Martin Luther King and Abortion

A couple of days ago I came across an article in the Seattle Times, entitled "Black babies at twice the risk of whites, study indicates." April 4th is the anniversary of Martin Luther King's murder and I just can't believe that this was a part of his dream. The article notes:

"A college-educated black woman in the United States is more likely to lose her baby then a white woman with only high school eduction. an African-American woman who starts prenatal care in her first trimester is more likely to lose her baby than a white woman with late or no prenatal care. A black woman who does not smoke has worse birth outcomes than a white woman who smokes."

Why, asks the author? She concludes that the difference is not due to higher rates of poverty and chronic disease, that the real answer is stress, not just during pregnancy, but from a lifetime of being black.

Hold the phone! The article does not even mention the fact that the rate of abortion for black women is more than twice the rate for white women (55.5 versus 20.2, respectively). A pretty close correlation to the rate of preterm births and miscarriages. The American College of Gynecology (ACOG) completed a study over three years ago in conjunction with the March of Dimes which noted in the appendix, that induced abortion has an impact on preterm births and miscarriages.

How much more important is incidence of abortion than stress? How much of that stress is due to living with the abortion? Why is this nearly direct correlation ignored?

Remembering Dr. Martin Luther King, let us also remember his views on abortion:

"The Negro can not win...if he is willing to sell the future of his children for his personal and immediate comfort and safety"--Ebony, Vol. 41, No.3, January 1966, Page 63.

Let's not be afraid to see the real issues and the real facts that affect the lives of black women. And to my white counterparts, think of the future outcomes of your actions as you usher minority women into the doors of abortion clinics.