A major event that has been coming
to the eye of the American people in recent events is the treat of planned
parenthood no longer receiving federal funding. This has been a longstanding
battle over the half billion federal tax money that goes to Planned Parenthood,
the nations largest provider for abortions. This issue has had the two major
parties of our democracy, the republicans and the democrats, at opposing ends
of the spectrum.
The idea
and motive to defund Planned Parenthood is emerging from the republican party,
making the democrats the opposing party. The government has the possibility of
shutting down on October 1st if congress does not pass a bill that
keeps the government funded. Planned Parenthood could be taking a major hit. In
July Trump stated that Planned Parenthood should be defunded due to recent
revelations about the selling of organs based in this establishment. Meaning
that the organs and body parts of aborted babies were being sold. President
Trump strongly feels that this should not be funded by the government.
On the republican
side, they are looking to spend less government funds and eliminate abortions
being that the majority are pro life. The republican party has used logos by
showing how much money is devoted to Planned Parenthood annually, and using
pathos by using explicit explanations and content of abortions showing how gruesome
the process is, and ethos by showing that the selling of an unborn baby’s
organs is ethically wrong. On the democratic side, they are outraged as the
majority of democratic voters are pro-choice. They are using logos by
explaining that Planned Parenthood funds far more than just abortions alone.
They provide millions of women with birth control, gynecology health, and
mammograms, to name just a few. They are using pathos by bringing up situations
where a woman’s pregnancy is a result of abuse, including rape and incest.
Ethos is being used by also explaining how many women will no longer have
access to necessary health care.
The
outburst of this news may have been one of the factors that possibly prompted
the largest protest in history. The Women’s March was held on January 21, 2017.
More than 3 million women and men participated in this event, including 7
continents and more than 600 individual marches. The main rights being fought
for were women’s rights over their own bodies. Bringing an even further focus
on the issues being sought out among Planned Parenthood. It will be interesting
to see what comes of this heated deposition.
The debate surrounding federal funding of Planned Parenthood is a good issue for this project. Be careful of operating on the basis of premises that have been established according to an ideological bias. In your post, you seem to assert that Planned Parenthood is an organization that, because they provide such important services to so many women, deserves the full support of the federal government - a position decidedly at odds with a significant portion of the public. The idea that PP sells "unborn baby's organs" is in dispute, with the major "evidence" being a clandestine tape of organization officials who appear to be discussing prices, etc. As with other hidden tapes, it is often what is taken out of context which makes the biggest spectacle.
ReplyDeleteThe abortion fight continues to rage despite the Roe v Wade ruling from the early 1970's. Advances in medical technology have changed the dynamic of any argument involving the "viability" of the fetus. Increased scrutiny on organizations like PP have resulted in a new front being opened on this debate. It would seem like an easy thing to verify whether or not PP sells organs, or whether or not PP performs a great number of abortions - but the political force of this debate seems to make knowing such facts nearly impossible. That combination of myth and symbolism makes this an excellent choice - but potentially very broad.
Also, the Women's March from Jan 21 was not specifically organized around reproductive rights - though that would certainly be among the "women's rights" issues included. Interestingly, there was some controversy when pro-life women's groups claimed to have been rebuffed by organizers of the march - yet another controversy connected to this issue.
Good start here - but you need to make a decision about the specific direction for the rest of your project. Good stuff! Please let me know how I can help!
I responded a few weeks ago, however I can't find it now. Anyways, I find the competing narratives of myths and symbolism to be very interesting, I would like to tie that into the competition of a large organization such as the Women's March within the pro-life and pro-choice disagreements within that organization, and how the competing sides use methods of persuasion to sway others to their beliefs through myths, facts, and techniques.
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