The “My Abortion. My Life.” campaign created by a 2nd trimester abortion clinic in Cleveland uses all the “right”, compassionate terms to pull women in. They talk about how one woman can change the world; how the silence needs to be broken; how no woman should have to feel shame alone for what she’s done. Sounds empowering, right?
But what “My Abortion. My Life.” really does is promote a whole lot of lies. Instead of telling women the truth so they don’t make the same mistake again; instead of letting them talk about their abortion so they can receive any emotional healing or help they might need; instead of mourning with them for the loss of their children, this website tries to entrench women ever further in their absolute right to have an abortion.
Here’s what both shocks and saddens me: if we were to take any other moral issue our society as a whole deems unacceptable and try to help men or women be proud and unashamed about what they’ve done, how schizophrenic would that be? What kind of an outcry would be raised about a website for murderers: “My Murder; My Life”? How about serial thieves or armed robbers: “My Holdup; My Life”? Or yes, what about extra-marital affairs: “My Affair; My Life”?
Taking one woman’s story off the site as a guide, here’s how “My Affair; My Life” might be written:
“The judgmental will say I’m cold or heartless, but an affair was an easy decision for me. After all, I’m in no position to stay committed to one person for life—even after making a promise. Plus, I’ve been raised to believe that women are smart, moral creatures. Naturally, any decision I make falls into the category of smart and moral. I was treated kindly and well during my affair. Several years later, I had another one. This time, I made sure my husband knew I’d be starting another affair. Again, I was treated kindly and well. I remain healthy, happy, and grateful that I had the right to control my own life. It is unthinkable to me that millions of women are not able to control their own lives. Why would women not be considered intelligent enough or moral enough to be entrusted with such an intrinsic part of ourselves? Why are we so devalued as to be worth killing in the name of ideology? My Affair; My Life.”
If this kind of language were applied to issues like affairs, murders, kidnapping, carjacking, robbery, and more, there would be a public outcry. But with abortion, too many seem to think that women should be lauded and praised—or at least left alone and unchallenged—for their decision. Instead, women should be told the truth about their tiny baby, led to resources to help them keep or give their child in adoption, and helped to emotional and physical healing.
Here’s the real truth about several phrases that “My Abortion. My Life.” is using:
LIE: Ending the silence, one story at a time.
TRUTH: Perpetuating the silence, one story at a time.
LIE: It’s about creating a new language around abortion.
TRUTH: It’s about telling even more lies about abortion in the hopes of making it seem acceptable.
LIE: Abortion is a normal and necessary part of many women’s lives.
TRUTH: Killing your child is a very abnormal choice for a mother and not necessary at all because of the many people and resources who are available to help. There are many pregnancy resources centers and adoptive couples who would do everything in their power to help a woman.
LIE: My Abortion. My Life.
TRUTH: My Abortion. My Baby’s Life.
