Providing a feminist analysis of the social politics of legal infant abandonment in advocacy and media discourses surrounding safe haven laws, Oaks cites that safe haven laws and discourse
reinforce social assumptions about what a good mother should be and how American society should treat women experiencing unplanned pregnancy. She finds that the other side of the coin of
advocacy for safe haven relinquishment is society’s failure to take responsibility for addressing the social and economic inequalities that make motherhood feel like an insurmountable challenge
for some women and teenagers. Chapters are: introduction: safe haven laws are not only about saving babies; the work of saving babies’ lives and souls; girls at risk of dumping their newborns;
relinquishing motherhood: how and why safe haven surrenders happen; the unsurpassed adoption value of safe haven babies; conclusion: safe haven laws and advancing reproductive justice.
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