Abortion gets the most attention, but all areas of reproductive rights are a major battleground in the Christian Right's 'culture war' on modernity, Enlightenment, and liberty. Christian Right activists, politicians, and religious leaders seek to limit or criminalize abortion, contraception, emergency contraception, sex education, and other means by which people exercise control over their sexuality. It's not just a matter of privacy, but of personal autonomy and liberty in a secular society.
Thus while there is nothing about atheism per se which requires much concern with reproductive rights, it's a matter of great importance for all atheists, freethinkers, skeptics, humanists, and agnostics who recognize the need to draw a line against Christian Nationalism and in defense of Enlightenment, modernity, and secularism. This is not to say that all atheists are in complete agreement on these issues, because some atheists do have ethical objections to abortion.
Even if we ignore the faith-based attacks on sexual and reproductive rights, there are a number of ethical and political questions to consider. Is there a fundamental right to abortion? Is there a right to privacy that protects contraception and use of contraceptives? These questions and more need to be taken seriously by atheists, especially when it comes to voting in elections.
Contraception & Birth Control:
- Abortion & Contraception: What if They Really Were Private?
- What Do Religions Say About Birth Control & Contraception?
- How the Christian Right Undermines the Right to Contraception
- History and Development of Christian Perspectives on Birth Control
- Conscience Without Consequence: Christian Attacks on Emergency Contraception
Abortion Ethics & Law:
- Godless Views on the Legality and Morality of Abortion
- Do Abortion Opponents Believe What They Say?
- What Does the Bible Say About Abortion?
- Diverse Religious Traditions on the Morality of Abortion
- Abortion Rights & Privacy Rights in America
- Supreme Court Decision on Privacy & Abortion: Roe v. Wade
- Was Roe v Wade Correctly Decided?
- How the Christian Right Undermines the Right to Abortion
- Ethics of Abortion: Is it Moral or Immoral to Have an Abortion?
- When Does a Fetus Become a Human Person with Rights?
- Abortion Rights, Privacy & Sexual Autonomy
Books on Abortion:
- Wrath of Angels: The American Abortion War
- Why I Am An Abortion Doctor
- Targets of Hatred: Anti-Abortion Terrorism
- Roe v. Wade: The Abortion Rights Controversy in American History
- The Ethics of Abortion: Pro-Life vs. Pro-Choice
- The Choices We Made: Twenty-five Women and Men Speak Out
- The Angel of Ashland: Practicing Compassion and Tempting Fate
- Back Rooms: Voices from the Illegal Abortion Era
- Sacred Choices: The Right to Contraception and Abortion
