What a dialogue about abortion should look like
A version of the following was printed in The Dove, a publication of Regis High School, where Raymond Sullivan is a senior.
It’s election season: the time of year when candidates for office across the country come together to debate their opponents and explain their positions on important issues. One such issue is abortion, which more than 50% of Americans describe as one that will play an important role in their vote on Tuesday.
According to recent polls, approximately 60% of Americans think that abortion should be legal to some degree, while roughly 40% believe it should be illegal in most cases. But the numbers vary regionally, and people are far more inclined to restrict late-term abortions than early ones. Although it continues to be one of the most divisive subjects for the American people, the dialogue surrounding abortion has been chock-full of canned responses and timid tones. So here are a few of the questions and answers I’d like to see in an intelligent debate about abortion.
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Moderator: Where do you stand on the subject of abortion?
Candidate: Maybe the better question to start with is, “What exactly is an abortion?” What is being destroyed by that procedure? After all, an abortion is different from most medical procedures. It is not the same as removing a tumor or a wisdom tooth or a gallbladder. The goal of an abortion is to destroy a human organism, with a unique DNA, distinct from its mother or father. We have to recognize that scientific reality before we turn to whether and how to restrict that procedure.
Moderator: Does science tell us when life begins?
Candidate: The answer to that question is yes. The beginning of life is marked by fertilization, when the organism is genetically distinct from the sperm and egg. Crucial features, such as a fetal heartbeat or brain development, begin in weeks six through eight. Much later, around week 30, the baby begins to respond to external stimuli, including light and sound. But drawing the line at any of these points is subjective. Everyone develops at different rates. Albert Einstein, Charles Darwin, and Sir Isaac Newton, pioneers of science, were all born prematurely. Premature babies might not pass all the typical checkpoints of a child in the womb, yet they still have a claim to life regardless of the extent of their embryonic development.
Moderator: Why not just say that life begins at birth? Isn’t that easier and something we can all agree on?
Candidate: I don’t think so. Because we don’t really agree on that. In fact, we all know the opposite. Every time you congratulate an expectant mother, go to a gender reveal, attend a baby shower, or paint a nursery, you’re confirming what the science has made clear. Science doesn’t distinguish between wanted and unwanted pregnancies. That same impulse that leads an expectant mother to stop smoking, avoid alcohol, and enhance her nutrition during pregnancy confirms what we all already know: that she is carrying a human child who will be affected by the decisions made during the pregnancy.
Moderator: What about poor women who can’t afford to raise a child? What do we say to them?
Candidate: It is important that pregnant women be supported. That takes a concerted effort from all of us. We have to recognize, though, that there are organizations that help with that. One example is the Sisters of Life, a community of religious sisters committed to supporting single mothers financially and emotionally. Adoption is also an option. There are roughly 2 million couples waiting to adopt a child in America. There should be no stigma in putting a child up for adoption; in fact, that is a life-affirming and generous decision. We need to provide assistance across society for pregnant women, even if it costs money to do that.
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Perhaps it is unrealistic to hope for a debate of this type. These are hard questions that moderators and candidates have become skilled at avoiding. But hard questions lead to better conversations and are necessary for better policies and better understanding. We must acknowledge the science and look at the facts while endeavoring to talk openly and honestly about the challenges associated with abortion policies. If we continue to avoid the topic altogether, more human lives will be destroyed, tensions will increase, and we won’t get anywhere.
I appreciate your approach. Thank you!
I’d like to cite and share the info with others on the 2 million waiting to adopt. Can you share that source with me in the interest of promoting life.
Excellent points that should be brought to the forefront in any discussion about abortion.
A DIALOGUE
Abortion is a very emotional issue and seldom produces reasonable or productive discussions. Below is my attempt to offer a reasonable interaction between people with opposing viewpoints.
In this discussion, the two participants will be labeled “Pro” and “Con”. “Pro” will represent someone who favors a woman’s right to terminate a pregnancy and “Con” will represent someone who does not support this right.
Pro: Why do you want to interfere with a woman’s right to end her pregnancy?”
Con: Let’s start this discussion at a point on which we can agree.
Pro: How can we do that? I favor the right to abortion, and you oppose it.
Con: Can we both agree that a human life has value?
Pro: But I don’t think an unborn baby is yet a human life.
Con: That is not the question. Can we agree that a human life has value?
Pro: OK, I’ll agree with you on that point.
Con: Good. Then we have a place to start our discussion.
Pro: But we are going to have a lot of things we don’t agree on.
Con: True, but at least er have found a starting point. Do you think that some lives should be
given more value than others?
Pro: Well, certainly some lives are more important than others and accomplish more.
Con: Very true, but do you think they have more value as human beings?
Pro: Not sure where you are going with this, but I guess I would agree that all human beings
are equally valuable even though some may accomplish more than others.
Con: Does it matter their nationality, where they live, what color their skin is, what gender they
are, what handicaps they have or how old they are?
Pro: No, I believe in equality.,
Con: My goodness! We now have two points on which we agree.
Pro: But we haven’t yet touched on the topic of abortion.
Con: OK, let’s deal with that topic. Why do you think that women should have the right to end
the life of their unborn child?
Pro: Because it is her body, and she should have the right to control it.
Con: Is the unborn child a part of her body?
Pro: It certainly is a part of her for nine months.
Con: In what way is it part of her?
Pro: It is growing in her womb
Con: If it is born, is it still a part of her?
Pro: Of course not, but before it is born it is really not a separate human being.
Con: Why not?
Pro: Because it is totally dependent on its mother. It can’t survive or function on its own.
Con: Sort of like a two year old. I doubt that a two year old could survive very long on its own.
Pro: But the two-year-old is already born.
Con: So, the only real difference is the location of the two-year-old and the unborn. I think you
already agreed that location did not make one person mover valuable than another.
Pro: I did not mean location in the womb.
Con: Why not?
Pro: Because the womb is part of a mother’s body, not another address.
Con: You said you don’t believe a baby is really a life until it’s born. Can you explain that for
me? What changes at birth to make it a real person?
Pro: It breathes.
Con: So, breathing is your criteria for actual life?
Pro: Makes sense to me,
Con: What about a person who is on a ventilator? Is he or she alive and a real person?
Pro: Of course, but that person was once breathing.
Con: Do you believe in free choice?
Pro: Of course, and that is why a woman should have the free choice to have an abortion.
Con: Are there any limits on our choices?
Pro: What do you mean?
Con: Are there some choices we are not allowed to make?
Pro: Sure, we are not allowed to steal from or harm our neighbor.
Con: Does an unborn baby also have a choice?
Pro: Not if the mother chooses abortion.
Con: I am done with my questions. Thanks for the meaningful dialogue.
Pro: I am not sure I should thank you. I am now confused.
Con: Good