A few years back, I penned an article titled “An Unplanned Stand” that sparked controversy. The piece delved into the realm of Planned Parenthood and underscored the importance of safeguarding women’s reproductive healthcare rights. Within the article, I explored my endorsement of freedom of choice up to a specific threshold, while refraining from definitively articulating my official stance on abortions or Planned Parenthood.
For 46 years, since the passage of Roe v. Wade, there have been at least 22 years during which Republicans have held the power to potentially overturn it. With control over all three branches of government at various points, they had the opportunity to make abortion illegal nationwide. However, this did not happen, emphasizing the significant political dimension that has consistently shaped the abortion debate in America.
As of June 2022, Roe v. Wade has been overturned. According to the Center for American Progress, “almost 1 in 3 women [have] found themselves living in states where abortion [is] unavailable or severely restricted.”
We’ve rendered a significant service to the Religious Right by allowing them to shape our narrative for too long. They’ve skillfully monopolized the “pro-life” label, portraying themselves as the exclusive champions of life, while casting the rest of us as adversaries.
Since the 2016 election, Conservative Christians have steadfastly asserted that “Life” is their non-negotiable candidate criterion, justifying their support for Donald Trump. However, if we scrutinize their actions, it becomes evident that their definition of “pro-life” doesn’t extend to humanity as a whole.
Attempting to ban Muslims and immigrants, restricting healthcare access for the vulnerable, resisting sensible gun control, and leveraging fear based on race, religion, and sexuality — these actions hardly align with a genuine concern for humanity.
Legislatively assaulting the LGBTQ community, rolling back environmental protections, disproportionately funding the military over the arts, gerrymandering to exclude people of color from the electoral process — these are not actions rooted in compassion for all of humanity.
Moreover, their interference with a woman’s autonomy over her body reveals a selective regard for life, seemingly ignoring the sanctity of the woman’s life they seek to control. It’s time to acknowledge that their proclaimed “pro-life” stance only extends to a fraction of humanity.
Compassion, the true essence of being “pro-all life,” is noticeably absent in their policies, revealing a theocracy of control where women’s autonomy is an afterthought. The Right’s inconsistency in valuing life is glaring — condemning abortion while tolerating executions, police violence, for-profit prisons, and neglecting healthcare.
Being “pro-all life” means advocating for the well-being of every living being at every stage, regardless of complexion or circumstance. Republicans, lacking empathy for the marginalized and wounded, should not lay claim to stewardship of life.
Embracing life encompasses supporting affordable healthcare, education, and birth control to reduce unplanned pregnancies. The notion that the Left revels in abortion is a baseless falsehood; rather, it upholds a woman’s autonomy over her body.
True advocacy for life goes beyond the womb, valuing every sacred life from birth to its last beat. Those who don’t champion all of humanity and instead turn women’s bodies into battlegrounds are not authentically pro-life.
It’s time to challenge the Religious Right’s narrow definition and reclaim “pro-life” to genuinely reflect a commitment to the sanctity of life beyond the womb and outside of a specific demographic.
