Abortion Back in the Spotlight
On June 24, 2022, the opinion of the Supreme Court was released on the case of Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization. The 5-4 decision struck down the nearly 50-year-old case of Roe v. Wade that found a right to abortion in the “penumbra” (i.e., “shadowy emanations”) of the U.S. Constitution.
What Dobbs does not do:
Dobbs does not outlaw abortion.
What Dobbs does do:
Dobbs holds there is no federal right to abortion (i.e., abortion rights are not in the U.S. Constitution), so each state needs to determine its own policies regarding abortion. Dobbs makes clear that voters and elected representatives of each state should determine abortion laws and policies, not the U.S. Supreme Court. This is the definition of democracy—letting citizens and their representatives determine what the law should be regarding abortion.
What is the net effect of Dobbs?
Now all 50 states must determine what the state’s law should be regarding abortion. At least three states at the time of this writing (Kentucky, Louisiana, South Dakota) outlaw abortions entirely now that Roe is overruled. In more than a dozen states abortion will soon be illegal. (Here is a link to an informative article that our daughter, Megan Messerly, a health care reporter for Politico, wrote on the topic.) Some states (such as Mississippi, which brought the Dobbs case) outlaw abortion after a certain number of weeks after conception. Thus, in Mississippi, a woman can obtain an abortion provided she is not more than 15 weeks into the pregnancy. Laurie and I live in California, where state laws are very liberal, and essentially allow abortions up to the moment the baby is ready to be delivered.
What facts about abortion are irrefutable?
What cannot be contested is the fact that from the moment of conception the unborn baby (Latin word for “unborn baby” is fetus) is a human being. It is biologically/genetically human, and is a living being. A heartbeat can be detected five weeks after conception and brain activity six weeks after conception.
What arguments are used by abortion rights advocates?
Those who support abortion rights typically focus on the pregnant woman, doing everything possible to avoid references to the unborn human in the womb. Thus, terms like “reproductive freedom” and “reproductive choice” are often used. Also, a right to “bodily autonomy” is often raised, stating that no law should tell a woman what she must do with her own body. (Ironically, some of those who use this argument had no problem insisting that women get a COVID-19 vaccine in order to keep their job.) In the case of a pregnancy, there are two bodies—the mother’s and the unborn baby’s. Despite the unborn baby being inside the body of the pregnant woman, there is still this second body that abortion rights advocates want to ignore.
What arguments are used by pro-life advocates?
Biology provides a strong argument for eliminating “abortion on demand.” The fact that the unborn baby is a human being is not an opinion, but biological fact. Because the unborn baby is human, and the unique life of the unborn baby begins at conception, many pro-life advocates hold that abortion is always wrong. Some believe that exceptions should be made in the cases of rape or incest (e.g., the Mississippi law behind the Dobbs case). Others think exceptions should be made for fetal abnormality (which often means the death sentence for a Down’s Syndrome baby) or when the mother’s life is at risk (an extremely rare phenomenon). Allowing abortions in the case of risk to maternal health, which was part of the case of Doe v. Bolton, the 1973 companion case to Roe v. Wade, became a loophole for obtaining “late term” abortions. If a woman failed to have an abortion by the end of the second trimester of pregnancy, Roe held that states could outlaw abortions in such cases (and many did). But Doe v Bolton allowed women to claim their mental health was in jeopardy if they could not have an abortion. So, effectively, women could have an abortion up to the time they were ready to give birth.
Terminology Matters
There is an old adage, “He who frames the question controls the debate.” Thus, the slogan “A woman has the right to do what she wants with her own body” has been effective in gaining support for abortion rights. However, as previously mentioned, there is a separate human being inside the womb of the pregnant woman and that unborn baby has a body, too. Which right is superior—the right of the pregnant woman to kill the developing human being (for convenience, economics, or some other reason) or the right of the unborn baby to life? As our Declaration of Independence says, “We are endowed by our Creator, with certain unalienable rights, and among these are life….”
The terms “abortion” and “pro-choice” are also problematic. “Abort” means to stop. A combat mission is aborted by calling back the planes or troops. A medical abortion involves killing a human being. Similarly, the “right to choose” needs to be expanded—the right to choose to do what? Kill the unborn human being. A medical abortion includes cutting to pieces in the womb the body of the developing baby or else poisoning the unborn baby with caustic chemicals. That is the result of exercising “choice” that we call “abortion.”
Biased Media
Some 30 years ago a Los Angeles Times reporter wrote an eye-opening essay on the bias of how journalists cover the abortion issue. Any time a law was passed, like in the case of the Mississippi case of Dobbs, media would use headlines such as, “Most restrictive abortion law passed by Mississippi.” But the law was only “restrictive” relative to the pregnant woman who no longer had unfettered discretion to have her unborn baby killed at any point of her pregnancy. The law was “protective” with respect to the unborn human. Yet, as the Times writer pointed out, no headlines would ever reference the law being “protective” because the life unborn baby was never the focus. Do not let the debate focus solely on the “rights” of the pregnant women when there are competing and superior rights (e.g., the right to life) that belong to the unborn baby.
The Big Lie About “Back Alley Abortions”
In 1972, the last year before Roe v. Wade legalized abortion in America, the Center for Disease Control and Prevention estimated that 130,000 illegal (i.e., “back alley”) abortions took place. Based on the abortion rights rhetoric, one would be justified in thinking that thousands of women likely died from these illegal abortions (as illustrated by abortion zealots holding up coat hangers as a visual reference). But how many women were actually documented by the CDC as having died from illegal abortions in 1972? . . . 39. While it is tragic that 39 women died from illegal abortions in 1972, is it not also tragic that 130,000 babies were killed that same year? Beware of the “back alley” argument.
Where We Go from Here
Once the histrionics and caterwauling from abortion rights zealots subside, it will be important to think through the issues and be ready to speak out. Some states will have robust debates as to what restrictions should be placed on abortions. Depending on the state you live in, there may be a chance to sway people to re-think the issue of abortion and even become defenders of the unborn. As much as laws can be a good thing (as a reflection of what is the ideal for society), laws are not the ultimate answer. If abortion was outlawed entirely, if people still want abortions, then they would find a way to kill their unborn. But if abortion was legal and there were abortion mills on every street corner, if people knew in their hearts that abortion was wrong, there would be no abortions. Thus, the battle is not just about legislation, but, more importantly, changing the hearts of women and men in America to see that killing unborn babies is wrong and evil. Be ready to point out that there are vastly superior reasons to be pro-life than pro-abortion rights. In the process you may save the lives of unborn humans who, someday, may thank you for protecting them when they were the most vulnerable.
As the LORD said to the prophet Jeremiah, “Before I formed you in the womb, I knew you. And before you were born, I consecrated you.” (Jeremiah 1:5).
