Those unhappy with the Dobbs decision have been loudly sounding the alarming speculation that more women will die as they seek unsafe, back-alley ways to terminate their pregnancies. But it’s just as likely that removing the constitutional protection for abortion will prompt more women with unwanted pregnancies to choose a life-affirming alternative and put the child up for adoption.
How many more? That’s hard to say. But based on the depressive effect that legalized abortion had on adoptions, it would be reasonable to expect the trends to reverse. Instead of only 1% of children born to never-married women being put up for adoption, as is the case presently, it might be more like 5% to 10%.
Certainly, there is plenty of demand to meet the supply, as American couples have resorted in recent times to pursuing international adoptions because there were not enough adoptable babies born in the United States.
For adoption, though, to be seen as a preferable choice for a woman whose pregnancy is unwanted, there has to be a good support system in place. That includes quality medical care, emotional counseling and financial assistance with pregnancy-related expenses.
Above all, adoption needs to be completely voluntary, so no woman feels coerced into giving up a child for adoption and is free to change her mind during the course of the pregnancy. That might be tough for the couple waiting to adopt, but preference needs to be given to the birth mother’s wishes, no matter her marital status or her financial circumstances.
It is not easy for a woman who has carried a baby to term to give that child up. There are emotional bonds that form, even while the child is in the womb. That has to be recognized and respected. But if a pregnant woman fully accepts that her baby would be better off raised by someone else, everything possible within the law should be done by state governments and private charities to make that choice feel like the right one to her.
