Mesa Legend - ARCHIVES - Vol. 39, Issue 6


Volume 39, Issue 6. Today is .

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Volume 39, Issue 6
November 13, 2001

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What about baby?

In response to Thomas Hampton’s proposal for "right of refusal" of parental obligations for men, I say men already do have a choice.

Men have a choice to discuss the possibility of pregnancy with their partner and find out what choices she would make if this "problem" arose.

In many cases, women alone must carry the choice and responsibility of a child, so shouldn’t men also be responsible to raise these issues before engaging in sexual intercourse?

Furthermore, if a woman chooses not to undergo an abortion, doesn’t her child have the right to an economically stable household in which both parents contribute?

Just as men cannot tell women what choices to make with their bodies, women cannot tell men what choices to make with theirs.

Men can make the choice to be sexually active and they can make the choice to use a form of contraception. In turn, they make the choice to take on the potential responsibility of a child.

Kate Zinke
Political Science