Well, they’ve done it again folks. Just when you think Teen Vogue can’t possibly get any more outrageous, they go and stretch the envelope even further.
The fashion magazine, whose primary audience is teenage girls ages 13-19, has prided itself in recent history on making abortion, fashionable.
This week, columnist Nona Willis Aronowitz is teaching our daughters how to get an abortion without their parents’ permission. Oh, and she goes as far as telling them how to pay for it too.
The column is titled “How to Get an Abortion If You’re a Teen,” though in other places on the website it’s been teased as “How to Get an Abortion If You Don’t Want to Tell Your Parents.”
“Having access to abortion should be your right, regardless of your parents’ beliefs.”
For the latest installment of #DowntoFindOut, @nona walks through how to get an abortion if you’re a teen: https://t.co/fpsiItJOlr
— Teen Vogue (@TeenVogue) June 6, 2019
In a recent submission to the magazine’s online “ask” column, Down to Find Out, a 16-year-old girl informs Aronowitz that she’s pregnant and doesn’t want to be.
“I’m not sure if I’m allowed to get an abortion without my parents’ permission,” she writes. “But I’m really scared to tell them because they are both against abortion. What should I do?”
You guys, what an incredible opportunity this columnist has to speak life and TRUTH into this young woman.
“First of all, I’m here to tell you that you have nothing to be ashamed of,” Aronowitz tells the girl. “Accidents can happen even to the most careful among us.”
Unfortunately, her response from there was exactly what a pregnant 16-year-old girl wants to hear, not what she needed to hear.
“It’s only logical that if teens are mature enough to become parents, they are mature enough to decide whether or not they want to give birth,” she writes. “Having access to abortion should be your right, regardless of your parents’ beliefs.”
HELLO-OOO! Teens are NOT mature enough to become parents! They’re physically capable of having sex…that’s it. That doesn’t make you mature, it makes you a living species.
This poor girl just found out her entire world is changing in one way or another and rather than seeking wise [counsel], she’s turning to a complete stranger online to tell her what to do.
How’s that for mature ladies and gentlemen? Give me a freaking break, Aronowitz.
She goes into a detailed history lesson about the reproductive health laws for minors and informs the young girl that she’ll need to first do some research.
“Your first step is knowing your state’s rules when it comes to parental consent (though there are ways to sidestep those rules depending on what state you’re in — more on that later). If you live in one of the handful of states in which a minor can get an abortion without parental involvement — and if you don’t want to tell your parents — you’re all set.”
So that’s it? Just send the girl on her way to destroy the human life that’s been woven inside of her body with zero regard to how she should even process this? How about some things to consider before making this very PERMANENT decision? Or even acknowledging that abortion is NOT the ONLY option?
“But if the law does require that your parents are involved,” she continues, “it’s time for some soul-searching about how you think they’ll react when confronted directly with their pregnant child’s desire to not be.”
This part makes me laugh. Aronowitz doesn’t actually recommend that the girl tells her parents she’s pregnant, just that she needs to think through how they’re going to respond. Now I’m no expert…but isn’t that why this girl came to your anonymous column in the first place? It’s pretty clear she’s thought about their opinion on the matter.
Aronowitz does offer assurance in that the young girl’s parents — despite their beliefs — may surprise her when their own daughter “needs access to abortion care,” essentially giving her hope that their opinion will change, not hers. And further reiterating that abortion is the only choice she has.
Finally, Aronowitz reveals the lengthy legal process that teens can go through in 36 states to bypass their parents’ consent for abortion.
“It involves a minor testifying before a judge and receiving court approval to access abortion care without telling their parents.”
She recommends meeting with someone at a local clinic the help start the process.
“Judicial bypasses take time — and abortions get more expensive, more complicated, and harder to access the later they happen — so the sooner you can start this process, the better,” she wrote. “And regardless of whether your state requires a bypass, you can contact your local abortion fund if you need help paying for it on your own.
“But even if you do decide never to tell your parents, I highly recommend talking to another adult about what you’re going through. Nearly one in four women will have an abortion by the age of 45, according to a 2017 analysis by researchers from the Guttmacher Institute. Some of these women might be other teens, and others may be your teachers, guidance counselors, and family friends.”
