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Cristina Page
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How the Pro-Choice Movement Saved America: Freedom, Politics and the War on Sex Paperback – December 26, 2006

by Cristina Page (Author)
3.6 3.6 out of 5 stars 10 ratings
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A pithy polemic bolstered by solid research, intellectual heft, and firsthand reporting, this is a book poised to change the debate over reproductive rights in this country wholesale. As activist and writer Cristina Page shows, the gains made by birth-control advocates (historically) and pro-choice organizations (currently) have formed the bedrock of freedoms few Americans would choose to live without. Now, not only is the future of legal abortion far from guaranteed, in many parts of the country ready access to many forms of contraception is in jeopardy as well. And that development, Page argues, should have everyone, regardless of moral or political persuasion, deeply concerned. For these basic freedoms are not just for the freewheeling gals of "Sex and the City," but are central to the lives of working mothers and fathers from Phoenix to Duluth, churchgoers and nonbelievers alike. Page crystallizes the thoughts and attitudes of a generation of women and men whose voices are seldom heard in the political arena. How the Pro-Choice Movement Saved America is the first book to address the positive transformation our society has undergone because of our ability to plan when and if to have children. It also exposes the anti-choice movement's far-reaching-and dangerous-agenda. Fresh, bold, and stocked with counterintuitive arguments, this is a book bound to form the basis for heated conversations nationwide.
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  1. Print length
    256 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Publication date
    December 26, 2006
  4. Dimensions
    5.4 x 0.58 x 8 inches
  5. ISBN-10
    0465054900
  6. ISBN-13
    978-0465054909
  7. See all details
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Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Cristina Page is Vice President of the Institute for Reproductive Health Access of NARAL Pro-Choice New York. She lives with her husband and son in New York City.

Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Basic Books (December 26, 2006)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Paperback ‏ : ‎ 256 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0465054900
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0465054909
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 7.2 ounces
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 5.4 x 0.58 x 8 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    3.6 3.6 out of 5 stars 10 ratings

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Cristina Page

Cristina Page

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3.6 out of 5 stars
10 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

C. Luca
5.0 out of 5 stars Cristina Page is brilliant
Reviewed in the United States on February 10, 2010
Verified Purchase
This book is a detailed look at how the pro-life movement not only is anti-abortion, but anti-contraceptives, and against any lifestyle that includes sex for pleasure. This goes agaisnt how the majority of US citizens want to live their lives! I also saw Cristina Page speak in person, she is very articulate and this book is a must-read for anyone on either side of the issue, or even if you're on the fence.
7 people found this helpful
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Bryan Carey
3.0 out of 5 stars Reproductive Rights: Pro- Family or Anti- Family?
Reviewed in the United States on November 13, 2007
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How the Pro Choice Movement Saved America is a celebratory book of sorts, written by a woman who has been fighting for reproductive and family planning rights for much of her adult life. Cristina Page has been a leader in several different pro- choice organizations and she is a fervent believer not only in the importance of keeping abortion legal, but also in the many benefits that society has reaped since abortion was legalized in 1973.

Abortion is a passionate issue that divides many Americans. It's a delicate issue and there are so many "ifs", "ands", and "buts" that it is often difficult to take a divisive stand. Cristina Page, however, has taken a stand and hers isn't as radical as the book's title suggests. She feels that abortion, while certainly not a desirable procedure and something everyone should avoid, has had some positive benefits to society. Once abortion and contraception were legalized, women were empowered to take control of their lives. It has led to greater enrollment in college, greater financial security for the children, and a smaller child- bearing burden to bear. The fact that family planning is now a choice has led to a stronger family, for these and other reasons.

Cristina Page didn't write this book mainly as a defense of the pro- choice movement. What Page really intended with this book is to expose the more extreme elements in the pro- life movement and how they will resort to anything to validate their position. While pro- choice advocates rely on science and reason to support their views, pro- life adherents will use any tactic necessary to win support for their cause. This includes distorting the facts and manipulating data, presenting false and misleading information, and commissioning phony studies or surveys that are biased in favor of the pro- life side.

I can agree with much of what Page says in this book. One doesn't have to look very far or very hard to see the smokescreen tactics of pro- life organizations. However, before we begin demonizing pro- life political groups for misleading the public in their efforts to make abortion a crime, we also have to consider the fact that abortion, at present, is legal. Could it be that the pro- life organizations feel they have to stretch the truth a little bit if they have any hope of overturning a Supreme Court decision? If Roe vs. Wade is overturned and abortion is severely restricted or outlawed, isn't there a good chance the pro- choice organizations would resort to precisely the same tactics?

