Does the #ShoutYourAbortion campaign promote abortion?

Amelia Bonow started the #ShoutYourAbortion crusade on September 19, urging women who are proud of their abortions to share their stories on Twitter.

Their posts are in response to recent attacks on Planned Parenthood, that followed the Republican party debate about defunding the clinics.

The campaign was met with different reactions, with some supporting “women’s rights” over their bodies, while some opposed the campaign, saying abortion should not be discussed on social media. But you know what? I have a good heart and having an abortion made me happy in a totally unqualified way.

West is now asking people on Twitter to use the hashtag to share how their lives have been affected by safe and legal abortion – and the hashtag has begun to crowd the Twittersphere. “Why wouldn’t I be happy that I was not forced to become a mother?”

As Lindy West, an active participant in the hashtag, told MTV, “In our culture, abortion is something we talk about in whispers, in corners, in private with other women, or not at all“.

Some say it’s about removing the stigma associated with the choice to have an abortion.

David Jones, who has since been retweeted more than 60 times, condemned the trend: “I am pretty disgusted that #ShoutYourAbortion is trending with people celebrating their abortions really killing babies”.

“My wife and I had an abortion when she was in college”, Twitter user jkCallawayYAY wrote Monday.

Critics were quick to blast the hashtag, describing it as a “celebration” of abortions.

“Regardless of your stance on abortion, why can’t we all agree it’s not something to brag about?”