--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Young women need to know that abortion…" description: "\"Young women need to know that abortion rights and abortion access are not presents bestowed or retracted by powerful men (or women) - Presidents, Supre..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/351/katha-pollitt-16599_abortion_young-women-need-to-know-that-abortion-r_1565648.png" --- # Young women need to know that abortion rights and abortion… ![“Young women need to know that abortion rights and abortion access are not presents bestowed or retracted by powerful men (or women) - Presidents, Supreme Court justices, legislators, lobbyists - but freedoms won, as freedom always is, by people struggling on their own behalf.” quote by Katha Pollitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/351/katha-pollitt-16599_abortion_young-women-need-to-know-that-abortion-r_1565648.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/351/katha-pollitt-16599_abortion_young-women-need-to-know-that-abortion-r_1565648.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/351/katha-pollitt-16599_abortion_young-women-need-to-know-that-abortion-r_1565648.png) > “Young women need to know that abortion rights and abortion access are not presents bestowed or retracted by powerful men (or women) - Presidents, Supreme Court justices, legislators, lobbyists - but freedoms won, as freedom always is, by people struggling on their own behalf.” [Katha Pollitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katha-pollitt/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Abortion rights are not gifts from authorities but freedoms earned by individuals fighting for themselves. **In simple terms:** Rights are earned, not given. Key Takeaway Support autonomy and grassroots activism. Themes reproductive rights freedom political power gender equality Mood determined empowering Type activist political When to use this quote - activist rallies - legislative hearings - community organizing Key Concepts civil liberties grassroots activism human rights Questions to Reflect On - How can individuals protect hard‑won rights? - What role should institutions play? A Different Perspective Opposition can stall progress and threaten gains. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Abortion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/abortion/) [Abortion Access](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/abortion-access-1370272/) [Abortion rights](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/abortion-rights/) [Access](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/access/) [Behalf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/behalf/) [Birth control](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/birth-control/) [Choices](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/choices/) [Court](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/court/) [Court justice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/court-justice/) [Freedom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/freedom/) [Freedoms](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/freedoms/) [Justice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/justice/) [Knows](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/knows/) [Legislators](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/legislators/) [Lobbyists](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lobbyists/) [Lobbyists Freedoms](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lobbyists-freedoms-5882343/) [Men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men/) [Needs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/needs/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [People Struggling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people-struggling/) [Powerful](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/powerful/) [Powerful man](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/powerful-man/) [President](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/president/) [Pro choice abortion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/pro-choice-abortion/) [Rights](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rights/) [Rights Abortion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rights-abortion-5882342/) [Struggle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/struggle/) [Supreme](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/supreme/) [Supreme court](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/supreme-court/) [Supreme court justice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/supreme-court-justice/) [Young](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/young/) [Young women](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/young-women/) ## Related quotes > [Because of restrictions on abortion access in their own state, many women in neighboring states are forced to travel hundreds of miles and cross…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-quigley/because-of-restrictions-on-abortion-access-in-their-own-state-many/) [Mike Quigley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-quigley/) > [While I am passionately committed to protecting abortion access, I do not view it as a stand-alone issue.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leana-s-wen/while-i-am-passionately-committed-to-protecting-abortion-access-i-do/) [Leana S. Wen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leana-s-wen/) > [I believed we could expand support for Planned Parenthood - and ultimately for abortion access - by finding common ground with the large majority…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leana-s-wen/i-believed-we-could-expand-support-for-planned-parenthood-and/) [Leana S. Wen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leana-s-wen/) > [I will vote NO on any effort to expand abortion access in America.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/byron-donalds/i-will-vote-no-on-any-effort-to-expand-abortion-access-in-america/) [Byron Donalds](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/byron-donalds/) > [Pro-choice and pro-life activists live in different worlds, and the scope of their lives, as both adults and children, fortifies them in their belief…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kristin-luker/pro-choice-and-pro-life-activists-live-in-different-worlds-and-the/) [Kristin Luker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kristin-luker/) > [One method of destroying a concept is by diluting its meaning. Observe that by ascribing rights to the unborn, i.e., the nonliving, the anti-abortionists…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ayn-rand/one-method-of-destroying-a-concept-is-by-diluting-its-meaning-observe/) [Ayn Rand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ayn-rand/) > [I used to be pro-choice."..."I was once pro-choice and the thing that changed my mind was, I read my husband's biology books, medical books,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathy-ireland/i-used-to-be-pro-choice-i-was-once-pro-choice-and-the-thing-that/) [Kathy Ireland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathy-ireland/) > [Whether it is gun control lobby, health care lobby, or abortion, pro-choice lobby, whatever it is, people are always trying to say that it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-bremmer/whether-it-is-gun-control-lobby-health-care-lobby-or-abortion-pro/) [Ian Bremmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-bremmer/) > [How do we persuade a woman not to have an abortion? As always, we must persuade her with LOVE, and we remind ourselves that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mother-teresa/how-do-we-persuade-a-woman-not-to-have-an-abortion-as-always-we-must/) [Mother Teresa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mother-teresa/) > [I cannot understand antiabortion arguments that center on the sanctity of life. As a species, we’ve fairly comprehensively demonstrated that we don’t believe in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caitlin-moran/i-cannot-understand-antiabortion-arguments-that-center-on-the/) [Caitlin Moran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caitlin-moran/) > [Love means to be willing to give until it hurts.