There's been a lot of talk flying around this week about offering women $5,000 to have a baby in the name of growing a declining population. Even the president said it sounded like a good idea.
While I don't disagree that we need to address this problem sooner rather than later, I feel like there are better places to start.
Because unless the $5,000 is some sort of tax credit or something along those lines, I think the type of person who would literally create another human life for $5,000 in cash is probably the type of person who doesn't need to be creating another human life. I see it being the same type of person who gets a $1,200 COVID stimulus check and quits their full-time job.
Call me a snob or a bleeding heart or something in between, but the cost of raising a child "spans anywhere from $202,248 to $430,928." What happens to these babies when these women spend all of that $5,000? I fear it will lead to either neglect or a major welfare boom. So, I have some better ideas.
First up, we need to end the abortion industrial complex. In 2021, for every five children born in the United States, one was aborted. In 2024, it's estimated that 1,038,000 total babies were aborted in the United States.
Before everyone gets their panties in a wad, I'm not proposing a federal abortion ban — I know that would never pass, and I know the president doesn't support it. I don't necessarily, either. I'm proposing we stop predatory abortion practices, many of which are often aimed at minority women. In 2023, Ohio State Sen. Michelle Reynolds (R-3rd District) wrote the following:
Abortion is killing the black community.
The abortion industry has nefarious roots in hatred and racism. Margaret Sanger, the founder of Planned Parenthood, was a eugenicist who systematically targeted “inferior races” for decades. She opened her first clinic in a black neighborhood in Brooklyn.
This horrific moment was just the beginning. Abortion is still a lucrative business scheme in America.
Since 1973, this predatory industry has claimed the lives of 20 million black children in the nation.
Ohio’s black women and babies have felt this evil year after year. And it continues today.
The black community accounts for just over 13% of Ohio’s population, yet according to the Ohio Department of Health in 2022, 48.4% of abortions performed in Ohio were on black women.
Black babies in Ohio are 6 times more likely to be aborted than white babies.
The abortion machine guarantees that racial and ethnic minorities remain perpetual minorities.
This is not healthcare – this is extermination.
I agree with Reynolds wholeheartedly. This must end. Not just for black women but for all women. I won't get into my "pro-life from conception to natural death" views that I know many of you don't agree with, but I think ending the business of abortion and placing more value on the sanctity of life is a fabulous start toward fixing this population growth problem.
That said, I know that many pregnant women aren't prepared to become mothers just because their bodies are.
Alternatively, I know so, so many people who have been trying to adopt a baby for years without much luck — people would make wonderful parents. People who can't afford the outrageous upfront fees for private adoptions, people who don't quite meet the often draconian government requirements (I had a friend who was trying to adopt two little girls and failed a home inspection because the temperature on her hot water heater was a few degrees too high), and people who are simply put on a waiting list and never chosen because there aren't enough babies to go around.
I don't want to get too into my personal business, but I can add myself to this category. I've dreamed of having children all my life. While I haven't quite given up yet, it's looking less and less likely. Several years ago, I started the adoption process, but it felt like an uphill battle, especially at a time when I was also taking care of my chronically ill mother. Not to toot my own horn, but any child who came to live with me would have access to a beautiful life and be well-loved and taken care of by many people. I could line up at least 20 friends, colleagues, and family members who could vouch for that, but I'll just say that there is a lot of red tape in place that prevents me from proving it.
So, we start by killing (pun not intended) the abortion business and making adoption more accessible for good people. There's more we'd need to do here, like provide more support, care, and education for pregnant women who choose to carry their babies to term. Maybe we can incentivize putting your baby up for adoption instead of aborting her? Maybe we can offer more education that emphasizes that life begins at conception. Taking bigger steps toward wiping out drug and alcohol addiction could also play a part. I also think the foster care system needs a huge overhaul.
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We also need to take steps to make life more livable in the United States so that women who do get pregnant or want to be pregnant can follow through on that without fearing what kind of world they're bringing their baby into and whether or not they can afford it. But I'm not talking about more handouts; I'm talking about lowering taxes, focusing on trade education, and ending all this fake women's rights nonsense that makes women feel bad for wanting a family. These all feel like some good places to start, anyway.
I know I'm just scratching the surface and all of these issues are not so black and white, but if we're going to spend money on growing the population, this seems like a much more reasonable way to do it than simply giving a woman $5,000 to have a baby. That's just my two cents, anyway.
