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Music and a Woman’s Right to Choose
1973 was one hell of a year for rock music. Debut LPs appeared from then-unknowns Bruce Springsteen, Aerosmith, and Queen, while more established acts gave us Raw Power, The Dark Side of the Moon, and Houses of the Holy. It was the year that a short-lived primordial punk trio called Neon Boys split up and reformed under the now-hallowed name of Television, the same year a ramshackle Bowery hole in the wall called CBGB & OMFUG first opened its doors. Beyond the world of rock, however, something hugely pivotal was also issued that year, which would affect both the public and private consciousnesses of the United States immeasurably (its women especially), and continues to do so today. It was a decision issued in January by the US Supreme Court declaring that a woman’s right to terminate a pregnancy was protected by her right to privacy, which is one of the fundamental rights implicitly granted and protected by the US Constitution. This was the decision reached in the case of Roe v. Wade.
It wasn’t that the justices had warm, fuzzy feelings about abortion, or even that a person ought, on principle, to have control over one’s own body. They approached it as more of a clarification of the legal definition of “privacy,” of where the power of government ends and where personal privacy begins, and it has remained such a hot-button argument that even today, most people’s views remain exactly that—private. This goes doubly for those whose meal tickets depend on their general popularity, i.e. artists and entertainers. Most artists wouldn’t touch the fierily polarizing subject with a 10-foot pole, and those that do seem to do it with a direct correlation between their striven-for level of popularity and the forthrightness of their stance.
There aren’t many recorded examples of abortion rights in songs prior to Roe v. Wade. The second wave of the women’s movement did have its cultural wing, however, and from there we got the Chicago Women’s Liberation Rock Band and its East Coast parallel, the New Haven Women’s Liberation Rock Band. Together these comprised the agitprop (or “agit-rock,” as their liner notes proclaimed) arm of the Chicago and the New Haven Women’s Liberation Unions, and though they were absolutely not known for any semblance of expert rock musicianship, they can safely stake a claim on being the first real all-woman feminist rock bands.
Though unfortunately the lesser of two talents, it was the New Haven band that gave us “The Abortion Song”, and you’d be hard pressed to find a song more point-blank in its conviction: “We’re talkin’ about abortion, it’s against the law / But we know that it’s our right!” Ideological clarity was the distinct top priority for these bands, popularity being entirely beside the point if the message wasn’t clear. Only one album came from the Rock Bands, a combined LP called Mountain Moving Day in 1972, which was remixed, expanded (including two bonus tracks by Le Tigre), and re-released in 2005 on Rounder Records as Papa Don’t Lay That Shit on Me.
Even in the wake of Roe v. Wade, the remaining societal gag order continued to stamp the topic as generally unfit, either for polite conversation or performable music. One would think the burgeoning snot-faced ranks of punk would take up the challenge, yet despite even the handful of punk acts that included women, the topic still apparently failed to embolden—in the US, that is. Across the pond, the Sex Pistols’ profanity-ridden anthem “Bodies”, off their epochal ‘77 album Never Mind the Bollocks, Here’s the Sex Pistols, hoists the issue front and center, and, regardless of the actual politics of its writers, is a scathing, if somewhat ambiguous, indictment of the practice. Without knowledge of the backstory, listeners are pummeled with lyrics such as, “She just had an abortion / She was a case of insanity”, “She was a no one who killed her baby”, and “She was an animal / She was a bloody disgrace.”
Superficially, it would seem that some vestige of John Lydon’s (aka Johnny Rotten, the group’s main lyricist) cultural birthright as the child of working-class Irish Catholic immigrants survived his nihilistic rejection of all other establishment values. However, the brutal and powerfully catchy song is reportedly about an actual acquaintance of the band named Pauline, who had actually been institutionalized, and who would describe the alleged many abortions she’d had in detail to the band. The song and its harsh imagery are therefore based largely on sensational accounts provided by an unstable personality that the band apparently neither liked nor respected, and as recently as September 2009, Lydon insisted to the Yorkshire Evening Post that “the lyrics state both cases [for and against a women's right to choose],” and that it has been “badly misinterpreted.” At this point, Lydon’s personal politics are abundantly clarified by a history of statements such as those he made in 2000 on the TV show Politically Incorrect with Bill Maher: “If you realize you are pregnant and you don’t want it, that’s your choice. And that’s no government, no religious group, no one should get between the woman and her pregnancy or unwanted pregnancy. That is a decision of her own.” (He then turned to choice-hating Christian zealot/home furnishings saleslady/pin-up Kathy Ireland, and told her, “You’re the devil.”)
