Section 1 of the 14th Amendment. (Listen to the oral rearguments of Roe vs. Wade.)
Section 1 of the 14th Amendment states in part, “No State shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States; nor shall any State deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law”.5 Texas law prohibited doctors from performing abortions, but not pregnant women. Pregnant women could abort their own babies and not be charged with any offense. Most women that wanted abortions and could afford them went across state lines to have the procedure done.4 Therefore, Jane Roe (aka Norma McCorvey)6 had other options.
Norma McCorvey actually participated in a class action lawsuit with two other plaintiffs: an unmarried heterosexual couple where the woman was not pregnant, and a doctor that was being prosecuted for violation of Texas abortion law.4 It appeared as though somebody was trying to make a statement. It definitely wasn’t Norma McCorvey because she had lied about being raped6, so she could get an abortion in Texas. However, it wasn’t clear that Texas law permitted abortions in such cases.
“.... I have heard that conservative republicans are backing this movie hoping to suppress women's rights…. have you heard anything about that [?]”
I do not know specifically that conservative republicans are backing this film. The film was produced by Life Dynamics, which is a pro-life organization supported by people of different ethnicities (Black, White, Hispanic, etc.). It is also supported by many African Americans who value the lives of our children and who want to educate our community about this issue. Moreover, according to the Pew Research Center, 70% of conservative republicans said that abortion should be illegal3. However, the survey questions made no mention of ‘suppressing women’s rights’. Most reasons given were based on religious, moral, educational, or personal grounds. Also, 42% of the women that were surveyed were against abortion while 50% were not.3 Clearly, the suppression of women’s rights was not the major issue.
In closing, the Black Man’s Think Tank co-sponsored these screenings because we take a leadership role in raising the level of consciousness (e.g., level of arousal or awareness7) among our people. High levels of consciousness can be converted to political and economic power7, which is mainly what we want.
Personally, I believe that each child whether attached to the lining of a woman’s womb or not, has a fundamental right to life. Moreover, each child represents not only an opportunity for future greatness but also future political and economic power. We should all want that.
References
2. Heron MP, Hoyert DL, Murphy SL, Xu JQ, Kochanek KD, Tejada-Vera, B Deaths: Final data for 2006. National vital statistics reports; vol 57 no 14. Hyattsville, MD: National Center for Health Statistics. 2009.
7. Wilson, AN (1998). Blueprint for Black Power: A Moral, Political, and Economic Imperative for the Twenty-First Century. New York, Afrikan World InfoSystems.
Copyright ©2010 BMTT Staff
3 comment(s) so far...
Re: Commentary on Abortion: Black Abortions in Particular
Thank you Mr. Aldridge for sponsoring a showing of Maafa21. I can assure you that Mark Crutcher of Life Dynamics did not have deep right wing, white evangelical, pockets to bank roll this film. It is accurate and BMTT is to be commended for showing it.
The topic of abortion in the African American community is considered taboo due to politics, economics, culture and our personal sexual and relational history. Maafa is one of the tools to dismantle the mantra of, "...we don't kill our own." Abortion has been a pandemic phenomenon since 1973, promoted by its advocates as, "safe and rare",it cuts across all class lines, cultural, racial and economic groups.
Politics: Very few African American controlled and owned organizations see it in their interest to publically take a pro-life stance. Many of our institutions as BMTT points out, produce no durable goods, is heavily service oriented and still dependent on government/ private foundation support, so they are not allowed to be pro-life. Maafa reminds us of the militant pro-life stance, which Rev. Jackson, for example, abandoned to receive liberal/feminist support when he ran for president.
On the other end of the black political spectrum (not necessarily Republican or Democrat) but being consistently pro-life, are the members and leaders of LEARN, Inc., a coalition of African American controlled pro-life organizations (I'm also a member). Its' members come from all walks of life, political affiliations and faiths, but all of them consider the defense of life not as a side issue, but a legitimate issue to raise in the black community. None of us have closed our day care centers, feeding programs, after school tutoring or economic development projects to make room for pro-life endeavors. If our people are being killed off in disproportionate numbers, pro-life activism fits directly into our portfolio because our political and economic power hinge on it.
Economics: Robert Roberge authored a slim book in the 80's called, "The Cost of Abortion" . from the viewpoint of an economist he predicted the collapse of Social Security, schools and economy in general linking it to abortion. Social Security was always a Ponzi scheme, which only worked when you had more people paying into it than drawing on it. Imagine, an economic infrastructure based on the growth of our population, not having millions of potential consumers and taxpayers aborted. Remember when the economy tanks due to "progressive" social policy those on the bottom suffer the most. The film "Demographic Winter" documents the economic and social consequences of abortion on demand in Eastern Europe. The birthrate for Hispanics has exceeded the birth rate for African Americans. There are political and economic consequences for killing the unborn.
Culture: We have become an abortion/birth control based culture. It drives our economy- deferred pregnancies to pursue higher education, DINKS (dual income no kids), male irresponsibility (abortion provides an escape whether he marries or not), abuse of women (abortion was supposed to lower this) and the mind set that our sexual missteps will be "covered", with little or no consequences personally or as a society.
I sidewalk counsel 5 hours a week and the number of black women/African nationals I speak to have been indoctrinated by a party/hook-up culture facilitated by birth control and abortion via Planned Parenthood or the YWCA. I run a post abortion recovery ministry with my wife and some of the stories about relationships are horrific because lifestyles that are chaste, modest, marriage based and religious have been eroded by the abortion/birth control mind set. We help women and men that have carried the "secret" for decades daring to tell no one ,and as a result reap spiritual, physical and emotional damage.
As a pastor I consider the pro-life movement as a mission field to prevent those being led to slaughter (Proverbs 24) and to extend comfort and salvation to those cut adrift in the wake of abortion. I know personally the devastation of contracting the killing of my own flesh and blood almost 28 years ago, and the effect it had on my marriage. It is a miracle that my wife and I are healed and headed for our 30th anniversary.
In closing I thank you for your commentary and reply to questions. You have performed a public service to the black community. I encourage you continue to raise the issue. We must also sound the alarm about the breast cancer -abortion link because the lives of our women and our family structures are at stake. God bless your future endeavors.
By Rev. Brian Walker, Program Director or Pro-Life Ac on
4/8/2010 5:13 PM
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Re: Commentary on Abortion: Black Abortions in Particular
You are welcome and thank you for additional insight into this issue.
By ohioadnet on
4/12/2010 9:31 PM
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Re: Commentary on Abortion: Black Abortions in Particular
To whom are really concerned it's deeper than the Mark C, PORTION this project, take a look at some other facts a propaganda budget is Formed to sway you blind thinkers to keep you off track the U.S programer ticks plays a stratigic roll in how we accept information as well as how we digest it,, EDUCATION I'M a student going to high school , i just got this girl preg you feel me, dame I made a mistake who can i turn too? Don't need no one telling me now , shoulda , coulda , woulda, hat can't help me now . Direction needed not a beat down, here again education, nothing against the Rev, but Margret Sanger had special treats for them as well, They were considered speakers for the oppressed, I know 10 preachers 10 pastors and 5 bishops 15 of them pimps the other 10 Fuc*** lil boys in the church, nothing against you pastor/rev my bad let me get it right Rev, a lot of the things we as a people deal with 2 day is certainly by design, and because of this a new tent go's up eeerrrr week.
By GT on
4/20/2010 10:50 PM
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