The "hard cases"
New facts, new answers
free booklet (pdf) 
Victims & Victors (book page)
“I, having lived through rape, and having raised a child conceived in
rape, feel personally assaulted and insulted every time I hear that
abortion should be legal because of rape and incest. We’ve not been
asked to tell our side of the story.”
—Kathleen DeZeeuw, Rape Survivor, Mother
"What rape takes away from a woman, abortion cannot restore.
In
fact, giving birth proves she is better than the rapist."
—Robert Bennett, Whose Mother Was Assaulted
Women victimized by sexual assault have some important perspectives on
the abortion issue.
Studies
show that most don't want abortion. Those who had abortions in such
situations reported that it
only increased their trauma. Those who didn't abort said they had no
regrets about giving birth to their child.
In many
cases, women are pressured into abortion by those whose support they
seek. Often, they're told it is the "only" option. Before
you discuss this heartbreaking and sensitive issue, ask women
who've been there. Their experiences change common presumptions about
assault-related pregnancies.
"I was never given a choice."
When she was 15, Denise was raped by her father, who then forced her
to have an abortion. Like other women who have had abortions as a
result of sexual assault, Denise found that abortion only
intensified her pain.
"[The doctor] asked three nurses to hold me down while he strapped
me to the bed ... I continued to scream that I didn't want an
abortion. He told me, 'Shut up and quit that yelling!'"
Years later, Denise writes: | 
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"I was told that an abortion would solve my
problem, when it was never my problem really the problem in the first
place.
"I was
told, 'Your parents know what's best,' when they obviously were only
concerned about their own reputations.
"I was told, 'You made the right decisions," when I was never given a
choice.
"I was
violated and betrayed by my father. I was violated again by the
abortionist.
"Why
do even pro-lifers talk about exceptions for rape and incest? give this
mother the opportunity to choose life for her child. ... Don't let them
be exploited again.
"The mom needs love, support and understanding, not the pain ... of
being violated again in order to kill her child."
Excerpted from Victims and Victors: Speaking About Their Pregnancies, Abortions and Children
Resulting from Sexual Assault.
Robert's Story - A powerful testimony from a man who learned
he was conceived after incest.
Women Who Became Pregnant through Sexual Assault Say, "Ask us." --
(off-site link)
Assault victims coerced into and further traumatized by abortion
One survey of women who became pregnant as a result of sexual assault
found that:
►
70% had their babies. Of those who continued the pregnancy, none
regretted having given or said they wished they had aborted instead.
► Of those who
aborted, 78 percent said they felt that abortion was not a good solution
for them and that it only intensified their trauma.
► Many only
aborted because they felt pressured by others to do so. In many cases
where the victims were young, it was usually someone else, not the
victim, who chose the abortion. In a number of cases, abortion was used
by the perpetrator to cover up the crime and even to allow the abuse to
continue.1
"They say abortion is
the easy way out, the best thing for everyone, but they are wrong. It
has been over 15 years, and I still suffer." —Rebecca,
pregnant through rape at age 15
"A Baltimore man used up to 10 abortions to hide the sexual abuse of his
three daughters. At least five abortions took place at the same clinic.
The girls were returned to their rapist’s custody."
—from the special report
Forced Abortion in America
Assault cases have higher risk of complications.
The more difficult the circumstances
prompting abortion, the more likely a woman will suffer severe
post-abortion complications.2
Sexual assault is a known risk factor for post-abortion trauma.2
Other abortion risks:
► 31 percent suffer health complications.
► 65 percent suffer symptoms of post-traumatic stress
disorders
► Women who undergo abortions have higher overall death
rates compared to women who give birth.
► Women with a history of abortion are 6 times more likely
to commit suicide than women who give birth.3
Women impacted by
assault-related pregnancy petition for Congressional hearings.
Studies indicate abortion makes an already
traumatic situation even worse. An Ad Hoc Committee of Women Pregnant by
Sexual Assault has put together a
petition to Congress and State Legislators to request hearings on
this issue that will given them a chance to share their stories.
Keep and
share this information
Download and share Hard Cases: New Facts, New Answers
Fact sheet only
4-page booklet with copy of petition
Get the book. Read the rest of the story |
 Victims and Victors: Speaking Out About Their Pregnancies, Abortions, and
Children Resulting From Sexual Assault
Is abortion
helpful for, or even wanted by, women who become pregnant from sexual
assault? Learn the answer from nearly 200 women who've been there.
Includes research and personal stories from women who had abortions,
women who gave birth and those conceived in sexual assault.
Price: $11.95 plus shipping. To order, call
1-888-412-2676.
Citations
1. Reardon, Makimaa & Sobie, eds. Victims and Victors: Speaking Out About Their Pregnancies, Abortions and
Children Result From Sexual Assault (Springfield, Acorn Books,
2000) 19-20. 2. DC Reardon, "Abortion
Decisions and the Duty to Screen," Journal of Contemporary Health Law
and Policy 20(1): 109, Winter 2003. 3. For
citations, see Research
Booklet.
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