--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Abortion is an act of self-defense." description: "\"Abortion is an act of self-defense.\" — Alice Walker" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c1b/alice-walker-347_abortion_abortion-is-an-act-of-self-defense-12566_1256658.png" --- # Abortion is an act of self-defense. ![“Abortion is an act of self-defense.” quote by Alice Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c1b/alice-walker-347_abortion_abortion-is-an-act-of-self-defense-12566_1256658.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c1b/alice-walker-347_abortion_abortion-is-an-act-of-self-defense-12566_1256658.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c1b/alice-walker-347_abortion_abortion-is-an-act-of-self-defense-12566_1256658.png) > “Abortion is an act of self-defense.” [Alice Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-walker/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. She frames abortion as a protective act for personal autonomy and safety. **In simple terms:** Abortion is presented as a self‑defensive choice. Key Takeaway Recognize reproductive rights as essential self‑care. Themes autonomy women's rights healthcare Mood thoughtful empathetic Type ethical political When to use this quote - personal health decisions - policy debates - ethical discussions Key Concepts self‑defense bodily integrity legal rights Questions to Reflect On - How does framing abortion as self‑defense influence public opinion? - What are the limits of personal autonomy? A Different Perspective The statement may not address complex moral and societal dimensions. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Abortion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/abortion/) [Abortion Act](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/abortion-act-3980726/) [Act Self](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/act-self-601311/) [Defense](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/defense/) [Self](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/self/) [Self defense](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/self-defense/) ## Related quotes > [Abortion is an act of desperation. It's an awful solution to a situation that God can work out for good through adoption.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-carlisle/abortion-is-an-act-of-desperation-it-s-an-awful-solution-to-a/) [Bob Carlisle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-carlisle/) > [In nature, creatures never ended the lives of others except to survive. To women, abortion was self-defense and preservation of the species. Abortion was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ana-castillo/in-nature-creatures-never-ended-the-lives-of-others-except-to-survive/) [Ana Castillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ana-castillo/) > [When you shoot someone who is fleeing, it's not self-defense. It's an execution.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/when-you-shoot-someone-who-is-fleeing-it-s-not-self-defense-it-s-an/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Israel has a couple of hundred nuclear weapons and also chemical and biological weapons. This stockpile is not only a threat in itself but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/israel-has-a-couple-of-hundred-nuclear-weapons-and-also-chemical-and/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [I do not believe in loving enemies; I have pretty hard work to love my friends. Neither do I believe in revenge. No man…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-green-ingersoll/i-do-not-believe-in-loving-enemies-i-have-pretty-hard-work-to-love-my/) [Robert Green Ingersoll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-green-ingersoll/) > [Self-defense is the clearest of all laws, and for this reason: lawyers didn't make it](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-william-jerrold/self-defense-is-the-clearest-of-all-laws-and-for-this-reason-lawyers/) [Douglas William Jerrold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-william-jerrold/) > [A good soldier is a blind, heartless, soulless, murderous machine. He is not a man. His is not a brute, for brutes kill only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-london/a-good-soldier-is-a-blind-heartless-soulless-murderous-machine-he-is/) [Jack London](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-london/) > [Abortion, for many women, is more than an experience of suffering beyond anything most men will ever know, it is an act of mercy,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-walker/abortion-for-many-women-is-more-than-an-experience-of-suffering/) [Alice Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-walker/) > [Given the genocidal belligerence of Iranian threats against Israel, it is hard to take issue with Israel's right to preemptive self-defense.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/conrad-black/given-the-genocidal-belligerence-of-iranian-threats-against-israel-it/) [Conrad Black](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/conrad-black/) > [Karate is not a game. It is not a sport. It is not even a system of self-defense. Karate is half physical exercise and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mas-oyama/karate-is-not-a-game-it-is-not-a-sport-it-is-not-even-a-system-of/) [Mas Oyama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mas-oyama/) > [Laws that forbid the carrying of arms disarm only those who are neither inclined nor determined to commit crimes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/laws-that-forbid-the-carrying-of-arms-disarm-only-those-who-are-2/) [Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/) > [You do not have the right to take another human's life, unless it's in strict self-defense.