The Abortion Debate - Pro Life vs Pro Choice

The Abortion debate is one of the most controversial you can find. Strong emotions often create sometimes nasty exchanges. Nowhere is this played out in more stark detail than on Twitter. 140 characters is not enough space to give an opinion in its full detail and, because of this, abuse seems to flow rather too easily. So we decided to get some answers to a few questions without the risk of butting heads.

May I introduce Lauren, @LozEWright, who volunteered for the pro choice/pro abortion side and Rhoslyn, @RhoslynThomas, who is pro life/anti abortion and very passionate on the subject. Both these ladies deserve everyone's respect for doing this. Sometimes the responses I see are vile, and to open up like this takes guts. Please , whatever your view, do not get personal, but by all means use the Facebook page or comments field to air your thoughts.

Lauren's answers (pro choice) are in red
Rhoslyn's answers (pro life) are in blue


1) Before we begin, please tell us a little about yourself.

 
I'm 27 years old and a mother to one 4 year old son who has just started school. We live alone in Kent. I'm a housewife at the moment.

I’m 23, from South Wales. I’ve recently graduated with a degree in Politics & French from Bristol University.

2) How do you feel the abortion debate is handled in the press?

 
I feel its getting a lot of airtime when there are protests, but not always a lot of debate. I have my views but can't ever adjust or consolidate them without discussion, debate or challenge. This is my biggest gripe with the media's portrayal of it.

Whenever I read an article in the press about abortion, even if it is written by a journalist from a conservative newspaper, it is usually amazingly biased and ignorant. There are some newspapers which tell out-and-out lies about abortion, the law and those who are pro-life and they are never held to account for it. I know they do this because they have lied about events that I have personally attended. Occasionally, a glimmer of truth escapes and the public get some idea of what abortion really is and the scale of the abortion epidemic. Sadly, these are rare occasions.

3) At what point do you feel life starts?

 
Thats a subjective question, an individual question. In my own mind though, I do feel as a baby in the womb you can be classed as "alive", but that's not what some would call life. I can acknowledge that but my own view is that once born one is definitely alive.

This is a very simple fact which is disputed time and time again: life starts at conception. Scientists know it, biologists know it and deep down, we all know it too. It is not a religious or sentimental opinion, it’s just a fact of life. If I had been sucked out of my mother’s womb by an abortionist when I was a week old, I would not be here today. From the moment I was conceived, vital characteristics had already been decided like the colour of my hair and eyes and my sex. To say that life starts at 6, 20 weeks or 39 weeks makes no sense. There is no magical transformation which happens at any of those stages, we just develop more and more as the days and weeks pass. In the same way, an 8 year old is more developed than a 3 month old baby. We look different and are capable of different things at different times in our life, but we are alive and human from the moment of conception.

4) The abortion limit is 24 weeks, is this is too late, too early or right & why and what would you suggest is appropriate?

This limit seems fine for me to be honest, you know at this stage you are pregnant and can make a choice if you need to about whether you want to continue with the pregnancy or need to take action. You know by this time if you have the means and will to become a mother financially and to a lesser extent emotionally.

I often hear or see politicians saying that they are ‘pro-choice’ (a rather stupid term since they are not to pro every choice), but that 24 weeks is just too late. I want to ask them, why? Why is 24 weeks too late for you? An abortion at any stage involves the destruction of a tiny, helpless and innocent human being. I do not discriminate against born human beings when they are less developed, so why should I do so for those who are unborn? Of course, I understand that it is natural for us to feel more of an attachment to those babies who are killed through late-term abortions - they look more like newborns and we know that they can feel the pain of being killed by this point. However, essentially, every abortion is equally bad. Yes, 24 weeks is late and it is barbaric, but that is because abortion is an intrinsically barbaric act. We should not reassure ourselves that abortion is ‘less bad’ if the baby is younger; those who are killed in the early stages of pregnancy are the forgotten ones.

5) Does it make sense to abort a pregnancy at an older age than babies that are surviving in another part of the hospital?

 
In my mind, this sort of thing is a medical issue. If a choice is taken to abort a pregnancy then its for the medical profession to ensure such a procedure is correctly done for both mother and everyone else. Survival for a foetus at this stage is not something they should be considering.

It is hypocritical to de-humanise the unborn child who is being ripped limb from limb at 24 weeks in one part of a hospital whilst in another part, a doctor is trying to save the life of a baby at the very same age whose parents have decided they want him or her to live. Apart from being a total violation of the Hippocratic Oath, how can we possibly expect doctors to give everything they have to saving those premature infants when they simultaneously hold the view that children in the womb are not real human beings? No doctor can compartmentalise their mind so that the wanted babies are precious tiny human beings, worthy of medical care whereas the unwanted ones are sub-human. Unborn babies must be one or the other, they cannot be both. How can we, as a nation, celebrate the so-called ‘right’ to abortion whilst mourning the death of a premature baby?

6) What is your opinion of abortions in the case of a rape victim falling pregnant? Should they be treated differently to other pregnancies?

 
Thats a totally different situation. I do advocate different treatment, I mentioned the choices in terms of emotional attachment in a pregnancy and you, I imagine, would have a hatred for the father and possibly something passed to the child. These feelings would take far more time to analyse and work through. It's an intrusion the woman has suffered of the highest level that's now led to something with lifelong consequences.

