3 most dangerous words in the world: It's a girl

[docmom]

The only way to end this is to raise the status of women. We've seen it happen in the educated sectors of China and India. It concerns me that if the fundies ever get their way and women in this country are relegated to second class status, we could start to see this sort of thing happen here too.

[NoneandDoneinCali]

The only way to end this is to raise the status of women. We've seen it happen in the educated sectors of China and India. It concerns me that if the fundies ever get their way and women in this country are relegated to second class status, we could start to see this sort of thing happen here too.

Except no abortion so it would be straight infanticide.

[docmom]

yes, they are. My boyfriend was born and raised in India and he says they are illegal for the very reason that people are aborting too many female fetuses just because they are female. And his parents did not give dowries when their daughters/his sisters married. Less and less dowries are given and more and more females are being educated, at least among the middle and upper class. The women in poor classes are likely not getting the same opportunities obviously. But change is growing indeed.

Gender determination ultrasound is illegal in India but is widely available anyway. The doctor will not directly tell you what you're having but may suggest that you buy a pink or blue blanket...

[sparkles]

I've got the doc in my queue and just downloaded the book to my Kindle.

Years ago, I watched a documentary late at night on PBS I think. Unfortunately, I can't remember the name of it but one part of it addressed the same subject matter as this current doc and book. There was one scene that still haunts me to this day. It took place in a hospital room in India I believe, where a woman had just given birth to her fifth child, the first son in what looked to be a fairly well-to-do family. The four girls were in the room, looking all excited about their new baby brother. The father was holding the baby and all he kept saying was how happy he was because his life was complete now that he had a son. Nothing and no one else mattered, girls meant nothing, this was his best and most treasured child, everything would be his and on and on and on. As he kept talking you could see the sadness on his wife's face and how crushed the girls were. Their smiles disappeared, their faces looked more and more distressed until one of them eventually burst into tears and was comforted by her sisters as the father droned on and on, ignoring them completely. I've forgotten so much else about that doc but the sadness on the faces of those girls as they realized just how little they mattered has never left me. I actually think of them often, wondering how life turned out for them after the birth of the little prince and if they were ever given the opportunity to pursue their dreams.

[dairyfreelife]

Gender determination ultrasound is illegal in India but is widely available anyway. The doctor will not directly tell you what you're having but may suggest that you buy a pink or blue blanket...

Yes, it is. I just know that they are illegal in India simply because of the high rates of abortions on females. But I also think more and more people in India are seeing women in better light. Change doesn't happen overnight.

[RosyDaisy]

I was raised to believe that you should be happy with and love the baby God gave you. That's the attitude my sister had as well. Me on the other hand never wanted kids.

Anyway...if these women get ultrasounds that proves she is carrying a girl, why not just have an abortion rather than killing a baby girl already born?

[PennySycamore]

YPestis, you could be right about why my granddaughter was abandoned. I do seem to recall that other Chinese people gave them wide berth when they were out in public with Zoey after they picked her up. The director of her orphanage actually grew up there. He has fused fingers so he's disabled as well.

Fortunately, there's an online community of parents who've adopted children with albinism from China.