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-moore/you-do-not-have-the-right-to-take-another-human-s-life-unless-it-s-in/) [Michael Moore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-moore/) > [All art is an intensely vulnerable gesture, and it is made with no small amounts of risk, and fear. So, I have plenty of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-erikson/all-art-is-an-intensely-vulnerable-gesture-and-it-is-made-with-no/) [Steven Erikson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-erikson/) > [“Your self-defense becomes a self-defeat when you are doing it for selfish reasons! It's not about you and your pocket alone; let it be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/israelmore-ayivor/your-self-defense-becomes-a-self-defeat-when-you-are-doing-it-for/) [Israelmore Ayivor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/israelmore-ayivor/) > [Behind the deceptive words designed to entice people into supporting violence -- words like democracy, freedom, self-defense, national security -- there is the reality…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/behind-the-deceptive-words-designed-to-entice-people-into-supporting/) [Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/) ## More by Alice Walker > [I gave my archive to Emory University because there's a really dear friend who teaches there, Rudolph Byrd, and he's the editor.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-walker/i-gave-my-archive-to-emory-university-because-there-s-a-really-dear/) [Alice Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-walker/) > [Just be what it is that you are, and that is just fine. You don't have to be what you're not in any way.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-walker/just-be-what-it-is-that-you-are-and-that-is-just-fine-you-don-t-have/) [Alice Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-walker/) > [“Remember this-- say it & know it is true: Alice loves me Alice loves me and I am not blamed for this. ... she…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-walker/remember-this-say-it-know-it-is-true-alice-loves-me-alice-loves-me/) [Alice Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-walker/) > [“Only the sky above us do we hold in common.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-walker/only-the-sky-above-us-do-we-hold-in-common/) [Alice Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-walker/) > [“Why aren't you happy in America, if everyone there drives motorcars?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-walker/why-aren-t-you-happy-in-america-if-everyone-there-drives-motorcars/) [Alice Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-walker/) > [“She saw poetry where other writers merely saw failure to cope with English.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-walker/she-saw-poetry-where-other-writers-merely-saw-failure-to-cope-with/) [Alice Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-walker/) > [My mother had handed down respect for the possibilities...and the will to grasp them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-walker/my-mother-had-handed-down-respect-for-the-possibilities-and-the-will/) [Alice Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-walker/) > [Helped are those who are content to be themselves; they will never lack mystery in their lives and the joys of self-discovery will be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-walker/helped-are-those-who-are-content-to-be-themselves-they-will-never/) [Alice Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-walker/) > [“As others might prepare for an exam whose subject matter is unknown to them, so I must study, cram, for every conversation with my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-walker/as-others-might-prepare-for-an-exam-whose-subject-matter-is-unknown/) [Alice Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-walker/) > [The original crime of niggers and lesbians is that they prefer themselves.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-walker/the-original-crime-of-niggers-and-lesbians-is-that-they-prefer/) [Alice Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-walker/) > [My mother was very strong. Once, she picked up a coconut and smashed it against my father's head. It taught me about women defending…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-walker/my-mother-was-very-strong-once-she-picked-up-a-coconut-and-smashed-it/) [Alice Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-walker/) > [Many readers fail to realize this, but 'The Color Purple' is a theological text. It is about the reclamation of one's original God: the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-walker/many-readers-fail-to-realize-this-but-the-color-purple-is-a/) [Alice Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-walker/) > [The good news may be that Nature is phasing out the white man, but the bad news is that's who She thinks we all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-walker/the-good-news-may-be-that-nature-is-phasing-out-the-white-man-but-the/) [Alice Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-walker/) > [Humans - whatever billions we are - we don't have the control. We are considered expendable, basically.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-walker/humans-whatever-billions-we-are-we-don-t-have-the-control-we-are/) [Alice Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-walker/) > [All my life I had to fight. I had to fight my daddy. I had to fight my uncles. I had to fight my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-walker/all-my-life-i-had-to-fight-i-had-to-fight-my-daddy-i-had-to-fight-my/) [Alice Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-walker/) [Explore all 654 Alice Walker quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-walker/) ## More Abortion quotes > [“Conception is the beginning of human life. From the time that an ovum is fertilized a new life begins that is neither that of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/declaration-on-procured-abortion-congregation-for-the-doctrine-of-the-faith-1974/conception-is-the-beginning-of-human-life-from-the-time-that-an-ovum/) [Declaration on Procured Abortion Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith 1974](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/declaration-on-procured-abortion-congregation-for-the-doctrine-of-the-faith-1974/) > [Hey