In a recent blog post that 'went viral'
entitled, "How I lost faith in the 'Pro-Life' movement", author Libby
Anne presents a compelling argument on how the goals of the pro-life movement
are not in sync with the ways in which the movement aims at accomplishing these
goals. Despite her
arguments, Anne's blog misses the primary question seeking to be answered in the pro-life/pro-choice
debate: when does a human life become a person
deserving the protection of the law?
There
are many arguments for and against abortion, but at its root, the
pro-life movement is based upon the ideal that ALL human life has dignity and
should be protected. Scientifically,
we can prove that human life begins at conception (find
sources here
and here),
so then the question we must ask ourselves is when does this life become valuable and therefore necessitate protection under the law? The answer to this question is the crux of the pro-life argument and while not all pro-lifers may be the best at articulating it, the
primary reason we believe abortion should be outlawed is because we
believe that every life has value and therefore should be granted the legal
right to life.
Libby Anne’s main premise on the
pro-life movement's misplaced goals is that the greatest way to reduce abortion
is through widespread promotion of birth control. This fails for two reasons: First, while birth
control may reduce abortion numbers in the short term, especially in developing
nations, it has failed to reduce unintended pregnancies in developed nations
that have had birth control for long periods of time. In fact, according to the
Guttmacher Institute, unintended pregnancies have been on the rise in the
United States over the past few years (see unintended pregnancy rates in the US
over time, here). And it is these unintended pregnancies
that are the main cause for abortion. Also,
according to the Guttmacher
Institute, more than half of all abortions
are performed on fetuses conceived while the woman is on birth control. When more than half of the pregnancies that
lead to an abortion happen while birth control is being used, it does not make
sense to put forth large amounts of effort in promoting its use.
The
second and more important reason for the lack of promotion of birth control is
that it goes against the very basis of the pro-life argument: human
dignity. Pro-lifers as a whole do NOT
advocate outlawing birth control, but many of them see the promotion of birth control as disrespectful to the dignity of women. This is because the normalization of
contraception allows the consequences of sex (the possibility of pregnancy,
emotional attachment, STDs, etc.) to be disregarded. This allows men to view women as objects for sex
and not as the beautiful
and dignified person who should be valued for much more than sex.
Indeed,
from my conversations with other men, I can tell you that birth control has
allowed men to disregard the fact that behind sex there is a person. And that person has feelings and a life that has value far beyond what is
offered in short term sexual relationships.
I understand that there are many reasons for which birth control is used,
but there are natural consequences that come with having sex that must be realized. Women tend to have a much better
understanding of this because they are much more closely effected, but many men and women in this age of birth control act as if there
are no consequences to the sexual act.
Birth
control allows the consequences of sex to be pushed aside. It takes away the
need for sex to be considered as more than just an act of pleasure. With birth
control it becomes easy for both parties to wrongly assume that they can enjoy sex
without thinking about the emotional and physical meaning behind the act. Squandering the need for these considerations
squanders the respect of the dignity of the man and the woman involved in the sexual
act. Respect of human dignity is at the heart of the pro-life movement and as
such, the movement cannot stand behind something that inhibits this respect of
dignity. With regards
to those who do use birth control, I understand there are many complexities and
cases which I do not fully understand. I
am trying to point out the other effects that sex without consequences has on
the dignity of the people involved.
As
it pertains to the pro-life movement, it makes no sense to promote something
that allows the consequences of sex and, in certain cases, the dignity of women
to be ignored. It is important that
birth control is not pushed upon women for ulterior motives, however well
intended, which may allow her to be used. The promotion of birth control does not solve
the unintended pregnancy problem, but instead leads to a culture where the
consequences of sex are not fully considered by both parties. This leads to a devaluation of the sexual act
as well as the people involved which is not something that can be encouraged by
a movement focused on the value and dignity of every life.
-Stephen Wandor is a senior aerospace engineer and VP of communications for Notre Dame Right to Life