Not long after that came another English ditty of a more mainstream pub-rock variety, called “You Can’t Be Too Strong” by Graham Parker, on his lauded 1979 album Squeezing Out Sparks. It’s a song from the male perspective about a fleeting relationship with a woman which apparently led to an abortion, and though it’s somewhat ambiguous in its political stance, it’s inevitably a sad song and a negative characterization of the procedure. People against choice tend to like the song for that reason, even though it would fall flat as a tool for propaganda purposes if only factual accuracy were an important detail to that end. The song opens with the question, “Did they tear it out with talons of steel,” indicating straightaway the speaker’s limited understanding of typical abortion procedure, which involves neither tearing nor “talons.”
Lyrics like these, and like the relatively recent hip-hop song “Can I Live” by middling rapper/actor Nick Cannon (which, told from the fetus’ point of view, implores a pregnant woman not to “go through with this knife decision”), buy into and propagate myths and inaccuracies that drive people away from what is, in actuality, an innocuous procedure involving no knives or scalpels or any other cutting instrument. To terminate a pregnancy within the first nine weeks, a couple pills are all it takes, possibly in the comfort and privacy of one’s own home. A quicker and often more physically comfortable “surgical” abortion remains an option at any time (safest within the first 12 weeks but still doable later on, although it’s far harder to find willing providers past 12 weeks. This is how “waiting periods” are used as another tactic to effectively refuse a woman’s access to abortion), yet even with “surgical” abortion, there’s no incision, and the only anesthetic needed is lidocaine—the same stuff a dentist gives you before pulling a tooth.
Medical myths aside, there of course remain the religiously prescribed moral implications, which is where the issue really heats up. Any psychological trauma to result from an abortion is due entirely to the stresses created by social and religious stigma (with no inherent relationship to the procedure), after all, and who gets the ultimate say in what’s right and what’s wrong? Certainly not Madonna’s papa, as we learned so well in the ’80s. While not a rock song, the ’86 chart-topper “Papa Don’t Preach” dealt directly with the issue of an unwanted pregnancy and hit #1 on singles charts in eight different countries. Aside from the catchy tune and sexy singer, its success was aided by the ambiguity of its message, presenting the story in a pro-choice context that still results in a young lady “keeping [her] baby.” The anti-choice movement was understandably agog, as it finally gave religious conservatives an ideologically safe opportunity to ogle the chanteuse along with rest of the world, while heralding the song as anti-choice, which it was not.
The song’s protagonist chooses to sacrifice her free and youthful lifestyle to bring the pregnancy to term only after considering the advice of her friends towards abortion, never condemning the option nor a woman’s right to choose it. Be that as it may, women’s groups denounced the message as a glamorization of teen pregnancy and a detriment to the causes of promoting contraception and reducing the stigma of abortion. As for Madonna herself, though she is notoriously guarded in discussing her personal life, she is also actually a longtime supporter of a woman’s right to choose, and when questioned, does not deny having exercised her own right more than once.
Two years after “Papa Don’t Preach” and on the opposite end of the ’80s music spectrum, there came Slayer’s fourth LP, South of Heaven, in 1988, which included an apparently unflinching condemnation of abortion called “Silent Scream” (although for a band whose lyrics thrive on blood, murder, destruction, etc., it’s tough to make assumptions), and two years after that came quintessential feminist alt-folk-rocker Ani DiFranco’s self-titled debut, containing her compassionately pro-choice “Lost Woman Song.” DiFranco is nothing if not forthright about her politics, and is open about which of her songs are specifically autobiographical, “Lost Woman Song” being in that category. Slayer bassist/singer Tom Araya, on the other hand, is a practicing Catholic that also plays plenty of brashly anti-religion and anti-god songs. In interviews, Araya, who wrote “Silent Scream”, strikes clear distinctions between his beliefs and his lyrics, stating that Slayer songs are more about shock than anything really heartfelt. It therefore remains to be seen whether Araya actually disapproves of abortion to the extent that a line like “Death is fucking you insane” conveys any serious political sentiment.
