Parental Consent--The Irony

LifeNews.com has posted an insightful story pointing out an irony in an article published in the Sacramento Bee. The Sacramento Bee had profiled “both opponents and proponents of parental notification before a minor's abortion.”

One of the opponents to parental notification was a high school girl named Briana Castro. The fifteen year old had “’talked with her mother’” before signing up to precinct walk for the campaign in a Los Angeles neighborhood. “’My mom told me I should go out and do this,’” Briana stated.

So it would seem that teenagers still feel the need to discuss important decisions, such as campaigning against a proposition requiring parental consent for abortion, with their parents.

As LifeNews points out:

Fifteen year-old girls need the advice of their parents not just when they are working on a campaign or going on a school field trip, but especially when they may undergo a major medical procedure. Adults will be involved in a young girl's
decision to abort. That adult could be an older boyfriend, a school guidance counselor, etc. Parents simply deserve the courtesy of being one of those adults.

Children under eighteen years of age must have parental consent before receiving even over-the-counter medications in school. They are not permitted to receive piercings or tattoos without having their parents sign release forms. They are not considered legally mature enough to decide for themselves whether to smoke or not. Surely, a surgical or chemical procedure which could have life altering effects, emotionally or physically, should require parental approval.