Featured photo by Raphiell Alfaridzy on Unsplash
Sources for this post are found at the end.
Part 1 of this series is found here.
This week I shall be doing some shorter blogposts as I am currently busy with a new course with the Prince’s Trust. The course focuses on health and social care and I am aiming to possibly get into the sector on some kind of IT-related job to complement my existing Google IT Support Specialist certificate I obtained last year.
This week will be the busiest of the course so I will not have as much time to focus on blogging. I was thinking on doing this post I am doing right now, and then perhaps a blog talking a bit about CSS which I am learning at the moment via FreeCodeCamp, or perhaps a post where I talk about the origins of a random word chosen by some kind of word generator? Just some fun little insightful bits to keep the blog going.
Without further delay let’s get to it…
The Wire Coat Hanger
I already know one dark usage of the wire coat hanger that I have performed myself a couple years ago. This usage is the unblocking of a toilet. The wire coat hanger, when unraveled into a long wire, can be really good for getting a toilet unclogged and working again if you do not have access to a plunger.
I remember the fateful day in question when this went down and I did not know at first what to do about it. But then I remembered from some cartoons I have seen, not exactly sure which, where wire coat hangers were used to unblock toilets. I wondered if this would actually work or if it was just some kind of cartoon myth. I had no other options so out from my wardrobe I obtained one and performed the deed and miraculously it worked fantastically.
The defiled wire coat hanger was immediately disposed of.
Comically dark and also quite disgusting, still dark nonetheless in my own opinion.
The Wire Coat Hangers Actual Dark History
But when it comes to the Binding of Isaac the wire coat hanger has a much darker and controversial association…
In the Binding of Isaac, the wire coat hanger is one of the early items a player unlocks and is likely to come across, particularly after a boss battle. When Isaac picks it up you will be horrified to discover that the aesthetic includes the coat hanger being impaled right through his head and out the other side.
The item gives Isaac (or any other character) the passive effect of an increased rate of fire in tears – the projectile used in the game to fight enemies and bosses, which is disturbing in and of itself.
In real life this item references the usage of the wire coat hanger, or other long metallic implement, in attempted self-performed abortions by trying to damage the uterus and prevent fetal development.
The item in the Binding of Isaac depicts the increase in tears when it is picked up. Isaac may perhaps be upset about being aborted or that there was an attempted abortion that failed which he is upset about, perhaps because it left him with some kind of lasting damage. That is what I take from it anyway.
Or maybe Isaac had siblings who were aborted, who knows. Although, since Isaac’s mother seems to be highly religious to a cult-like fashsion it seems doubtful she would have went for an abortion, but who knows maybe times were different for her when she was younger.
Usually, such drastic measures are taken when there is no safer access to abortion services in the area, such as if abortion is outlawed, or if they are prevented from accessing abortion services due to other reasons such as social stigma or being forcibly prevented by parents or controlling partners.
The method is incredibly dangerous to the woman as it can become stuck and/or cause internal bleeding or infections, and can perforate the bowel all of which if not treated can be fatal. Self-performed and other unprofessional means of abortion have been responsible for the deaths of thousands of women, especially during times when abortion was entirely illegal such as in the US, so it can be imagined that many more are dying still in places where it remains illegal.
Of course, if the self-performed abortion does go wrong the woman would be less likely to seek medical care as they may get in trouble with the law or other authority figures, or it may cause social rejection and isolation, particularly if they live in a highly conservative and/or religious area.
Such rejection, isolation and legal implications can further lead to loss of employment and monetary security, which itself can lead to things such as homelessness, suicidal thoughts, self-harm and so on, a dark path that may be very hard to get off of without help.
Access to safer abortions and the right for woman to do so is something that has greatly improved in the modern day but there is still a long way to go in many places, even in the West. In the United States there are still some tough restrictions on access to abortion in certain States, with woman facing tough penalties for breaking them.
The wire coat hanger itself has for decades been a symbol used on protest signs when it comes to pro-choice demonstrations. The legal repercussions for a woman who attempts to abort a baby herself or in ways that go against existing restrictions can even lead to a first-degree murder charge, of which the legal implications can obviously be dire and life-ruining.
Even though abortion has been made legal in the US many states implement tough restrictions and very harsh legal penalties for those who break such restrictions. Many restrictions have the purpose of existing to prevent abortions entirely as a legal loophole, for example a woman may not realize they’re pregnant until it is too late to legally abort.
I use the US as an example as it is a good example of a place where more Conservative jurisdictions have still made abortion a major female rights issue, and a place where the threat of abortion becoming illegal again is very real. I also use it as an example as I am more familiar with the US on these kinds of things. It is much more extensively covered there, ever more so since the much more restrictive laws came about in Texas that an abortion cannot happen if a heartbeat is detected, which can happen as early as 6-weeks.
Although the new law in Texas caused abortions to decline around 10 percent, many women simply went out of State to receive an abortion or obtained abortion pills. Of course, though, doing this is not always possible for more vulnerable woman who may be stuck within restrictive lives. Others may also simply not be able to afford to get legal abortions, and this also affects minorities in a disproportionate manner.
This means that minorities are further in danger from unprofessional abortions, where they may be subject to abuse, permanent injury, and possibily even death.
Lack of sexual education may also lead down the path of attempting the wire coat hanger abortion, when their are safer alternatives such as abortion pills.
The wire coat hanger is a symbol (particularly in the West) of women’s continued struggle for adequate rights and remembrance to not return to times when abortion was completely outlawed.
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