We must ask ourselves, in what way are the unborn altered when they have been conceived through rape? If two babies were put in front of us, one conceived through consensual sex and the other through rape, would we be able to tell the difference? Lastly, will an abortion make the memory of rape disappear? Will the woman’s life be magically repaired? If we are truthful, the answer to all these questions is no. A woman who has been raped and has subsequently had her baby killed by an abortionist will still have been raped, but now her baby is dead. Is this the best we can offer her?

7) If a woman falls pregnant and is not with the dad, she knew straight away that she does not want the baby but the dad does and offers to be the sole guardian should he have any rights to stop the abortion and keep his child? What rights should men have over their potential children? In this case assume this is a responsible man.

 
Thats a horrible question, the father of a baby when informed has an instant emotional connection and can at times feel like a passenger. Yet the woman if this were enacted would be a passenger for 9 months. While I understand the instant reply that the father would then have some 18 years of this responsibility I couldn't advocate this sort of plan.

Some women have come to think that when it comes to pregnancy, they are the only people involved. There is no baby, there is no father. Because they carry the baby, they have the last word. This is absolutely wrong. Firstly, we already know that a living human being is already alive inside of them. Secondly, we all know that, in the vast majority of cases, a baby has come about through sex with another man (we have meddling scientists to thank for those not conceived through sex). Why should he be excluded and brutally silenced? He has created that human being, that baby has half his DNA and yet, he has no rights. In this age, where equality is regarded as the holy grail, why are men prevented from saving their children from certain death?

8) What trait do you most dislike about the way your side of the argument portray themselves?

 
We portray ourselves as holier than thou. We know we are right and should be heard over the more religious side as they can be portrayed. We bay for blood as feminists and I dislike this.

I cannot stand pro-lifers who publicly attack each other in public. Some have even said that disunity is good for our cause! They only harm the pro-life movement. Those who oppose abortion are few and far between and we need to stick together. It’s more difficult for us because we don’t conform to relativism, but instead, know that truth is absolute. For that reason, it is difficult to agree on what that absolute truth is. We know it exists, but we all think that we’ve ‘nailed’ it and that everyone else is a dangerous idiot. Nevertheless, nothing good can come from stabbing each other in the back.

9) Do you think science plays a big enough part in the abortion debate?

 
No, scientists feel afraid of reprisals from both sides to make a statement on the effects on both the women and fetuses involved.

Definitely not. Pro-lifers are regularly accused of using ‘bad science’, yet the abortion industry is allowed to use the same old lie that the unborn child is ‘a ball of cells’. Apart from the fact that we are all just a ball of cells, the unborn child develops very quickly indeed. The child’s heart starts to beat at 3 weeks, probably before a woman even realises that she is pregnant. A ball of cells with a beating heart is much more than a ball of cells!

10) Please summarise your thoughts.

In summary, I am one for choice. A woman needs choice in this area and more research and comments/debate in the public domain would ensure this subject is not taboo and woman feel unafraid to discuss or partake of abortion.

If we could all see into the wombs of the pregnant women walking around considering abortion, I have no doubt that members of the public would gasp in awe at the wonder that is the growing unborn child. We must never forget that we are dealing with a developing human being. No matter how difficult the situation, the humanity of the unborn child must never be forgotten.


My thoughts

I don't mind saying that editing this was an emotional thing to do. Both Lauren and Rhoslyn have done an amazing job and I respect you both for this. There are points from both sides that I agree and disagree with. What they and I agree on is that the press seem almost frightened to address this issue, perhaps from fear of reprisal - who knows? But unless it is properly portrayed then it will continue to damage the debate.

On the life-starting question I tend to lean towards the pro life side. I disagree with the thought that "we all know it" because life is different for all people. A Christian believes life starts at conception, when God breathes life into the unborn child. Others will analyse heartbeat, brain activity, the ability to survive outside the womb etc. Unless everyone adopts the same faith structure, debate will rage on. However, I feel the 24 week abortion limit needs to be reviewed. It just feels barbaric to me that a someone can have an abortion when in the same building a C-section is saving the life of a baby the same age. What that limit is, however, I have no idea. That is down to experts in science to decide.

In the case of a rape I could not ever advocate a woman going through that pregnancy if they didn't want to. Whatever I feel about it, how could I say to a woman who has been raped that she must go through 9 months of what may be mental torture? I have read about women who have kept the baby in such circumstances, and good luck to them. This, however, is a personal thing and not everyone could cope.

The role of the father is a sore point. You hear everyone say about how they want dads involved, but then remove him of all rights. Surely where the father is in a stable position and he would be happy to take sole custody then it should be allowed. I know the woman would have to go through a pregnancy but you know what? If you have sex you might get pregnant. I see no reason that a life should be extinguished when it doesn't need to be. Yes, this would require complicated legal work but it should be looked at.

Overall, we need to address the thinking around abortion particularly in young people. I understand that in a modern liberal society you cannot dictate to someone that they are not allowed an abortion. However it seems far too mainstream, far too normal to have one. It feels like extended contraception. Abortions are so easy to arrange that people don't think twice about it and that is massively wrong. Getting pregnant is the most obvious "side effect" of having sex and contraception is not fool-proof. Until that changes, we should all understand that if you have sex with someone you may end up having a baby.

At 4 weeks there is a tiny heart beating inside you, if the thought of stopping that heart turns your stomach then use reliable protection (a condom). However, if the protection fails then there is no doubt that you have a tough choice ahead of you; one that will change your life either way.

Robert

Fore more from ILBR join our Facebook page