Abstract
Despite the longevity of the debate over abortion policy in the United States, the recent shift in administration and the insurgence of political polarization suggests that Her Body, Our Laws: On the Front Lines of the Abortion War, from El Salvador to Oklahoma is indeed timely and relevant. Within this book, Michelle Oberman dissects the current stereotypes of prolife and prochoice by presenting the values and lives of those on “both sides” of the abortion debate, allowing her to assess the future trajectory of abortion policy in the United States. This holistic assessment of comparative policy from abortion-hostile El Salvador and Oklahoma provides readers with a solid foundation for assessing the real intent of abortion policy. This book is not meant to be a prochoice manifesto but rather a rational presentation of the values and impacts of abortion policies. Oberman’s background as a lawyer, academic, and investigator of maternal infanticide informs her ability to present highly charged political issues with a compassionate, rational, and inherently feminist lens.
Traveling to both El Salvador and Oklahoma, Oberman qualitatively investigates how individuals, doctors, lawyers, activists, and policy makers view abortion policy. Interviews with prolife individuals allow the reader a glimpse into their values and motivations. Further, by assessing the impacts of a full-stop abortion ban in El Salvador alongside the abortion-hostile policies in Oklahoma, Oberman paints a mental picture of what might happen if the United States were to overturn Roe v. Wade. Discovering that total abortion bans do not lower abortion rates in other countries, nor do they stop abortion from happening, Oberman highlights the disconnect between prolife values and stricter abortion laws. Conversely, Oberman finds that a desire to protect life through more stringent abortion laws in both Oklahoma and El Salvador further marginalizes poor women and particularly women of color. Despite the comprehensive review of abortion policy outcomes, Oberman ultimately uses the final few sentences of the book to unravel the more profound thesis of the book that the fight over abortion laws is a mere distraction from patriarchal power and oppression. This thesis urges readers to use energy and alliances more efficiently by addressing the emotional, social, and economic costs of motherhood.
The main strength of this book is the use of simple words to tell profound stories. A simple sentence invites readers to expand on the stories presented, provoking critical thought on the implicit and explicit influences abortion policy has on micro-, mezzo-, and macrolevels. Utilizing international and domestic case studies, interviews, and media, she intertwines threads of gender-based violence, poverty, maternal mental health, privilege, and power to demonstrate the impacts of abortion policies on individual women. A further strength of the book is Oberman’s transparency concerning her own biases and political positions, which provokes the reader’s discomfort. Oberman’s personal lessons teach us how to engage and collaborate on any sharply polarized subject. Her active listening during her exploration shows us that through making human connection and avoiding dehumanizing reductions, we can communicate more productively and collaboratively.
Oberman goads readers to get out of their social isolation zones and meet people from “the other side” to dismantle black and white walls between us for more effective social change. Moreover, the use of storytelling within this comparative policy analysis delivers a palatable approach for any level of reader to understand the past, current, and potential future impacts of abortion policies. Her Body, Our Laws accomplishes its goal of providing a critical analysis of the mission of abortion policies. By scrutinizing the disconnection of policy values from policy outcomes and the way women are disproportionately affected by poverty, the costs of motherhood, and abortion access, Oberman constructs a genuinely feminist analysis of abortion policies. Presenting this analysis beseeches readers of all inclinations to act more concretely and collaboratively toward providing women with equity to circumvent paternalistic arguments on abortion. I would recommend anyone wishing to engage in abortion discourse to read this book, as it integrates compassion and objectivity with facts to arm us with a solid understanding of abortion policy in the United States. In the end, Oberman highlights privilege, the disconnection of critical actors in the abortion debate from those affected, and how we may mobilize more effectively for change.
