Abortion rights author sparks criticism at book presentation
Lindsay Lorenz
Issue date: 2/7/07 Section: News
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A handful of anti-abortion audience members spoke out against Mary Ann Sorrentino's book that recalls the generation of Roe vs. Wade in hopes of re-affirming a women's right to choose.
"How many of you know someone that has had an abortion?" Sorrentino asked the audience. Almost every hand was raised. She continued, "How many of you know someone that had an abortion before it was legal?" Most hands went down.
Sorrentino, who graduated college in the 1960s, described the battle women of her generation faced in gaining and keeping their reproductive rights.
She brought to light memories of women hemorrhaging in dorm rooms, abortionists wanting sexual paychecks on top of the procedural fee, and driving women to abortion clinics in the middle of the night. There were stories of women disappearing for nine months, or taking "mysterious trips to live with Aunt K. in San Francisco."
Sorrentino said the women of her generation clashed continually with the government over the legalities of abortion.
Raised Catholic, Sorrentino, who has since been excommunicated, had a change of perspective one semester in college.
"My roommate got pregnant. I was not a pro-choice person," Sorrentino said. "I understood I loved this woman more than I hated the issue."
Some anti-abortion advocates in the audience disagreed.
Communications studies professor Kristine Cabral was one of them. She criticized Sorrentino for denying audience members who disagreed with her a chance to finish their statements.
"I was interested in the potential debate that would ensue," she said. "I don't think it was a healthy dialogue. If we're going to get anywhere with this debate it begins with healthy dialogue. This movement has become too polite, it's not polite."
At one point during her speech Sorrentino told the audience "this movement [the abortion debate] has become too polite. It's not polite. This is war!"
