Review: Plan A

Trigger Warning: This blog post talks about sexual assault and abortion. Reader discretion is strongly advised.

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), teen abortion is a lot more common than teen motherhood, with 55% of pregnancies among girls aged 15–19 years ending in abortions. There’s a big stigma around abortion, whether you’re a teenager, adult woman, or sexual assault victim from a Red or Blue state.

January is Sanctity of Human Life Month and as a conservative, pro-life Christian, I knew it was important to make the choice to read Plan A by Deb Caletti. Plan A is all about a sixteen-year-old Ivy’s road trip across the country to get an abortion after conceiving a baby out of rape. 

I wish to caveat that I’m not someone who will actively promote abortion, but I understand that it is a very personal decision that some women have to make for themselves. While I am steadfast in my pro-life beliefs, I have always been taught that it is important to get both sides of the story before passing judgment.

Abortion is a very sensitive topic and no one is obligated to share their story. Plan A seemed like the perfect neutral middle-ground for understanding that perspective. Ivy is fictional so whatever opinions I have don’t have any negative emotional impact on a real person, but I can gain insight into the rather hidden story of teenage abortion.

Understanding Ivy

Ivy is a normal, well-spoken, and intelligent sixteen-year-old who has overwhelming decisions to make. She’s just a regular small-town Texas girl with modest dreams of going to college. Her West Coast mother, Ivy has more liberal views than the rest of her family and Ivy’s boyfriend is a California transplant. Neither of them quite fit into the Texas culture which is good when Ivy discovers she is pregnant, and not by her boyfriend.

When the town finds out that Ivy is pregnant, they turn on Ivy and her family.

For Ivy, the decision to have an abortion is a no-brainer. While I know that this may feel jarring for some, I feel like this is a realistic portrayal. Too often the decision to have an abortion is portrayed as an agonizing decision, when oftentimes it is viewed as the sensible thing to do.

While Ivy cannot have her abortion in Texas, she is fortunate to have family in Oregon who are supportive and willing to help her out. Her boyfriend Lorenzo goes with her on a fun-filled road trip which will culminate in her procedure. Along the way, Ivy encounters numerous people who have also experienced an abortion and share with her the fears, the trauma, and the relief that they experienced. It is not an empty adventure and does have its moments of tension and displacement. Ivy may only be sixteen, but she is thrown into a world that is both sympathetic and very harsh.

Encountering the Ivy’s Of the World

While I wish Ivy would have kept her baby, I understand why she couldn’t. Even though this is a work of fiction, it is based on reality. Unfortunately, we don’t live in a world where women or young girls are supported for conceiving outside of marriage. Even though people talk a good talk about being pro-life, there is overwhelming shame and stigmatism if you don’t have children the “right way”.

I don’t think Ivy’s decision to have an abortion is what is the most shocking or unrealistic aspect of the story, but rather that she came out from this experience unscathed. Ivy has a loving and supportive family but the reality is that not everyone has the same support system.

I know one individual from a conservative Christian family who was sexually assaulted. Once she told her parents about the assault she was absolutely reamed for being so careless and did not offer any support to her even though she went through this traumatic experience. They buried it and told her not to tell anyone. Although I am still pro-life, if this individual had conceived and sought an abortion I would not have judged her. She was already living in a hostile environment and bringing a child into that world would have been detrimental to her well-being as well as that of the child.

It should be a no-brainer in the 21st century that victims of rape are not “asking for it” but that is not the case. Regardless of their sexual encounters, we don’t live in a world where the Ivy’s of the world can feel safe and supported. If they abort their children they are “murders” and if they bring these children into the world they are “sluts”.

Living Pro-Life

Our pastor gave a beautiful homily about the sanctity of life. He said that although we are compelled as Christians to be pro-life we must recognize that we don’t live in a world that supports it. People are raped, impoverished families are unable to care for another child, and single mothers simply cannot raise a child on their own. Instead of preaching about the evils of abortion, we should take on a spirit of charity and create a world where abortion isn’t the only resource available for women in these situations. I couldn’t agree with this perspective more.

Marisol Maldonado Rodriguez recently published Beyond Her Yes: Reimagining Pro-Life Ministry to Empower Women and Support Families in Overcoming Poverty. This book illustrates that the simple “yes” to keep a child goes so much deeper than abortion. Marisol shows how we should be taking steps to end the cycle of poverty, abuse, and setbacks that cause a pregnancy to not only be terrifying but can perpetuate negative cycles for generations.

While Beyond Her Yes does not answer every question or address every issue, it is the first time I have seen someone take a deeper look into the real issue behind abortion which is the complex social, psychological, physical, and socioeconomic status of the mother. If you are pro-life, I 100% recommend reading this book.

The “Pro-life Issue” is so much more complex than a simple decision to keep or terminate a pregnancy. I think Plan A is a great and digestible way for people to grapple with the perspective of someone not in an ideal situation to keep a baby. It takes a very humanistic approach to a very serious topic. I don’t think this book advocates for abortion but expresses the reality of thousands of women who have been in Ivy’s shoes.