Abortion is arguably the No. 1 social issue in the nation. It has been a constant source of contention in the nearly 50 years since the Supreme Court’s Roe decision. Some voters make their entire election decisions based on whether a candidate is for or against it. However, the challenge brought before the Supreme Court in the form of a Mississippi 15-week abortion ban may upend the country’s long reality. The recent oral arguments before the highest court in the land didn’t go too well for abortion proponents, but time will tell.
During the Clinton era of the 1990s, the phrase “safe, legal, rare” was introduced into the abortion dialogue. These three words may have helped Democrats appear less extreme for a time. Fast forward to 2021, and “safe, legal” may still jump around on the lips of the Left, but rare? Pro-choice advocates have all but removed it from the list.
The abortion rate is
falling
and has been for years. It is a good thing. But the militancy by which abortion supporters push their agenda has only increased. The idea of “rare” is gone, stigmas removed, and women are encouraged to shout their abortion on social media and elsewhere. On her podcast in 2016, actress Lena Dunham
even said
, “Now I can say that I still haven’t had an abortion, but I wish I had.” Gone is the idea that abortion is sad but medically necessary. In its place now: Abortion is not only good and
deserves celebration
but is a woman’s rite of passage.
With Roe nationally threatened, the Left continues to argue that women need abortion to be successful or on the same playing field as men. It has been the collective claim from the start. Abortion is “necessary,” and the absence of it, or at least broad access to it, threatens the very worth of women in a male-dominated world. It never ceases to be curious behavior. In all other discussions of womanhood, people declare women as strong, fierce, powerful creatures who simply can’t be stopped. Reticent housewives of the 1950s have evolved into “boss babes” who will put up with no denigration. Yet, it is abundantly clear that women can surmount any obstacle in all things. In all life pursuits, that is, except one: motherhood.
Despite fashionable language shared by the gender-confused, men can’t have babies. It is an indisputable fact. Female bodies were specifically created to grow, carry, deliver, and even feed children. Pregnancy is not easy, but it is natural. There is nothing more naturally feminine.
In modern discussions from the most aggressive abortion supporters, women are considered victims in the pregnancy equation. Men are entirely at fault for any unexpected pregnancies. It may feel good to assign most or all blame on the patriarchy, but this does not fall in line with the truth about biology or relationships. Sexual assault that results in pregnancy, such as rape or incest, is undoubtedly one of the cruelest crimes inflicted on another human being. It is undisputed across both political aisles. The pro-choice crowd regularly lists rape and incest as reasons abortion should remain untouched and become unrestricted. But neither makes the top of the list when women head to abortion clinics.
According
to the Guttmacher Institute, rape and incest are the least-cited reasons for abortion. Top reasons for abortion include the following: Having a baby would interfere with my education, can’t afford a baby right now, would have to find a new place to live, not sure about the relationship, and not ready for another child. All of these exist in percentages far greater than rape or incest, which, according to Guttmacher, land at 1% and 0.5% of respondents, respectively.
Women who engage in consensual sex are not helpless victims who wake up one day, surprised to find a burgeoning belly and wonder how it happened. A child may be unexpected or unwanted, but it is no shock how they arrived. Sexual activity requires that both parties share an equal measure of responsibility. Pregnancy results from sex, and both men and women contribute to the conception of a child. The real victim in each case of unwanted pregnancy is the unborn baby. Abortion will never stop being the cruel destruction of the innocent at the hands of adults who knew better.
The mystification of pregnancy and removal of sexual responsibility from women can’t exist in a world in which “the future is female.” Women cannot be intelligent, indomitable beings who lack basic knowledge about reproduction or birth control. Women cannot be champions for gender equality and refuse to accept what their bodies — female bodies — were made to do. If the former exists, the latter must, too. It is imperative that we not demand the “problem” of an unborn child be eliminated through targeted killing. Doing so is morally wrong, but it does not align with the preached narrative for decades.
Pregnancy is natural, and women possess an instinct to nurture. An unwanted or unexpected pregnancy can cause concern, but internal and material resources exist to guide women along the way. The strength of the pro-life movement isn’t national, but local. In towns and cities, those who love women and their babies are eager to help. If only women would realize motherhood does not hinder their ability to succeed. If only women would fully embrace their half of responsibility that is inextricable from sexual freedom.
The abortion lobby says to women, “You can’t handle a baby.” Despite challenges, women should ignore this sexism masquerading as care and respond, “Oh yes, we can.”
