3 reasons cited why abortion shouldn't be considered part of women's health care

A life size replica of a foetus at 20 weeks is held by Bernadette Smyth, director of the Precious Life organisation in Belfast, Northern Ireland, in this Sept. 27, 2012 file photo.Reuters

Christian preacher and author J. Lee Grady is indignant that abortion service provider Planned Parenthood has been calling the services it provides as women's health care, saying abortion is far from that.

The anti-abortion group Center for Medical Progress has released at least five undercover videos showing Planned Parenthood officials talking about the sale of foetal parts. The company has denied any wrongdoing, alleging that the sickening videos were heavily edited.

However, many lawmakers and state officials appear unconvinced by the denials and have vowed to cut off funding to the organisation. At least three states have already done so.

"These videos nauseated me when I realised how callous our nation has become about human life. I felt even sicker when President (Barack) Obama made it clear he would stand behind Planned Parenthood—and veto any effort to defund it—because it provides 'health care for women,'" Grady wrote in an opinion piece for Charisma News.

Abortion might be convenient for some women, he said, especially since it has been legal in America since 1973. However, he stressed that "no health care provider can prove it is healthy to have an unborn child ripped or sucked out of a woman's uterus before it is viable."

He cited three reasons why abortion should not be considered an aspect of healthcare.

The first reason is that the procedure harms women not only physically, but emotionally as well. According to research conducted by Britain's Royal College of Psychiatrists, women who have abortions become much more likely to develop cervical cancer, sterility, nervous disorders, sleep disturbances, eating disorders, suicidal thoughts, and post-traumatic stress disorder, Grady said.

They also face higher rates of anxiety, depression, and become heavier alcohol and marijuana users.

The second reason is that abortion is sexist, Grady said. "It has always amazed me that women have campaigned the loudest for abortion rights, yet the majority of abortionists are men who profit off of this horrific procedure," he said. "It is also a fact that many women, including many pregnant teenage girls, are forced by their fathers or sex partners to have unwanted abortions—resulting in increased trauma for the mothers. Why are feminists not outraged by this?"

The third reason, Grady said, is that abortion is racist, even though only a few Americans are willing to face this fact.

"Abortion kills minority children at more than three times the rate of white children. Today, abortion is the leading cause of death for African-Americans, more than all other causes combined, including AIDS, violent crimes, accidents, cancer and heart disease," he said.

It baffles Grady that the country's first African-American president does not appear scandalised by Planned Parenthood's activities and abortion in general, and that a mostly white male Congress is the one talking about "women's health" when the nation is clearly guilty of "government-funded genocide."