this is one area that most pro choice advocates often dont talk about, quite often when you are pro choice, the first thing you will talk about is women's rights.
but, being either pro choice or pro life isn't all about just women's rights, no, it goes much further than that. If you want to advocate for women's rights then egalitarianism and feminism are two paths you really should consider following.
"After adjustments for inflation, the minimum wage today is $2 less an hour than it was in 1968. [1. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/06/20/10-minimum-wage_n_3474024.html] However, a study by Restaurant Opportunities Centers United revealed that by simply raising the federal minimum wage from the current $7.25 to $10.00 an hour, it would lift 58% of the working poor out of poverty. [2. ibid] There are millions of Americans stuck in an inescapable life of poverty- not because of laziness, but because their hard work at lagging minimum wages are insufficient for basic needs, such as housing. According to the Low Income Housing Coalition, the best case scenario for minimum wage workers can be found in Arkansas and West Virginia where one would only need to work 63 hours a week at minimum wage in order to rent a two bedroom apartment at fair market value. Live in New York? You’re looking at working 136 hours a week in order to pay just for housing. My home state of Maine? That’s 81 hours a week. [3. http://graphics8.nytimes.com/images/2012/05/30/opinion/5302012wage/5302012wage-jumbo.jpg]"
(http://www.patheos.com/blogs/formerlyfundie/pro-life-or-pro-birth/)
to be a true advocate, is to be an advocate for the lifting up of people out of poverty, we must work together to establish a minimum wage that will lift people out of poverty. You do not have to be on benefits to be in poverty, you will often be in low paid jobs with little pay and be in poverty, especially with all the price rises in gas, electric, food, rent, council tax, water rates, etc. etc.
just a simple low rise in any or all of those factors can push people on low pay in to poverty and spiraling debt, of which many never get out of. this is when depression and suicide rates can increase.
"Low pay continues to be a feature of employment throughout Europe, with around one in seven employees in the EU estimated to have a low wage - though definitions vary considerably. Furthermore, there has been increasing attention in recent years to the phenomenon of the 'working poor'. This EIRO comparative study looks at the extent of low-paid employment and working poverty across the EU and Norway, highlighting the different definitions used, and examines the factors that lead to low pay. It then sets the issue in its industrial relations context, examining the role of minimum pay systems, set by law or collective agreement, and of trade union bargaining strength, in influencing the extent of low pay.
In recent years, a debate has intensified across Europe over the issues of 'low-wage workers' and the 'working poor'. There has been considerable change and reform in European labour markets since the beginning of the 1980s, during which period the distribution of wages is widely regarded as having become more unequal. This is seen by some commentators as a result of: a weakening of workers' bargaining power under the pressure of unemployment; institutional change; and changes in the composition of the labour force. This increase in earnings inequality raises concerns about the consequences for the lives of workers located at the lower end of the wage distribution, with a growing proportion of workers receiving a wage so low as to harm their ability to maintain decent living standards. The response from some quarters is to call for the improvement or introduction of mechanisms to prevent excessively low pay, such as 'wage floors' of some kind." (http://www.eurofound.europa.eu/observatories/eurwork/comparative-information/low-wage-workers-and-the-working-poor)
truthfully, we may never be able to abolish poverty forever, but with simple changes we could at least make a difference to the poor of the world.
You cannot advocate, support, or passively tolerate economic policies which oppress the poor, minorities, or any other marginalized group.
blimey, now we are really getting started here, if we advocate, support, or even passively tolerate any policy that could even oppress any marginalized group, the poor, or minorities, then we need to get our priorities in order!
"All throughout scripture, we are warned about this and in fact, in Amos 5, Isaiah 1, and other prophets, God makes it quite clear that our religious activity is offensive to him if we are failing to defend the poor and needy. Job wanted it on the record that he had never oppressed a poor person. Jesus warned that the judgement of the nations would be a judgement based upon how they treated the poor and vulnerable. And when the disciples sent Paul out? Their last words were “remember the poor” (Gal 2:9-10)
Being in favor of life, must mean being in favor of the poor and oppressed." (http://www.patheos.com/blogs/formerlyfundie/pro-life-or-pro-birth/)
"he available statistics on the number of low-wage workers across the EU and Norway (both in absolute numbers and as a percentage of employees) show that low pay in is relatively common, although its extent varies between countries, as well as depending on the definition used. Table 1 below sets out the proportion of all employees who are low-paid according to the definitions commonly used in each country, providing data for the most recent available year."
(http://www.eurofound.europa.eu/observatories/eurwork/comparative-information/low-wage-workers-and-the-working-poor)
You cannot oppose gender equality
This is where pro life and feminism actually agrees on something!
"Being in favor of life, means we equally value the life of both genders. In 2013, we should seriously be ashamed that women still earn approximately 73% of what men earn for the same work, and that places like Texas just declined to become the 43rd state to pass a law against gender based wage discrimination. But, it gets more tough than that: as scripture teaches, there is no longer “male or female, slave nor free”, and as a result, we need to demand an end to gender based discrimination in our churches as well." (http://www.patheos.com/blogs/formerlyfundie/pro-life-or-pro-birth/)
feminism
ˈfɛmɪnɪz(ə)m/
noun
- the advocacy of women's rights on the ground of the equality of the sexes.
this is from google-search, here you can see that pro life can go hand in hand with feminism, to some degree.
"If we really value life, we need to actively oppose gender based discrimination everywhere we find it, even if that’s a little too close to home for our comfort." (http://www.patheos.com/blogs/formerlyfundie/pro-life-or-pro-birth/)
I will look at the following points in another blog, for now.
You cannot hold anti-immigrant sentiments or support oppressive immigration policies
You cannot oppose healthcare for all
You cannot use dehumanizing language
You cannot support the death penalty
You cannot support, advocate for, or participate in war
(http://www.patheos.com/blogs/formerlyfundie/pro-life-or-pro-birth/)
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