LETTER: Abortion is not black and white
Editor,
I would like to comment on the recent inclusion of an advertising supplement from the “Human Life Alliance.” I must admit that my first reaction was to roll my eyes, expecting another political ploy to manipulate our emotions. I found I was only partially justified. I was pleased to see a step, if a small one, in the right direction on the abortion issue. While still politicized with twisted depictions of “pro-choice,” the information did seem to focus on educating people about their decisions. Such educational initiatives are where “pro-life” activists should be devoting their time and money, not to politicians.
Instead of condemning people socially and legally for such a traumatic decision, we should be offering help and early education on alternatives and consequences. Instead of promoting an environment of fear where women and girls are ashamed to admit pregnancy, let alone considering abortion, we should offer support and understanding for their situation. While I do not condone abortion, I believe that true understanding allows for choice, along with competent counseling, in the case of the 11-year-old rape victim or the mother facing certain death for herself and her child. For this reason, I cannot support the “pro-life” movement. This group has largely become an agent for political propaganda, seeking only for unrealistic legislative action that neglects the actual people who would be affected.
The issue of abortion should not be handed over to politicians. We all need to step off the “pro-life” and “pro-choice” soap-boxes and look at where actions would be effective. We need to create a society that provides accurate information and education, unpolluted with the politics of current movements. I believe that views in this country, excluding a few extremists, are far closer than political rhetoric implies. Remove the “pro-” labels from our vocabulary and the cries of “baby-killers” or “freedom-haters” from our activism, and we might actually see people, good people, holding earnest opinions. If we make issues such as abortion into political fodder, that is when we make a mockery of human life.
Melina Tew