Sex Selection, Politics and U.S. Law

Posted by Pete Shanks May 31, 2012
Biopolitical Times

A cynical and manipulative attempt to make access to abortion harder failed today in the U.S. House of Representatives. The "Prenatal Non-Discrimination Act" (PRENDA) ostensibly banned sex-selective abortion; in practice, it was a purely political move intended to paint Democrats into a corner. Brought to a vote under a suspension of the rules, it required a supermajority (two-thirds) in favor and came fairly close but fell short, 246–168.

RH Reality Check has been following this issue closely. They recently published several important articles, including Sex-selective Abortion Bans: A Disingenuous New Strategy to Limit Women's Access to Abortion, by Sneha Barot, and "PRENDA the Pretenda:" H.R. 3541 Is An Attack on Asian American Women, and We Know It, by Miriam Yeung.

Another, which focuses on the underlying issues, is:

Son Preference and Sex Selection in America: Why It Persists and How We Can Change It, by Sujatha Jesudason and Anat Shenker-Osorio

This was also posted at The Atlantic and Alternet, and is strongly recommended.

Previously on Biopolitical Times: