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More black women consider 'dating out' By DIONNE WALKER, Associated Press Writer Sat Aug 4, 3:44 PM ETRICHMOND, Va. - For years, Toinetta Jones played the dating game by her mom's strict rule. "Mom always told me, 'Don't you ever bring a white man home,'" recalled Jones, echoing an edict issued by many Southern, black mothers.But at 37, the Alexandria divorcee has shifted to dating "anyone who asks me out," regardless of race."I don't sit around dreaming about the perfect black man I'm going to marry," Jones said.Black women around the country also are reconsidering deep-seated reservations toward interracial relationships, reservations rooted in America's history of slavery and segregation.They're taking cues from their favorite stars — from actress Shar Jackson to tennis pro Venus Williams — as well as support blogs, how-to books and interracially themed novels telling them it's OK to "date out."It comes as statistics suggest American black women are among the least likely to marry."I'm not saying that white men are the answer to all our problems," Jones said. "I'm just saying that they offer a different solution."She reflects many black women frustrated as the field of marriageable black men narrows: They're nearly seven times more likely to be incarcerated than white men and more than twice as likely to be unemployed.Census data showed 117,000 black wife-white husband couples in 2006, up from 95,000 in 2000.There were just 26,000 such couples in 1960, before a Supreme Court ruling banished laws against mixed marriages.Black female-white male romance has become a hot topic in black-geared magazines and on Web sites, even hitting the big screen in movies like last year's "Something New."That film centers on an affluent black woman who falls for her white landscaper, a situation not unlikely as black women scale the corporate ladder, said Evia Moore, whose interracial marriage blog draws 1,000 visitors a day.It features articles like "Could Mr. Right Be White?" and pictures of couples like white chef Wolfgang Puck and his new Ethiopian wife."Black women are refusing to comply with that message about just find yourself a good blue-collar man with a job, or just find a black man," Moore said.She pointed to low rates of black men in college, a place where women of all races often meet their spouses.Black women on campus largely are surrounded by non-black men: In 2004, 26.5 percent of black males ages 18 to 24 were enrolled in college versus 36.5 percent of black women that age, according to the American Council on Education's most recent statistics.Even after college, Roslyn Holcomb struggled to meet professional black men. "I wanted to get married (and) have children," she said. "If I was only meeting one guy a year, or every few years, that wasn't going to happen."The Alabama author eventually married white. "I think a lot of black women are realizing or feeling that the pickings are slim," she said. They're made even slimmer, grumble many black women, by high rates of successful black men choosing blondes. For some, they argue, white wives are the ultimate status symbol. "They don't want a dark chocolate sister laying around their swimming pool," Moore said. Nearly three quarters of the 403,000 black-white couples in 2006 involved black husbands. Meanwhile, psychological barriers have discouraged black women from crossing racial lines. "Black women are socialized to stick by their men," explained Kellina Craig-Henderson, a Howard University psychology professor who studied 15 black women dating interracially. She said modern black women agonize over breaking male-female bonds forged in slavery and strengthened through the Jim Crow era. "It may be even more of an issue for educated black women who have a sense of the historical realities of this country, where black women often were abused at the hands of white men," Craig-Henderson said. Jones remembered being troubled when a white man politely approached her around 1990. Her stance softened years later, after a sobering party experience. "All the black men literally pushed (us) out the way to talk to the blondes," said Jones, who soon declared, "I'm going to date whoever."Black men and women have openly feuded before. At places like Atlanta's Spelman College, black women have rallied against black male rappers characterizing them as promiscuous. But black men are voicing their own frustrations with women they feel regard them with suspicion. "They treat us all the same," said W. Randy Short, a Washington writer who dates across races. "The rapist on the TV is the same as me."It's a frustration director Tim Alexander tackles in "Diary of a Tired Black Man," a frank film covering everything from black women's demeanors to their weight. Frustrated by black women, the main character dates a white one. "To a certain degree, black people are sick of each other," Alexander said. "It would be better for black men and black women to open their options."But Ayo Handy-Kendi, creator of Black Love Day, argues blacks are simply reacting to messages linking success with whiteness. She referred to a string of successful athletes with white partners, including golfer Tiger Woods. "They normally rejected their culture and they went to the acceptable standard of success — a white woman," said Handy-Kendy, who thought it ironic high-achieving black women were mimicking the behavior. Back in Virginia, Jones feels life is too short to ponder race when it comes to love. As for mom, Jones figures, "she really admires the fact that I did something she may have really wanted to do, and never did."

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jzOskNU-GdMhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3X3saJUs8f4&feature=related

Hello there! I wish you all chocolatey days :D On with the question: If you feel disturbed about submitting yourself to the Creator of all, how do you live with the knowledge that you submit your self to the government and obey their forms of living for you? (you cant travel without passports for example, and youre forced to pay taxes)Isnt that a form of slavery? *hands some chocolate to all the answerers*

ok so i have been a vegetarian since i was bornits how ive been raisednever tasted a morsel of meatit was religion at first now its my own choice based on biological and moral reasonsbut recently i discovered the cruelty in dairy farms and the atrocities of the industry. with that on my conscience, being a devoted vegetarian i cannot shrug it off. i feel like im a meateater trying to turn into a vegetarian...the ddairy industry is sooo closely linked to the meat industry its like using animals for slaveryplease dont tell me health reasons i shouldnt do thisbc like if ive survived without meat all my live and i do know the whole incomplete protein thing is a mythfurthermore dont tell me ill be calciumm deprived because vegetarians need 50% less calcium than meateaters since we lose less of it in our urineplus cows get their calcium from green veggies...so can humansi just LOVE chocolate and cheese SOOO much....will i get over it because i love mozarella!!! any substitutes?i refuse to touch tofu loland umm soymilk for thati can live without milk just the products OF milk are hard i kn this is the toughest thing ive ever had to doand i DO love dark choc actually even more than milk chocits not about stopping the industrynot eating meat is also not helping to STOP the industryjust the simple fact that YOU are not benefitting from this cruel practice and u have no part in it relieves ur own conscience thats all

Is it all right to complain about what happened a 140 years ago but you won't take any steps to prevent from happening today? You say you didn't know about modern slavery? Well, now you do, anyone who has had such a issue with slavery as the Afro-Americans should be studying the issue and organizing bans, boycotts and marches. Lets' start with the number two (2) area that being Chocolate, you should ensure that your family, friends and school boycott Chocolate that means candy, ice cream and hot chocolate, etc. The big companies have the power to make sure the Egyptians and others quit using slaves to gather the Coca Beans. The number one (1) area is the sex trade, videos, prostitution and children. You cannot do much there but you could ensure the issue becomes publicized.Number three (3) is Coffee and you should do the same thing as you should do with chocolate.Number four (4) is drugs and it is even worse with this area (I believe they should be legalized; it worked in the Netherlands and would be a God sent to the Country) is that the profits are used to kill us.Yes, I am against slavery are you? God Bless You and The Southern People.http://www.infoplease.com/spot/slavery1....http://www.berkeley.edu/news/media/relea...http://www.saveaslave.com/articles/moder...http://www.american.edu/ted/chocolate-sl...http://www.freetheslaves.net/slavery/int...http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/allegations...

OK heres a thought... Girls and couples condemn sinlge lonley men going with hookers for exploitation of women.But looks at the world is it not a case of marriage and women are worse in where their diamonds and chocolates come from with child soldiers, mass murder, slavoury inc child salvory, arms hacked off often children hacking off the limbs of their own family and other children?Think thats mad?... see the linkshttp://dir.salon.com/story/news/feature/2003/02/14/chocolate/index.htmlhttp://www.american.edu/ted/chocolate-slave.htmhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chocolate_and_slaveryhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Conflict_diamondhttp://www.amnestyusa.org/diamonds/index.dohttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blood_Diamond_(film)http://www.child-soldiers.org/resources/newsSeems more of a case where they is lots of profit to be made you get exploitation and bullying of would be rich workers and comapnies trying to be competitiive on cost to maximise profitCutting costs ruthlessly and minimising labour costs and all that capitalisitc crap...And whats needed is regulation, fair distribution of profits from the resource and work, unions, red tape, strong regualtive laws (ie no child labour, no pimps, no slave labour.)For the woemn in the sex industry to have control over thier lives and conditions, to get their pay, for 3rd world workers unionised etc.But more so... for women and couples to have a look closer at their own expolitiation for those valentine choccies and diamond rings esp blood soaked engagement diamond rings.Whilst the many of the guys treat hookers as they would a guaranteed date. And would def support regulation and for the girl to get the cash and not have to work in some horrible dingley red light slum or street but somewhere likewww.fkk-oase.deLikewise happy rich africans from oil, diamonds, and chocolate.The guys are only lonely just like girls like yummy sweets.But diamonds can be replaced by glassThe fkk oase above is a perfect example of how prostituion could be if regualted...Clean, safe, no horrible streets, no drugs, no danger...More like a nudist health club crossed with a lap dance club, with garden with bunny rabbits and swim pools and bbqs...Site contains some nudity but nother nasty or seedy...Think nudist club*****************************************The question was posed as all the time you see guys get accused of exploiting girls with prostitution. Wehn the reality is many are simply lonely and hurt and crap at trying to get girls.And would rather the girls are treated better and places of work were better and no pimps or anything.Whilst much of those doing the condemning are more guilty given where their pleasure products come from...ie hypocracy needed exposure.sorry if confusing but read again and check ALL the links and you will get the pointThe german FKK model can be like lap dancing where its not about drugs or despiration of pimping etc.But simply a job being reant a girlfriends and helping lonely guys.Said fkk system involves health checks and safe sex to prevent desease. With the same tax and employement protection and rights as any other worker.So Paula... you have no problem with children forced to shoot and kill and hack of the arms of other children just so you can have a shiny rock. Yet accuse guys who are lonly of being more exploitative?So Paula... you have no problem with children forced to shoot and kill and hack of the arms of other children just so you can have a shiny rock. Yet accuse guys who are lonly of being more exploitative?So Paula... you have no problem with children forced to shoot and kill and hack of the arms of other children just so you can have a shiny rock. Yet accuse guys who are lonly of being more exploitative?

My younger brother has been telling me for years about a very different version of the book sequal to "Charlie And The Chocolate Factory," Where Charlie has grown up to become an evil dictator, kiling the Oompa Loompas and selling his family into slavery. No one else I know has ever seen or heard of this. Even my older brother, who supposedly read this to younger brother, does not remember this. Yet younger brother still insists the book is real. Has anyone else seen this book?

Is it still like that?

I would like to buy my clothes from Fair-Trade retailers instead of the usual Slave-Trade industry that most American companies have begun supporting. I have a few resources but need more, as I'm not yet finding what I want.I'm even thinking of possibly learning to sew my own clothes, but then there is also the need for fair-trade fabric retailers. There is also the need for sources of Fair-Trade chocolate, jewelry, etc. I have one for coffee but don't drink it anymore.This is also, of course, a concern for where to buy birthday and other holiday gifts for family and friends. Most things now have the label "Made in China" and that has come to mean sweatshop and slavery conditions, in most instances. Most chocolate comes from the Ivory Coast where children are kidnapped from their homes and made to be slaves. I read a statement from an African boy that said, "When you eat chocolate, you are eating my flesh". I am not happy or content to continue this way.

It's surprising how many people are not aware of the abuse and oppression surrounding the chocolate trade. There are 'free trade' and organic alternatives, but they are not surprisingly, more expensive. However they are generally much better quality anyway. http://www.guardian.co.uk/uklatest/story/0,,-6537372,00.html?gusrc=ticker-103704http://vision.ucsd.edu/~kbranson/stopchocolateslavery/newsandinformation.htmlhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chocolate_and_slaveryhttp://www.american.edu/ted/chocolate-slave.htmHere's an important well written book by investigative journalist Carol Offhttp://lfpress.ca/cgi-bin/publish.cgi?p=170218&x=articles&s=books

Due to the BBC revealing that poor children were being stolen and sold into slavery to Ivory Coast cocoa farmers, Congress was pressured to respond - they announced a 4-year plan to eliminate child slavery in cocoa producing nations - particularly West Africa where most of the world's chocolate is produced. If all went well, child slavery was expected to no longer be used to produce chocolate and cocoa by 2005. This is a $13 billion industry in the US alone. M&M Mars, Hershey's, Nestle, Guitard, Callebaut and World's Finest which are responsible for the majority of profits world-wide, all agreed to the protocol. July 2005 has passed and these companies, among others, have done little to eliminate this shameful practice. Many companies join the listed ones above but some that DON'T are: Clif Bar, Newman Organics, Cloud Nine, Dagoba - all produce FINE chocolate without slave labor. I personally find it impossible to eat another piece of tainted chocolate!

Please help me out most of my black friends cannot go a day without commenting about slavery but none of them want to do anything about stopping modern slavery. I read that Jesse Jackson actually refused to get involved. You say you didn't know about modern slavery? Well, now you do, anyone who has had such a issue with slavery as the Afro-Americans should be studying the issue and organizing bans, boycotts and marches. Lets' start with the number two (2) area that being Chocolate, you should ensure that your family, friends and school boycott Chocolate that means candy, ice cream and hot chocolate, etc. The big companies have the power to make sure the Egyptians and others quit using slaves to gather the Coca Beans. The number one (1) area is the sex trade, videos, prostitution and children. You cannot do much there but you could ensure the issue becomes publicized.Number three (3) is Coffee and you should do the same thing as you should do with chocolate.Number four (4) is drugs and it is even worse with this area (I believe they should be legalized; it worked in the Netherlands and would be a God sent to the Country) is that the profits are used to kill us.ithttp://www.infoplease.com/spot/slavery1....http://www.berkeley.edu/news/media/relea...http://www.saveaslave.com/articles/moder...http://www.american.edu/ted/chocolate-sl...http://www.freetheslaves.net/slavery/int...http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/allegations...

My wife just cant seem to shed the excess weight after giving birth last year despite me banning her from eating chocolate and sending her out to work 60 hours a week. I don't work now as it's akin to corporate slavery. This neighbor keeps looking at the wife and frankly I find it quite disturbing, what with all the rolls of flesh on display.My wife has ginger hair as well, don't know if this helps?

I was thinking of doing a survey regarding Nestle and the chocolate slavery in Africa. But what quetions should i include.

Because of slavery in America, separations occurred; fathers from families, mothers from daughters and sons -- Beatings, killings, tortures. Life for the Black man in America was suffering, shame and death. The Emancipation Proclamation, after the Civil War brought about the Black man becoming a WILLING servant or slave for his former slavemaster, NOT a return to his name, language, country or God. The Black man in America truly fitted the people described in Genesis Chapter 15:13: "And He said unto Abraham, know of a surety that thy seed shall be a stranger in a land that is not theirs. And they shall serve them and they shall afflict them 400 years. And also that Nation whom they shall serve will I judge and afterwards shall they come out with great substance." After the Civil War, the Black began calling himself in the names of his slave master. Practicing the religion of the slavemaster, speaking the language of the slavemaster. He was given nothing by the slavemaster to go for self. Slavery, suffering and death was, now, the lifestyle for the Blackman of America, now called; Negro, nigger, coon, pickininny, shine, boy, uncle, etc... There was work from sun up to sun up. No pay! or very little pay. More suffering, more misery, and more death! Those in the KKK and those out of the KKK kill the Black man for nothing other than the color of his skin being Black. Torturing and killing the Black man was a pleasurable thing --A SPORT--for the white man. The Black man called our for relief. The Black man prayed to the mystery God for relief from his pain, misery, suffering, shame and death, but no relief came. The NAACP was organized in the early 1900's by a group of whites and blacks but still no relief for the Black man. The Black man took up arms to fight for America in World War I, as he did in the Spanish-American War and the Civil War but, still, no relief for the Black man. More lynchings and burnings. More work and no pay -- still no relief for the Black man. In the 1920's, Marcus Garvey organized the Universal Negro Improvement Association (UNIA), which attempted to instill Black pride and to return Blacks to Africa. Garvey was jailed and deported. No relief for the Black man. Now the Black man hated himself. He hated his color. He hated being Black or even being called Black. He joked: "If you're white, you're right; if you're yellow, you're mellow; if you're brown, stick around; but if you're Black, GET BACK!" He began calling himself anything but Black; names such as: olive-colored, creole, bronze, chocolate, tan, Indian. He had no money, no clothing, nor even a home. The Great Depression of 1929 arrived. Blacks lived, mainly in the South doing sharecropping, land-renting or even in bonded slavery. Some migrated to the North to seek improvement as janitors, porters, maids, cooks, mammies, mail carriers, street cleaners and to face even more slavery, suffering and death, as the brothers in the South. No relief to their cries or prayers for justice until about 1930, when a man --A Saviour-Master W.D. Fard, began teaching and searching among Blacks in Detroit, Michigan for a man of the Black condition and experience to LEAD and TEACH the Black man in America and put him on the road to Freedom, Justice, and Equality. Elijah's Coming Foretold in the Bible! It was written of and foretold by God in Deuteronomy 18:18: "I will raise them up a Prophet from among their brotheren, like unto thee and I will put my words in his mouth and he shall speak unto them all that I shall command him." As it was prophesied, now it was fulfilled and true. In Malachi 4:2 "Behold I will send you ELIJAH - The Prophet - just before the coming of the Great and Dreadful day of the Lord, and he shall turn the hearts of the fathers to the children and children's hearts to their father less I smite the Earth with a curse." Our Leader and Teacher, The Most Honorable Elijah Muhammad, The Last and Greatest Messenger of Allah, Who came in the Person of Master Fard Muhammad was born the second week of October, 1897 to William and Marie, who went in the name of their former slavemaster-Poole. They lived in an area near Sandersville, Georgia and Desoto, Georgia, which is about five miles into the woods, in a community known as Bold Springs, GA. Bold Springs was a 100 militia district of Washington County, Georgia. The Messenger's father, at that time, was a Baptist preacher and taught sometimes in his church. He sharecropped to earn money for his family, as a farmer. The parents loved their children --eight sons and five daughters. But one son --ELIJAH-- even as a child was unusually different. He had a yearn for learning. He studied ways of nature. He would study the Bible and would practice on his Brothers and Sisters as a preacher. He was destined for the future. In the back of the church his father preached in, is a family cemetery. The family of Messenger Elijah Muhammad moved to Cordell, Georgia about the time when he was about six years old. There, the Honorable Elijah Muhammad worked in the fields, along with his brothers and sisters, planting and plowing behind a mule; reaping and harvesting, picking, planting and chopping crop. Schooling was not a required thing for Elijah and the other Blacks in the South, only work, day and night -- night and day. The family of our Leader and Teacher, moved to Cordell in the early 1900's, in an area known as Winona, about five miles south of Cordell. The Messenger's family was very poor. They lived across the road from the train depot, where one train a day passed through, which they called: 'The shoe-fly:. Messenger Elijah Muhammad would walk down what was called: The Rock House Road: to visit Sister Clara Muhammad. The Messenger and his family attended Zion Hope Baptist Church, which was located on old Highway 41 below Winona. Messenger Elijah Muhammad met Sister Clara Muhammad, one of three daughters and two sons of the Evans family, in about 1915 at a church meeting house in the country. Sister Clara Muhammad, the Messenger's one and only wife, was born in Houston, County just outside of Unadilla, Georgia. Her father always rented land. Sister Clara Muhammad's sister, Rose, remembers the Messenger always coming to their house on a Sunday afternoon, just after church; around 6:00 pm; leaving around 9:00 pm because he had to work in the fields the next day. He always visited wearing a blue suit and tie, but never a hat. But he did wear a straw hat when plowing. After two years of courtship, they were married (eloped) on May 2, 1917. Sister Clara's father was furious because of their elopement. They lived in a rented room. Their first son, Emanuel was born February 3, 1921 in Sister Clara Muhammad's parents home, as the Messenger left, going to Macon, GA, seeking better employment and higher wages to support his family. The Messenger sent for his wife and their 1-1/2 month old son, to join him in Macon, Georgia, where he worked for the Cherokee Brick and Tile Company, as a section hand and for the Southern Railroad and other jobs. At all of his jobs, his co-workers, themselves, chose him to be their spokesman or his employer chose him to supervise others. Blacks were poor and suffering with no jobs or jobs with very little pay. The beatings, lynchings and tortures of Black people was a frequent and seemingly legal affair. Segregation was a way of life. Some Blacks tried to escape by changing their color, using bleaching cream on their skin to lighten it and using lye, other chemicals and hot combs to straighten their hair. Our Leader, Messenger Elijah Muhammad moved to Detroit, Michigan. There he worked at American Canning Factory, and Chevrolet and other places. Almost always being chosen by his co-workers or employers as a Leader of men -- to be foreman or supervisor. He was always kind and considerate and concerned for his fellow brothers. Blacks were still suffering all over America. The Poole family, as our leader did not, yet, have the knowledge of his self, nor God, and was yet going in the slavemaster's name. They were living at 8474 Manhattan Street in Hamtramck, an area surrounded by Detroit, Michigan with an outside toilet.

We all know how well Islam treats the women. I don't want to give up my human rights just for the sake of feeling like I'm going to Paradise. I don't want 72 virgins. I want 72 buff cowboys and a little read Ferrari! I want an eternal supply of chocolate cake and the promise I'll never get fat. The men get to deflorate teenage girls and drink wine and have slave boys. What do I get? A dishwasher and more slavery? bah!

My younger brother has been telling me for years about a very different version of the book sequal to "Charlie And The Chocolate Factory," Where Charlie has grown up to become an evil dictator, kiling the Oompa Loompas and selling his family into slavery. No one else I know has ever seen or heard of this. Even my older brother, who supposedly read this to younger brother, does not remember this. Yet younger brother still insists the book is real. Has anyone else seen this book?

is it right that most of the chocolate in the world is made using children slaves?i read this in a website http://www.radicalthought.org/i find more and more details all the time.In the cocoa industry of Cote d'Ivoire, Brian and Kate found more slavery. The country produces nearly half the world's supply (over 100 million tonnes) grown on thousands of small plantations - cocoa which finds its way into the newsagents and supermarkets of Britain. The young men are worked up to eighteen hours a day, unpaid and beaten if they try to escape. Kate and Brian interviewed slaves still working in the plantations, as well as a group of young men who had been rescued just days before. One boy, scarred from head to foot from brutal beatings, described how he and other boys were mistreated by their captors, if they attempted escape: "They would tie your hands behind your back. Then one person would beat your front and someone else your back". http://truevisiontv.com/slavery.html

Allmost all chocolate is made with partly cacao from Ivory Coast, where slavery is used to produce the cacao. When those slaves try to escape, they are murdered.Although Côte d'Ivoire only produces 40% of world cacao, the big chocolate companies use that cacao mixed with other cacao.

Trapped... Time Has Run Out For Over 49 Million Americans. By Another's Choice.. Who is trapped by the "choice" of abortion? Both the mother and the pre-born child. Abortion is legal through all nine months of pregnancy in the United States. The infamous Roe v. Wade case legalized abortion throughout the United States. The lesser-known companion case, Doe v. Bolton, defined the "health" exception. This case solidified Roe in allowing abortion through all nine months if the pregnancy threatens the life or health of the mother. The vague word used here is "health." What does "health" mean to you? Doe v. Bolton defined health to include, "physical, emotional, psychological, familial, and the woman's age - relevant to the wellbeing of the patient." Essentially, Doe v. Bolton opened the door for "health" to mean anything a doctor or woman wanted it to mean. Some states have laws regulating late term abortions, and some states simply have no willing providers. However, women are free to go to other states to obtain one. Late-term abortions may be less common, but they are still legal. Didn't the Partial Birth Abortion Ban outlaw late-term abortions? No. In the 2007 decision, Gonzales v. Carhart, the Partial-Birth Abortion Ban Act of 2003 was upheld. The "Ban" merely regulates one specific method used in late-term abortions (D&X). Other late-term abortion methods, such as Dilation and Evacuation (D&E) and a modified version of partial birth abortion, may still legally be used to kill a child up to the moment of birth. A woman is often trapped by the decision to abort. You probably know someone who has aborted her child. Why did she "choose" abortion? Did she want an abortion or was she coerced or "strongly encouraged" by her boyfriend, husband, or parents? Let's face it; there are many reasons why women abort. One study found that 64% of women surveyed said they "felt pressured by others" to abort. Also, 54% said they were "not sure about the decision at the time." Does this sound like a "woman's right to choose?" More than 49 million children have been legally trapped by "choice" in the United States since 1973. Time is running out for millions more. With more than 3,500 surgical abortions performed in the United States every day, you most likely have been, or will be, involved with someone considering abortion. You owe it to yourself and those around you to make an educated decision about abortion. Unlocking The Language Trap... My Body, My Choice! The term "pro-choice' avoids talking about what you are choosing. Most people agree that we can be "pro-choice" about many things without offending anyone (i.e. chocolate or vanilla, paper or plastic). The term "choice" is value-neutral and meaningless unless we have some kind of idea what we are choosing. Society generally limits people's choices when it comes to behaviors that are harmful or potentially harmful to other people. We, as a society, are "anti-choice" when it comes to theft, arson, murder, and a whole host of other actions. A Woman's "Right"/Freedom to Choose It sounds almost patriotic. Our great American freedoms: freedom of speech, freedom of assembly, freedom of religion, etc. Individual rights are important, but you will not find "a right to abortion" anywhere in the Constitution. We have come too far to reduce a woman's "right" to mean the "right to kill her own children". It's Just Tissue Consider the following facts: Simple tissue down not have a beating heart, brain waves, fingerprints, and unique DNA. A woman can carry a baby with a different blood type from her own. After the moment of fertilization, nothing new is added to the baby except oxygen, nutrition, and time. The only differences between a newborn and a pre-born baby are size, level of development, environment, and degree of dependency. All of these facts confirm the reality that you are a person worthy of protection from the moment of fertilization. A "Wanted" Child Does your value depend on the degree that someone wants you? Let's be honest- a child is a child. How could any baby be called unwanted when there are over one million couples waiting, hoping, and praying for a chance to adopt a child?"Safe" Abortion Many young women believed this lie until it was too late. The book, Lime 5, documents over 200 cases of women injured or killed by illegal, so-called "safe" abortions. The end result of an abortion is a dead baby, and the potential for cervical cancer, breast cancer, infertility, and psychological pain. Where's the "safe" part?"Back-Alley" Abortions According to the Centers for Disease Control, 39 maternal deaths occurred due to illegal abortions in 1972 (the year prior to the Roe v. Wade decision that legalized abortion nationally). Any loss of life is tragic, but this is nowhere near the alleged "thousands of deaths by back-alley abortions.""I'm Personally Opposed, But I Can't Tell Others What To Do" What if U.S. citizens had been willing to accept this justification for tolerating slavery? Our forefathers took away the "rights" of slave owners in order to give freedom and respect to African American people. Our youngest and most vulnerable are still slaves to the life and death decisions of others. Rape and Incest As traumatic as rape is, abortion does not "un-rape" the mother. The baby doesn't deserve to die for the crime of his or her father. Pat, a victim of rape, said, "In choosing to abort, to kill the innocent child growing within me, I lowered myself to the level of the rapist... The effects of abortion are much more far-reaching than the effects of the rape in my life." Fetal Deformities No one's perfect. Abortion for fetal deformities is a form of discrimination against disabled people. Eighty percent or more of Down Syndrome babies are now aborted. There are waiting lists of people that would be willing to adopt a special needs child. Who's to say their lives aren't worth living? When we make life and death judgments based on "quality of life," we start down the slippery slope of eugenics. Abortion Methods: Vacuum Aspiration The abortionist inserts a hollow plastic suction tube into the dilated cervix. The uterus is emptied by either a manual syringe or high-powered suction machine. The baby's body is torn into pieces as he or she is being pulled through the hose. Dilation and Suction Curettage (D&C) This is similar to the vacuum aspiration. However, after the baby is suctioned out of the uterus the abortionist inserts a curette, a loop-shaped steel knife, up into the uterus. With this the abortionist cuts the placenta and umbilical cord into pieces and scrapes them out into a basin. The uterus is again suctioned out to ensure that no body parts have been left behind. Bleeding is usually profuse. Dilation and Evacuation (D&E) Once the cervix is dilated considerably further than in the first trimester abortions, the abortionist inserts a narrow forceps that resembles a pliers. This instrument is needed because the baby's bones are calcified, as is the skull. The abortionist inserts the instrument into the uterus, seizes a leg or other part of the body and, with a twisting motion, tears it from the baby's body. The spine is snapped and the skull is crushed. Body parts are then reassembled and counted to make certain that the entire baby have been removed and that no parts remain in the womb. Partial-Birth Abortion or Dilation and Extraction (D&X) After undergoing two days of dilation, the abortionist performs an ultrasound to locate the child's legs and feet. The abortionist then uses a large forceps to grasp one of the baby's legs. He pulls firmly, forcing the child into a feet-down position. Using his hands instead of forceps, the abortionist delivers the baby's body in a manner similar to a breech birth. The baby's head remains inside the birth canal. The abortionist uses surgical scissors to pierce the child's head at the base of the skull opening. The abortionist then inserts a suction catheter into the brain and vacuums out the child's brain tissue with a machine 29 times more powerful than a household vacuum. RU-486 - Mifeprex (The Abortion Pill) Mifeprex blocks the action of the hormone progesterone, which is needed to maintain the lining of the uterus providing oxygen and nutrients for the baby. Without it, the baby dies. Mifeprex is used in conjunction with the drug Cytotec (Misoprostol) which is taken two days after Mifeprex, causing uterine bleeding (sometimes profuse), strong contractions, and expulsion of the baby. The pregnant woman visits the abortionist to obtain the Mifeprex pills, returns two days later to receive Misoprostol, and a third time to verify that the abortion is complete. The failure rate of this method is about 8% if the pills are taken within 7 weeks and up to 25% at 8-9 weeks. If the baby survives the abortion, there is an extremely high risk that he or she will suffer mental and/or physical birth defects from the Misoprostol. Emergency Contraception - Plan B (The Morning-After Pill) Emergency Contraception (EC) contains synthetic progestogen and is a large dose of the common birth control pill designed to be taken as a single dose after "unprotected sex." EC works in three ways. First, it attempts to stop ovulation. Depending on where a woman is in her cycle, ovulation may or may not have already occurred before EC was taken. Second, EC attempts to stop fertilization by impeding the transportation of either the sperm and/or the egg. Third, EC tries to stop implantation by altering (thinning) the lining of the endometrium (uterus) so the embryo cannot implant and receive nourishment from the mother. The first two methods are contraceptive, but if they fail, the third method can cause an abortion because it occurs after fertilization. Newsflash In the 2007 decision, Gonzales v. Carhart, the Partial Birth Abortion Ban Act of 2003 was upheld. The Partial Birth Abortion Ban did not limit the frequency of late-term abortions. The "Ban" merely regulated one method used in late-term abortions. It is still legal for a doctor to kill a child up until the time he or she is born using a modified version. The baby can be delivered up to the navel and then killed. EXPOSE In Their Own Words: Former Abortionists and Clinic Staff Speak Out"There is a great difference between the intellectual support of a woman's right to choose and the actual participation in the carnage of abortion... seeing body parts bothers the workers..." Judith Fetrow: Former Clinic Staff "Abortion Providers III""I want the general public to know what the doctors know- that this a person; that this is a baby. That this is not some kind of blob of tissue..." Dr. Anthony Levantino: Former Abortionist "Meet the Abortion Providers""We were told to find the woman's weakness and work on it. The women were never given any alternatives. They were told how much trouble it was to have a baby." Debra Henry:Former Clinic Staff " Meet the Abortion Providers""But I think the greatest thing that got to us was the ultrasound... The baby really came alive on TV and was moving... That picture of the baby on the ultrasound bothered me more than anything else... We lost two nurses. They couldn't take looking at it." Dr. Joseph Randall: Former Abortionist " Meet the Abortion Providers" Reproductive Racism The vision of Planned Parenthood, founded in 1916 by Margaret Sanger, became the working arm toward eugenic goals. The stated vision was "reproductive freedom" through legalization of contraceptives to be used by the wealthy and imposed Eugenic Sterilization Laws as "birth control" for everyone else. The organization most responsible for propagating the bigoted concepts of "Social Darwinism" is the American Eugenics Society. Founded in the early 1900's, this organization was the sister organization of the British Eugenic Society which embraced the white- more specifically, the Anglo-Saxon- race supremacy doctrine. In the United States, eugenics became more than abstract philosophy. It degenerated into an active campaign to eliminate all those deemed inadequate and resulted in a worldwide crusade to abolish all human inferiority. The American Eugenics Society fostered the Jim Crow Laws of the South and Eugenic Sterilization Laws nationally, the anti-Semitic doctrine that encouraged Nazi Germany during the Jewish Holocaust and defined South-African Apartheid. Despite claims that Margaret Sanger was not a racist of an anti-Semite, the fact remains that "she openly welcomed the worst elements of both in to the birth control movement." Henry Pratt Fairchild who wrote, "Birth control and eugenics are by nature closely related, and neither one can attain its complete fulfillment, or render its maximum service to society, without the other" and Lothrop Stoddard, author of, The Rising Tide of Color Against White World Supremacy, were two of many eugenicists who worked closely with Sanger. Historical documents prove that Planned Parenthood acted as the willful arm of the American Eugenics Society and developed a plan, the ***** Project, as a propaganda program to infiltrate the black community with a "birth control for health" campaign through their civic leaders. Margaret Sanger expressed disdain for the poor and disabled whom she frequently dubbed "undeserving,""unfit", and "dysgenic." Her call for their sterilization and segregation is well known and is likely to have been the motive behind her "***** Project." Lest one think reproductive racism was merely an issue of the past, current numbers prove the problem persists. Racial targeting by abortion providers, Planned Parenthood being the foremost national provider of abortions, has demonstrably resulted in a disproportionate number of minorities obtaining abortions. In the year 2000, African Americans, numbering 34.7 million individuals, or 12.3 percent of the U.S. population obtained 32% of abortions in that year. "Black women are almost four more times as likely as white women to have an abortion, and Hispanic women are 2.5 times as likely." According to updated census reports, African Americans are no longer the largest U.S. minority population. Abortion and population control have taken a devastating toll on the African American and Hispanic communities. The Overpopulation Myth Despite what you may have heard, there is no overpopulation crisis. Abortion, euthanasia, contraception, sterilization, and infanticide are not needed to quell an over abundance of the human population. "Plunging death rates, not soaring birth rates, are the main reason for rapid population increases in the last century. World average life expectancy more than doubled, rising from 30 years in 1900 to 63 years now. "World population increased not because people were breeding like rabbits, but because they stopped dying like flies." In the United States, projections show that the 55 plus age group is going to grow from 24.7% of the population in 2010 to 31.5% in 2050. The UN Population Division states, "At the world level, the number of older persons is expected to exceed the number of children for the first time in 2047. In the more developed regions, where population aging is far advanced, the number of children dropped below that of older persons in 1998." Young people are needed in the workforce to support a rising population that is retiring or unable to work. In 73 countries around the world today, including the United States, the total fertility rate is below replacement level. A nation's total fertility rate must be 2.1 children or above in order to maintain population level. The total fertility rate of Europe is well below replacement at 1.45. Government incentives to have more children are already in place in countries such as France, Italy, Poland, Australia, Singapore, Japan, Germany, Austria, Russia, Scandinavia, and the Netherlands. According to the United Nations Population Division, "below-replacement fertility prevails in the more developed regions and is expected to continue to 2050." We need to start looking at the problems of underpopulation and economic disaster occurring as populations rapidly age, rather than spreading the myth of overpopulation and "need' for abortion and birth control. The Science of Sex I'm a 23 year old virgin saving sex for marriage. What did I miss by not being sexually active in college? STD's, unplanned pregnancy, heartache, and a lot of baggage that would follow me the rest of my life? I can live without that. When I meet the man I'm going to marry and walk down the aisle towards him, I'm not going to think, "I wish I had slept around more, had more boyfriends, experimented more, etc." No Way! I'm saving myself for my future husband. And I don't regret a minute of it. -College Graduate Sex is a powerful force of nature. It bonds people together, is pleasurable, and can create babies. So how does premarital sex damage relationships? The answer lies within the powerful oxytocin hormone released in the body during sexual activity. For example, picture duct taping a girl's arm to a guy's arm. Now rip off the tape (OUCH!) and use the same piece of tape to wrap her arm to a new guy's arm. What happens? Well, it hurts like crazy when you rip off the tape. After switching partners several times, partials of skin and hair left on the tape reduce the adhesiveness so it cannot attach as effectively. The same thing happens with sex. When oxytocin is released in the brain during sexual activity, it acts like emotional super glue and bonds you to that partner. When you break up (OUCH!) and have a new sexual partner, your ability to bond and produce oxytocin is damaged. Just like debris on the duct tape, previous sexual experience reduces the ability to bond correctly. Brain chemicals don't care how old, mature, or in control of your emotions you are- they still create a bond. No one can beat the brain chemistry behind sex. On the flip side, imagine that you never removed the duct tape. Eventually it would just feel like part of you. When a couple waits until marriage to have sex, and they remain faithful to each other, oxytocin acts as super glue between a husband and wife. It also helps maintain the "high" of sex. If you have been sexually active in the past, there is hope. Oxytocin levels can return to normal if you stop engaging in sexual activity and begin to heal the physical and emotional scars developed from premarital sex. Give yourself a year or so before you attempt to get into a new relationship, and commit to save sex for marriage. You won't regret it. What About Birth Control? All hormonal contraceptives (the pill, patch, mini-pill, shot, vaginal ring, emergency contraception, intrauterine devices, etc.) have the capability to cause an abortion. Hormonal contraceptives work in three way: by attempting to stop ovulation, by thickening cervical fluids to prevent fertilization, and by thinning the lining of the uterus to prevent implantation. The first two methods can cause and abortion because it occurs after fertilization. Hormonal contraception does not always stop ovulation. When break-through ovulation occurs, there is a possibility of fertilization. Studies have shown that ovulation rates in women taking oral contraceptives ranged from 1.7% to 28.6% per cycle. Ovulation rates for women taking progestin only pills (the mini-pill) ranged from 33% to 65%. When these contraceptives do no stop fertilization, they have the capability to cause an abortion because the lining of the uterus may be too thin and inhospitable for the embryo to implant and receive nourishment. Birth control manufacturers insist that their products do not terminate an existing pregnancy. However, they have incorrectly redefined the terms "contraception" and "pregnancy" to mean the moment of implantation rather than the moment of fertilization (implantation happens 7-10 days after fertilization). Emergency contraception (EC) is a large dose of the common birth control pill. EC is also known as the morning-after pill and is designed to be taken as a single dose after "unprotected sex." Documented side effects for EC include nausea, abdominal pain, fatigue, headache, dizziness, vomiting, diarrhea, breast tenderness, menstrual changes, and ectopic pregnancy. Contrary to popular arguments, EC does not decrease pregnancies and surgical abortions. EC had been available in Scotland since 1984, but pregnancy rates have not decreased and sexually transmitted infection rates have increased. NO REGRETS: The True Story Of My Adoption Plan When I first found out I was pregnant I couldn't control my crying. I shook uncontrollably. I had never felt so lonely or confused in my life. I wanted my boyfriend's support. I shouldn't have been surprised when he told me to have an abortion. My mind raced to justify the abortion. Perhaps my child would be better off dead than in a broken family. I thought that an abortion would be the answer to my problem. I tried to tell myself that my child wasn't really a baby, he was just tissue... I told myself lie after lie until I made the appointment. But no matter how hard I tried to fool myself, I knew I carried a baby. Deep down, I realized if I were to take my baby's life I would regret it forever. When I decided not to show up to the appointment, I felt so relieved. It didn't take long for me to face reality and see my baby as a gift. I realized it was my duty as mother to protect my child's best interest and give him all I could. Many relatives didn't understand why I was even thinking of adoption. Who in the world would give up their child? Me. That's who. Of course I wanted to be the one to rock him and watch him grow. But beyond my wants I knew my child deserved more. Adoption was the best way I could show love to my child. My boyfriend was overly thrilled about adoption... But nevertheless was willing to interview some couples with me. We met with them several times to ensure we found the best. The couple we chose was married, deeply in love, and welcomed our son as their own. Their love for my child is divine. I can hold my head up high and people are amazed. The birthfather, my family, and my friends congratulated me on my decision and came to realize it was out of love. Yes, I grieved the loss of my child. But the joy far exceeds the sorrow. I thank God that I don't have to visit the memory of an aborted baby. I can live with my decision and so can my son.. With no regrets, Molly Obviously, as you can assume.. I'm completely Pro-Life.. There is no excuse to have an abortion.. It's murder.. It always has been, and it always will be.. Also, as to the people arguing, well, what if the mother/parents can't financially take care of the baby, or gives him/her a bad upbringing? If for whatever reason the mother/parents are unable to work, therefore, can't support their child/children, why would it be so horrible to live off of welfare.. Welfare is there to help people.. Also, you can't say "Why bring a baby into this world if you're just going to have to raise it with money from the government? Because, there are a lot of people that don't even have kids, that are living off of the government, most disabled... So, there isn't really any argument.. And there are people that have children, that are barely scraping by, but they didn't decide to kill their child just because they wouldn't have the best of the best.. I would rather give my children just the basics.. food, clothes, a roof over their heads, and love.. rather than have had an abortion.. Furthermore, there are parents out there that are together, have decent jobs, can afford whatever they need, and still don't give their children a proper upbringing. Also, just because a woman feels she can't, or just simply doesn't want to raise a child.. She most likely could.. And there is always adoption.. It's a very good choice, especially if you don't want to raise your baby yourself.. And to the women out there that are seriously thinking about killing their child.. I think that you would regret killing your child more, rather than if you put him/her up for adoption.. He/she could have a wonderful life.. Why take that away from them? You'd think you'd want the best for them.. It doesn't matter how you were raised or what your childhood was like.. You can turn your life around, and make something of yourself.. But, that's all up to you.. People shouldn't blame other people for the way they are.. I understand some people have had pretty horrible childhoods/lives.. But, it's what you do with your life now, that matters.. You don't have to keep living your life in the wrong way, just because that's the way you were raised... It's all you now.. Anyway, to get to my question.. If you were pro-choice before you read the actual facts about abortion, has it made you change your views? Also, what are your views on abortion?Abortion is a very serious problem in the world.. And I just thought that some people would actually care enough to read this.. Even, though it is pretty long.. I'm not trying to change anyone's opinion.. It's just that some people don't base their opinions on the facts.. They just believe whatever they want to without even knowing what they are making an opinion about..To Lizzy: You said that you have problems with your "organs". It would depend on what kind of "problems" that you had whether or not you'd be able to physically/healthily carry a baby. You also said that if you kept taking your medicines, (not knowing if you were pregnant) you'd have a deadly miscarriage? What exactly do you think a miscarriage is? Also, about a child getting in the way of someone's lifestyle and giving you stretch marks. I can't believe you would make that kind of remark, especially about the stretch marks.. That's pretty low, if you ask me.. You're saying, you'd rather kill your baby so you don't get stretch marks, rather than to have your baby at all..And it should be on people's conscience.. They did something horrible, and now they have to live with it.. "So, it's best left to the professionals to keep the women from hurting or even killing themselves." So, you're saying.. Let's protect the women from hurting/killing themselves. By killing the innocent babies within them, so their life can be the way it was before?Also, about your comment on overpopulation. "It isn't like all of man kind will be aborted off of earth, lol." Do you find abortion to be funny, because it isn't? You're basically saying we aren't going to kill off the human race because we're killing babies everyday. Please read the section in my "question" about The Overpopulation Myth.

Nestle uses slave labor, please tell me if you knew about it or not.For more info email me at firemblemfreak@yahoo.comJOIN THE FIGHT TO REMOVE SLAVERY FROM OUR CHOCOLATE!

1.Which region has the highest population of Asian Americans?a) the Northeastb) the Southc) the Midwestd) the West2. The Republican Party originated in the Midwest and was founded in order to:a) oppose slavery spreading into the Midwestb) spread the ideals of free-market capitalismc) open up farmland to people arriving from the northeastd) become an alternative to the ruling democratic party3. New England, in the Northeast Region, is known among other things for its highly developed system of:a) railroadsb) highwaysc) educationd) religion4. Which region fought a war for independence from 1861-65?a) the Northeastb) the Southc) the Midwestd) the West5. The oldest human settlements in the United States are located in which region?a) the Northeastb) the Southc) the Midwestd) the West6. During the 20th century, the South produced some of the best American:a) filmsb) literaturec) wheatd) chocolate

And how do you feel about it? Many other chocolate companies also get their chocolate from West Africa's Ivory Coast using the same child slaves. (children as young as 4) I was curious to your feelings about this. If you'd like more information about this feel free to email me. I'd love to discuss it with you in more detail.

This is actually not a hypothetical question...because both Hershey's and Nestle purchase chocolate from the Ivory Coast (Cote d'Ivoire) which utilizes an extensive child slave labor operation in most of their cocoa farms to maximize profit. These children are either orphans who are captured or are promised a paying job or are children sold into slavery by their impoverished parent(s). This is pretty well documented, and Hershey's and Nestle are well aware of this issue, but choose to ignore it in order to keep prices low. Why is this not extensively covered in the news? Mostly because Nestle is a corporate giant that either pays news sources not to report this, or threatens to pull all sponsorship of sources that do report it.So, now that we all know, are you going to continue to purchase Hershey's and Nestle's chocolate, because it comes in nice shiny foil with fun looking packaging? If you will continue to purchase these brands of chocolate, please let me know why.Some sources:http://www.american.edu/TED/chocolate-slave.htmhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chocolate_and_slavery#Calls_to_actionhttp://www.freerepublic.com/forum/a3b35ff077f57.htmUmm...slavery isn't a job. If everyone boycotts chocolate made out of cocoa from the Ivory Coast, the child slaves will be freed because the cocoa farmers will have no use for them anymore. They would rather either start paying the children or paying adults to collect the cocoa and lose out part of their profit than lose out all of their profit from boycotts.For those who think along the lines of "duhhh...many corporations do this, we can't stop it or we will have nothin to eat!"Complete nonsense. There are many small brands (which are of course, a little bit more expensive) that are certified fair trade. This means no slavery involved, among other things. You can buy these brands and items virtually guilt free, if you don't mind spending a few extra dimes.And if we all have the attitude of "who cares, we can't do nothin" than nothing will be done. However, if we all have the attitude of "I care, and I will do my part to end this and let others know so that they can do the same" then something WILL be done (because theoretically, there would be no customer base for this kind of shit). So don't be so apathetic, that is very dangerous.Some fool called this "an old urban legend," hah. This only came to light recently, and you can check all of the REFERENCES listed in the WIKIPEDIA site for proof, if you weren't an ignorant, lazy fool.

"Human trafficking" is an umbrella term for all forms of slavery that exist today. Did you know that nearly half of the world's chocolate is made from cocoa grown in the Cote D'Ivoire, where over 12,000 children have been trafficked into forced labor? So, where (in your area) can you purchase "fair trade chocolate" or chocolate certified "traffik-free"? Kind of a "treasure hunt" kind of question. How many can you find?

Since chocolate is a luxury and it cocoa plantations (not all but most) use child labour, do you make sure you buy fairtrade and not support child slavery?some fairtrade info:http://www.fairtrade.org.uk/http://www.guidemegreen.com/article_fairtrade.phphttp://www.fairtrade.net/

'cocoa' (the main ingredient in chocolate) comes via the use of 'child slavery' - deter or stop your consumption of Chocolate Easter Eggs, etc. this Easter?

An earlier question made me wonder if other vegans and vegetarians go out of their way to get Fair Trade chocolate and coffee, if they consider it part of their veg*nism to not support human slavery as well, or what other products/practices you guys know of that contribute to awful human rights violations.(Also interested in hearing responses from non-veg people who support the Fair Trade initiatives.)

i need to be an expert on this for my english class by thursday

I just heard about human (children too!) slavery to produce chocolate, cacao and coffee in Mali and am very disturbed. Does anyone have any information about this or any good resources please?