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mother-teresa/love-means-to-be-willing-to-give-until-it-hurts/) [Mother Teresa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mother-teresa/) > [What about the rest of life? Respect for the sanctity of life, if you believe that it begins at conception, cannot end at birth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-friedman/what-about-the-rest-of-life-respect-for-the-sanctity-of-life-if-you/) [Thomas Friedman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-friedman/) > [Nature herself is a mass murderer, making casual, cruel experiments and condemning 10,000 to die so that one more fit will live and thrive.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/camille-paglia/nature-herself-is-a-mass-murderer-making-casual-cruel-experiments-and/) [Camille Paglia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/camille-paglia/) > [No woman wants an abortion as she wants an ice cream cone or a Porsche. She wants an abortion as an animal caught in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederica-mathewes-green/no-woman-wants-an-abortion-as-she-wants-an-ice-cream-cone-or-a/) [Frederica Mathewes-Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederica-mathewes-green/) > [“the left had been finessing labels for years: racial preferences to affirmative action to diversity; abortion rights to pro-choice to reproductive rights; global warming…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-cashill/the-left-had-been-finessing-labels-for-years-racial-preferences-to/) [Jack Cashill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-cashill/) ## More by Katha Pollitt > [“I should say that it was only for me that Marxism seemed over. Surely, I would tell G. at least once a week, it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katha-pollitt/i-should-say-that-it-was-only-for-me-that-marxism-seemed-over-surely/) [Katha Pollitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katha-pollitt/) > [One of the very important ideas of feminism for me has always been women helping and supporting each other.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katha-pollitt/one-of-the-very-important-ideas-of-feminism-for-me-has-always-been/) [Katha Pollitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katha-pollitt/) > [funny how ready people are to believe that counseling, which even when voluntary takes years to modify garden-variety neuroses, can work wonders in months…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katha-pollitt/funny-how-ready-people-are-to-believe-that-counseling-which-even-when/) [Katha Pollitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katha-pollitt/) > [Misogyny runs deeper than religion.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katha-pollitt/misogyny-runs-deeper-than-religion/) [Katha Pollitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katha-pollitt/) > [Why must the woman apologize for not having a baby just because she happened to get pregnant? It's as if we think motherhood is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katha-pollitt/why-must-the-woman-apologize-for-not-having-a-baby-just-because-she/) [Katha Pollitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katha-pollitt/) > [“Maybe I’m not cut out for monogamy,” G. had said to me early on. “Maybe I should just live in a room by myself…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katha-pollitt/maybe-i-m-not-cut-out-for-monogamy-g-had-said-to-me-early-on-maybe-i/) [Katha Pollitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katha-pollitt/) > [For many people, feminism is one of those words of which, as St. Augustine said about time, they know the meaning as long as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katha-pollitt/for-many-people-feminism-is-one-of-those-words-of-which-as-st/) [Katha Pollitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katha-pollitt/) > [When it comes to ideas - and religions are, among other things, ideas - there is no right not to be offended. ... In…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katha-pollitt/when-it-comes-to-ideas-and-religions-are-among-other-things-ideas/) [Katha Pollitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katha-pollitt/) > [In a better world, science teachers would teach creationism along with evolution as an exercise in critical thinking.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katha-pollitt/in-a-better-world-science-teachers-would-teach-creationism-along-with/) [Katha Pollitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katha-pollitt/) > [We need to say that women have sex, have abortions, are at peace with the decision and move on with their lives. We need…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katha-pollitt/we-need-to-say-that-women-have-sex-have-abortions-are-at-peace-with/) [Katha Pollitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katha-pollitt/) > [“I’m a writer; I can float for hours on a word like “amethyst” or “broom” or the way so many words sound like what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katha-pollitt/i-m-a-writer-i-can-float-for-hours-on-a-word-like-amethyst-or-broom/) [Katha Pollitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katha-pollitt/) > [A feminist is a person who answers 'yes' to the question 'Are women human?' Feminism is not about whether women are better than, worse…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katha-pollitt/a-feminist-is-a-person-who-answers-yes-to-the-question-are-women/) [Katha Pollitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katha-pollitt/) > [If you run into trouble doing what's expected, people sympathize with you, while if you try something else and flop everyone says, You see?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katha-pollitt/if-you-run-into-trouble-doing-what-s-expected-people-sympathize-with/) [Katha Pollitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katha-pollitt/) > [ When you consider that God could have commanded anything he wanted--anything!--the Ten \[Commandments\] have got to rank as one of the great missed moral… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katha-pollitt/when-you-consider-that-god-could-have-commanded-anything-he-wanted/) [Katha Pollitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katha-pollitt/) > [While woman sheds the Blood of Life each moon at menstruation, man can only shed the blood of death through warfare and killing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katha-pollitt/while-woman-sheds-the-blood-of-life-each-moon-at-menstruation-man-can/) [Katha Pollitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katha-pollitt/) [Explore all 39 Katha Pollitt quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katha-pollitt/) ## 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": "Young women need to know that abortion rights and abortion access are not presents bestowed or retracted by powerful men (or women) - Presidents, Supreme Court justices, legislators, lobbyists - but freedoms won, as freedom always is, by people struggling on their own behalf.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Katha Pollitt" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katha-pollitt/young-women-need-to-know-that-abortion-rights-and-abortion-access-are/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Abortion" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katha-pollitt/young-women-need-to-know-that-abortion-rights-and-abortion-access-are/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/351/katha-pollitt-16599_abortion_young-women-need-to-know-that-abortion-r_1565648.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/351/katha-pollitt-16599_abortion_young-women-need-to-know-that-abortion-r_1565648.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/351/katha-pollitt-16599_abortion_young-women-need-to-know-that-abortion-r_1565648.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Young women need to know that abortion rights and abortion access are not presents bestowed or retracted by…” — Katha Pollitt", "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": "Katha Pollitt", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katha-pollitt/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Young women need to know that...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katha-pollitt/young-women-need-to-know-that-abortion-rights-and-abortion-access-are/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katha-pollitt/young-women-need-to-know-that-abortion-rights-and-abortion-access-are/#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 } } ] } ```