Admittedly, I write a lot of fluff. While perky, light topics are generally all I care to delve into, occasionally I’m struck by a subject I can’t ignore.
This week, I came across an article about a woman who was Live Tweeting her abortion. Classy.
Angie Jackson is a blogger, like everyone these days. I attempted to read her bio but it was long and…I just didn’t care. Nutshell: She’s a former cult member turned atheist, activist and some other stuff. Seriously, a blog bio shouldn’t be more than a paragraph. If I wanted to waste my time reading self-important nonsense, I’d become a fan of Meghan McCain. But, I digress.
Anyway, Jackson provided detailed play-by-play of her abortion via Twitter and YouTube. As she explains, this was in an effort to educate women on the process and take the fear and mystery out. In her YouTube video, she stressed that this was not a publicity move.
Sorry, not buying it. Given the fact that abortion is such a tense issue, it would be shortsighted to assume that this would not garner a fair amount of attention. Additionally, I doubt that a woman would watch her video and say, “Wow! No biggie!” The fear and mystery generally surround the decision itself, rather than the procedure, which, in her case, was drug-induced rather than surgical. (I hope they don’t start allowing people to Tweet during surgery.)
I’m not discussing her choice to terminate a pregnancy. That’s just not a place I care to venture. I don’t need the hate-mail that would come with it. (No matter what side of that issue I fall on.) However, I’m disturbed by the incessant need to broadcast your business.
And Live Tweeting it? Gross. I do not need a minute-by-minute on the state of your vagina.
This is getting filed under my personal rules about social decorum. Not everything needs to be said simply because it’s covered by your First Amendment rights. Somewhere between the desire to enlighten and brazen voyeurism, there’s a hazy grey area where you Tweet about your abortion. But I think that despite the line being unclearly defined, it has still been crossed.
In a few years, Jackson may regret the decision to invite the world into her business. She’s defined herself as a public person by this one action. It’s inescapable. As it is, she’s already gotten a fair amount of hate mail and threats. There’s a reason why most people consider it a private, personal issue. Sometimes it’s for your own good.