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19 Comments
Very interesting article! What a coincidence that all of your examples of anti-choice songs are by male artists. Good thing we ladies have got Eddie Vedder to stick up for us!
Also, I find the illustration to be a bit odd. It seems like it would be more appropriate in an evangelical home-schooling textbook as an educational depiction of evil abortion-worshiping rock stars.
WHY NOT JUST BE A LITTLE RESPONSIBLE AND NOT GET PREGNANT
SO THIS MURDER WOULDN’T HAVE TO HAPPEN
We appreciate your passion, Abby, but there’s no need for such fatalism! No matter how entrenched the ideology seems nor how forgiven the acts of terror, tragedies such as the death of Dr. Tiller definitely don’t “have to” happen, and as soon as good folks like you and I start decrying the actions *and* motives, the sooner we can try to prevent psychos like Roeder from having guns. As to your first point—I only hope our elected officials are reading! We truly do need greater responsibility with our tax dollars, to stop wasting them on useless “abstinence only” programs and start not only providing and promoting actual contraception, but educating our youth about it, to prevent unwanted pregnancies. The issues are definitely linked, and you’re right to bring it up.
Jane:
I noticed that, too! Not enough space to discuss in the piece, but funny how often male artists feel comfortable criticizing women’s rights and choices, and how seldom they feel comfortable defending them. That’s the ol’ misogynist rock club for ya.
dear arby,
what if rape was how the woman got pregnant? would you blame the woman on what she wore?
thanks,
roby
That was a one-sided look at this subject. Abortion is a proceedure that harms women emotionally…That’s something music needs to explore. Abortion is a horrible proceedure…No matter your viewpoint, it’s not something worth celebrating like a sacred sacrament…
Jimi Hendrix cut a pro-choice song (from the foetus’ point of view!) before roe v wade. it’s called belly-button window and it’s on cry of love.
Tony, I am so grateful to have you and those male musicians looking out for my eemotional well-being!
Tony, attitudes like yours are the only thing that harms women emotionally. You create the stigma; the procedure has nothing to do with it, in fact lots of people are pretty dang glad and relieved that it’s available. It would be nice if music could explore that more often, too.
I am impressed and relieved that the author mentions riot grrl. His knowledge of abortion-related songs is more extensive than my own. However, there are some obvious omissions. First off is The Smiths’ “This Night Has Opened My Eyes.” While it is not specifically mentioned, such lines as “she could have been a poet / or, she could have been a fool / oh, you did a bad thing / and I’m not happy / and I’m not sad.” certainly suggest that abortion is the subject matter. There is also Morrissey’s solo somg, “Interesting Drug,” which I’ve long interpreted to be about “the pill.” A song that does mention abortion is Altered Images’ “Don’t Talk To Me About Love,” which seems full of regret (”Yesterday’s shattered, tomorrow don’t matter”). This would seem to be an anti-choice song that is at least sung by a woman.
roby;rape is less than 1 percent of the reason for the tens of millions of abortions performed.
how about a song about the life that never gets a chance to make a choice because its mother killed it before its first breath.
Great article. I always wondered what the Sex Pistols and Slayer were up to with those two songs; the article adds some much-needed perspective as to their motivations. It’s interesting that a lot of right-wing radio hosts use thrash metal as their bumper music. I wonder if any of them might have been listening to “Silent Scream” back in the 80s, and if it could have contributed to their anti-choice stance.
I think there’s a good track called Isobel on a Dido album about a woman who has to leave Ireland to get an abortion. Lyrics go: “Dear Isobel, I hope you’re well and what you’ve done is right/Oh it’s been such hell, and I wish you well, I hope you’re safe tonight” It takes a sympathetic tone and doesn’t judge.
