I recently read a posting over at Midwives Alliance of Pennsylvania that talks about Diane Goslin and what will become of her and midwifery in PA.
It’s a very interesting concept…the government controlling women and their needs/wants. One of the questions that has been brought up by the courts and commoners (ha!) is whether or not a woman has civil liberties and constitutional rights to birth with whomever she damn well pleases. Of course I say that it’s a resounding yes and a real no-brainer!
I left the following comment for the posting mentioned above:
”Namely, they wanted to know if a woman has a Constitutional right to birth her baby at home with whom she wants.” Yes! If not for every woman…then at least for those whose religion supports and often requires that a midwife be used over or rather than a physician and that the birth take place at home and not a medical facility.
Due to the Religious Freedom Restoration Act of 1993 the government is pretty much required to err on the side of religious freedom in all cases. This should guarantee birth freedom for women and their midwives.
Due to the Religious Freedom Protection Act of 2002 in Pennsylvania, women and their midwives have even more legal and constitutional support and protection. If the Act above fails, this one is even more stringently in support of the religious victim in many ways.
It is a matter that I’d like to see ACLU get involved with.
And I say it again…I’d really like to see the ACLU step it up already! Why this hasn’t been turned into a real religious or civil rights battle I don’t know, because that’s how we get everything else we want! I mean for G-d’s sake, if members of O Centro Espirita Benficiente Uniao do Vegetal (UDV) can get high on hoasca for religious purposes, then I had better be able to squat a baby out wherever and with whomever! I am not knocking the religious community mentioned here either — I support them and I am rather impressed by their efforts to keep their freedoms intact.
Keep in mind that hoasca is a scheduled one narcotic and in order for these church members (and anyone who comes to ritual) to take part of the hoasca tea, it must first be transported in LARGE quantities across International, Federal and State lines — that’s a HUGE felony for people outside this church, in case you didn’t know. I don’t want to transport illegal substances ostensibly scheduled as “worse than cocaine (it’s a schedule two drug)” across any line, breaking any trade agreement or federal law — I JUST want to birth my babies and educate them in a manner that I see right.
I have two final thoughts: 1) If you don’t want me feeling like I have no other choice than to birth unassisted, then let me have my midwife of whatever stripe, credential or non-credential that I choose and 2) Keep your laws off my body, birth, baby and my constitutionally guaranteed metaphysical/spiritual experiences.