everyone, in case y'all didn't hear, I'm pregnat, and after discussing it w/ my family, I've decided to get an abortion, but I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/madison-badesheim/hey-everyone-in-case-y-all-didn-t-hear-i-m-pregnat-and-after/) [Madison Badesheim](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/madison-badesheim/) > [There was no mistake in us making abortion legal and available on demand. That was what we call progress. Just like it was no…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-ruffalo/there-was-no-mistake-in-us-making-abortion-legal-and-available-on/) [Mark Ruffalo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-ruffalo/) > [My favorite Founding Fathers, Christians like John Adams, were absolutely appalled by slavery, and did not own slaves. I think we're going to have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ann-coulter/my-favorite-founding-fathers-christians-like-john-adams-were/) [Ann Coulter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ann-coulter/) > [“David Bereit, Founder of Forty Days for Life, points out that any abortion clinic in America should have a sign in its window that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-price/david-bereit-founder-of-forty-days-for-life-points-out-that-any/) [John Price](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-price/) > [The Chinese describe themselves as political refugees. Many base that claim on China's strict population laws, which allow them to have only one child.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ed-koch/the-chinese-describe-themselves-as-political-refugees-many-base-that/) [Ed Koch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ed-koch/) > [I'm a pro-life candidate because I believe that science is proving us right every day.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carly-fiorina/i-m-a-pro-life-candidate-because-i-believe-that-science-is-proving-us/) [Carly Fiorina](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carly-fiorina/) > [I've noticed that everyone who is for abortion…has been born.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ronald-reagan/i-ve-noticed-that-everyone-who-is-for-abortion-has-been-born/) [Ronald Reagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ronald-reagan/) > [We talk a lot about how abortion is a medical procedure, but actually if you look at what the other side is doing, they're…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nancy-northup/we-talk-a-lot-about-how-abortion-is-a-medical-procedure-but-actually/) [Nancy Northup](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nancy-northup/) > [“The Vatican won't prosecute pedophile priests but I decide I'm not ready for motherhood and it's condemnation for me? These are the same people…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sonya-renee-taylor/the-vatican-won-t-prosecute-pedophile-priests-but-i-decide-i-m-not/) [Sonya Renee Taylor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sonya-renee-taylor/) > [Pro-lifers have long been castigated for bringing private values into the public square. But actually it is the pro-abortion position that is based on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nancy-pearcey/pro-lifers-have-long-been-castigated-for-bringing-private-values-into/) [Nancy Pearcey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nancy-pearcey/) > [I am 100 percent pro-life and have been my whole life. That means I am opposed to abortion at any stage of pregnancy, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/josh-hawley/i-am-100-percent-pro-life-and-have-been-my-whole-life-that-means-i-am/) [Josh Hawley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/josh-hawley/) > [Any woman should have the right to a safe and legal abortion.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/betty-ford/any-woman-should-have-the-right-to-a-safe-and-legal-abortion/) [Betty Ford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/betty-ford/) > [“For Republicans, life begins at conception but ends at birth.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-adam-snyder/for-republicans-life-begins-at-conception-but-ends-at-birth/) [J.Adam Snyder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-adam-snyder/) > [I think fundamentally, the real power behind the anti-choice movement in regard to abortion and the opposition to the rights of LGBT Americans is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barry-w-lynn/i-think-fundamentally-the-real-power-behind-the-anti-choice-movement/) [Barry W. Lynn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barry-w-lynn/) [Browse all 1,629 Abortion quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/abortion/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Abortion is an act of self-defense.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Alice Walker" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-walker/abortion-is-an-act-of-self-defense/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Abortion" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-walker/abortion-is-an-act-of-self-defense/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c1b/alice-walker-347_abortion_abortion-is-an-act-of-self-defense-12566_1256658.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c1b/alice-walker-347_abortion_abortion-is-an-act-of-self-defense-12566_1256658.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c1b/alice-walker-347_abortion_abortion-is-an-act-of-self-defense-12566_1256658.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Abortion is an act of self-defense.” — Alice Walker", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Alice Walker", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-walker/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Abortion is an act of self-defense.", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-walker/abortion-is-an-act-of-self-defense/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-walker/abortion-is-an-act-of-self-defense/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```