BTW – that drawing is pretty funny but true. Men who write songs about abortions have never gone through one themselves and seem like they just do it for shock value…
While I’m glad the option is safe and available I’d like to point out that abortion is a horrible thing to go through; trust me when I say this. I’ve been parlay to one in my life, it’s no picnic. The odd thing in my case however, is that I’ll never know whether the would-be child was that of mine or another; my girlfriend, who I had been seeing for nearly six years, decided she needed a break and went on a road trip with a group of her male friends. Two months later she returns and lays the “good” news on me.
I wish I could lie and say I welcomed the news with open-arms, but the fact of the matter is like the majority of men my age (23) I broke down emotionally and cried like a bitch. My life seemed like it was over; my career, my education, and my social life were at the mercy of her and this child.
We debated whether or not we were going to go to term with it for a few days, when finally I caved in. Abortion was something she claimed she could never go through because of religious beliefs, I respected that just as I thought she’d respect my decision for a fraternity test; while she never said “No” to the idea of such a test she did try to guilt me out of it, but I never budged and demanded one; there wasn’t anyway I wasn’t going to ask for one after her spur of the moment trip with a male friend of hers that openly had a thing for her.
Anyway, to make a long story short (finally!);’ while I was working on saving money for the child her priority was buying a new car, when my parents asked us to move in rent free to save the baby she thought that as being demeaning, when I asked her to make an appointment to an OBGYN she said she couldn’t afford to take a day off work. It seemed like she was trying to fight me at every end, and as a result of this I decided I could no longer tolerate her temperament; while I was totally for manning up and taking care of my child I couldn’t force myself to stay with her, when I told her this she told me she didn’t believe in having a child “without” love and wanted to have an abortion (which I paid for).
I never forced her to make this decision, in fact at the clinic I told her not to go through with it but she told me to shut up. Anyway, she went through with the procedure only to tell me a week later that the reason she had the abortion was because at the beginning of this whole thing I acted like a child would ruin my life.
Anyway, the reason I’m sharing this here is because people to be aware that abortion affects men too. While at the time I was for either choice she made, I felt helpless because there was nothing I could do to make sure she was taking care of herself during the pregnancy. When I got into my “father mode” I became attached to the fetus and wanted to provide for it; I thought that attachment was just something that would die off with time but it’s been nearly two months and I feel like a complete failure as man.
With that said I know now that abortion isn’t an option I’d be alright with in the future, but with that said who am I to make that choice for all people? Abortion should be safe and legal… Just keep in mind it does fuck with you (men and women).
Thanks for listening!
Sorry for all the grammatical errors/typos… I’m not use to typing at 4am!
Thanks for sharing, Leroy. That’s a heart-wrenching story, and for what it’s worth, it sounds like you addressed the situation in the best way you could — with openness, respect, sensitivity and support. Abortion definitely has an effect on the men involved, as your story proves. It’s a tough story, but a heartening one, that also proves how men can play a helpful role in the decision-making process while also recognizing that when accidents happen, they happen to women’s bodies, and so the ultimate decision is (and should remain) theirs. Thanks again, Leroy, for your perspective.
HW
NOBODY GETS PREGNANT ON ACCIDENT. IT’S A DELIBERATE ACTION BETWEEN TWO PEOPLE. ITS CALLED IRRESPONSIBILTY. AS FAR AS A WOMANS CHOICE WHEN SHE GETS
PREGNANT THERE ARE THREE PEOPLE INVOLVED, LEROY IS A WIMP FOR LETTING SOMEONE KILL HIS CHILD!
OK, Arby…
So when a woman gets raped…she;s getting raped with her consent. I see. Thank you for clearing that up.
How long have you had electroshock therapy for?
SCOTT IN TAMPA
SCOTT IN TAMPA. LIKE I SAID ABOVE RAPE IS A SMALL MINUTE AMOUNT OF THE MILLIONS OF ABORTIONS PERFORMED OR SHOULD I SAY BABIES KILLED EACH YEAR. FACE IT WHEN A WOMAN IS PREGNANT SHES PREGNANT WITH HER CHILD AND I SEE NO JUSTIFICATION IN KILLING YOUR OWN CHILD. ABORTION IS MURDER NOT BIRTH CONTROL.