Support for Family Planning and Abortion
Most members of the millennial generation (those between 18 and 29) believe abortion should be legal in all or most cases – as do most Americans between 30 and 65. (In a June 10th article in the Salt Lake Tribune, Most young Americans back same-sex marriage, abortion, Lisa Schencker reported on a survey by the Public Religion Research Institute of Washington D.C. http://www.sltrib.com/sltrib/news/51971031-78/abortion-percent-americans-survey.html.csp?page=1
Abortion should be legal in all/most cases
Ages 18-29 60%
Ages 30-49 58%
Ages 50-64 59%
The responses to this survey released in early June, 2011 should be considered along with the results of a Rand Organization sponsored survey of 2003, (Grammich, Changes in American Opinions about Family Planning.) http://www.rand.org/content/dam/rand/pubs/reprints/2005/RP1148.pdf. The topic was different Some of the questions, a repeat from a survey of 1998, asked respondents if they supported family planning policies including U.S. health insurance coverage of family planning services and U.S. sponsorship of family planning programs in developing countries. Although there has been some decline in the support for both domestic and third world family planning the approval rates are still substantial. For example, support for family planning programs in developing countries received 87% approval in 1998 and 76% in 2003. The authors of the Rand study try to tease out the reasons for the 10% decline in support for family planning here and abroad and I recommend the article for this analysis. However the important question to be asked is that when a substantial majority of Americans approve of making family planning available and abortion legal, why can a small but vocal minority so easily thwart the will of the majority?
Ann O'Connell