As for the writing and presentation of this book, it is okay at best. I like the fact that Page devoted so much time to gathering official research data because it helps persuade the reader. But the added notes and sources comprise about thirty percent of the book's pages. Take them away, and you have a book with only 168 pages: Not nearly enough to give a topic like this the justice it deserved. The presentation isn't the best either. It is basically a solid wall of words and statistics. I would have liked it better if it included some tables and/or graphic illustrations to drive its points home.

With such limited space, this book doesn't dive deeply enough into the abortion issue the way I would prefer. This fact is most glaring in the book's final chapter, which discusses what the United States would be like if Roe vs. Wade was overturned. It was a good idea to include some frank discussion on this important concern, but there are so many valid points that could have been made and weren't, I got frustrated reading it. For example, there is almost no discussion at all of the black market in abortions that would most certainly rise out of nowhere if Roe vs. Wade was removed from the legal code. And even more frightening is the government crackdown on illegal abortion that would most certainly follow. It would mean the end of most of our privacy rights as we know them today, yet this issue is barely touched in the book's closing chapter.

Overall, "How the Pro- Choice Movement Saved America" is a good book, but not quite the blockbusting piece of political non- fiction I was hoping for. It has many important and perfectly valid points to make and it backs itself with plenty of statistics and sources. It's good and worth a read, but it is really too short to make its way onto a list of the most important books on reproductive rights.
15 people found this helpful
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John C. Murphy
1.0 out of 5 stars Too Politically-Charged and Poorly Reasoned For My Taste
Reviewed in the United States on January 2, 2015
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I contacted the educational office of Planned Parenthood in Dallas and asked them to recommend "the one book" they thought did the best job of presenting the pro-choice position. The gentlemen noted he was just finishing this book by Cristina Page and recommended it. I have to say I was very disappointed for several reasons.

First, this is not a thoughtful academic presentation, but is politically charged rhetoric. In politics mutual respect and intellectual honesty are often immediate casualties and you can see this throughout. The first clue is her consistent name-calling. In the introduction she refers to the pro-choice movement as the "anti-birth control movement, the anti-sex movement, and indeed, the anti-modern family movement." She refers to Dr. Laura Schlessinger as a "pro-life radio bully." There are more examples throughout. Anyone who studies logic knows that name-calling is a red-flag for a poor argument.

This disdain also affects her rationale. She states "On one side, a movement that cleverly calls itself pro-life (suggesting that its opponents must be, needless to say, pro-death) says it opposes the right to abortion. On the other side, a movement that less cleverly calls itself pro-choice supports the right to abortion." She fails to elaborate on why the "pro-choice" label is somehow less clever. She bristles at the suggestion that to be against the "pro-life" position might imply being "pro-death," but is happily open and specific in her accusation that to be pro-life is to be "anti-choice," which she labels the pro-life movement throughout (as noted above).

In addition to the name-calling, she fails to accurately represent the main pro-life positions. She proclaims "Pro-life groups are not merely anti-abortion and anti-birth control. They are against sex and the sex lives the vast majority of Americans enjoy." I find this sort of blanket character assassination distasteful. The majority of the pro-life movement are not against birth control nor against sex. Although a minority are against birth-control, it is misleading to generalize and stereotype in such a manner. There is a minority of pro-choice advocates who support infanticide, the killing of newborns. It would be genuinely dishonest to act as though that opinion is consistent among pro-choice advocates. Her accusations above are equally dishonest.

Pro-choice advocate Michael Tooley voices what may be the central question in the abortion debate: "At what stage in the development of a human being does it cease to be permissible to destroy it?" My greatest disappointment is that she failed to address this issue in any form. The book focused solely on the rights of women and the hardship that would be caused by the removal of those rights, and failed to address in any way the possibility that the unborn may have rights also. This is what makes this subject so controversial. Her line of argumentation would be similar to an author justifying slavery by promoting the rights of plantation owners and detailing the detrimental effects the abolition of slavery would have on property owners, commodities industries and the local and national economies without saying a word as to whether or not slaves had a right to be free.

I enjoy and seek out opportunities to read books by people with opposing worldviews. I am very interested in the logic and the arguments. Unfortunately this book fails to offer a well-reasoned treatment of the subject. If you are looking for a book that is politically charged, with an us vs. them mentality, which isn't too concerned about letting the facts get in the way of the points the author wants to make, then this book delivers in spades. However, if you would like a more academic presentation, then I would suggest the book The Problem of Abortion, which is a collection of essays by many reputable pro-choice academics. If you are interested in a thoughtful pro-life presentation then I would suggest Defending Life by Professor Francis J. Beckwith.
4 people found this helpful
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Steven Moore
5.0 out of 5 stars more important than ever
Reviewed in the United States on May 5, 2022
May 2022: now that the Supreme Court has tipped its hand, this excellent book is more important than ever to learn what's really behind the anti-abortion movement.
One person found this helpful
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