Ryerson University is located in the heart of downtown Toronto. Well regarded for its business and engineering faculties, the university is also home to the Ryerson Students’ Union (RSU).
Earlier this year, the RSU proclaimed that it “opposes…groups, meetings, or events that promote misogynist views towards woman (sic) and ideologies that promote gender inequity, challenges women’s right (sic) to bodily autonomy, or justifies (sic) sexual assault.”
Apparently it’s opposed to the rules of grammar, too.
What prompted this declaration? It was the RSU’s rationale for denying a pro-life group, Students for Life at Ryerson, official club status.
Group president Nicole Bryck has described receiving support from a pro-life organization after becoming pregnant at 19. And, as she and vice-president Carter Grant have explained, their members are hoping to do similar work on campus. Unfortunately, the RSU isn’t as enthused: on February 23, its board of directors voted unanimously not to grant the club recognition.
If the RSU’s board members are serious about opposing misogyny, sexual assault, and gender inequality, then they should stop worrying about pro-lifers and take a look at the abortion industry; it enables all three.
When you’re the sort of man who sees women as disposable means to sexual ends, fatherhood is an unwelcome hazard. Simply put, you don’t want to get stuck supporting your child when you’re done using her mom.
That’s why misogynists understand the value of abortion. Tucker Max certainly does: the best-selling author has explained how his high volume of sex partners (Tucker prefers the term “sluts”) has produced “enough stories and anecdotes about abortion that they could name a Planned Parenthood clinic after me.”
It’s not just celebrity scoundrels who benefit from abortion–plenty of lesser known ones do as well. That’s evident from how websites like Returnofkings offer advice on how to bully a woman into having an abortion.
Manipulation and emotional abuse don’t always get the job done, of course, so some men take a more hands-on approach. British Columbian Tasha Rossette had her throat slashed after she refused to have an abortion. Winnipeg’s Roxanne Fernando was bludgeoned and buried under a snowbank for the same reason. They weren’t alone, as time and again, women have been shot, stabbed, smothered, and burned when they couldn’t be convinced to abort. Others are subject to financial threats or personal blackmail.
Given these facts, it’s not surprising that some studies report more than half of those who have an abortion feel pressured to do so. Nor is it a shock that that homicide is a leading cause of death among pregnant women.
Some of that pressure comes from sexual predators. They have a powerful incentive to destroy the evidence of their crimes, and abortion allows them to do just that. It certainly worked for Gary Cross: the abortion he forced on his step-daughter hid the fact that he’d been abusing her. Child rapists Timothy Smith, John F. Szorady, Adam Gault, and John Blanks, Jr. all took similar action. You can find a list here of over fifty other men who were able to stay out of jail and keep harming their victims thanks to a clinic visit.
As for gender inequality, that starts in the womb. In some parts of the world, the combination of ultrasound technology and a preference for sons over daughters has made sex-selective abortion a sad reality. But whereas as places like India are moving to crack down on the practice, Canada hasn’t made it a priority. According report published in the Canadian Medical Association Journal, the country has become “a haven” for gendercide.
The RSU can help address these problems by asking Canada’s Parliament to pass Roxanne’s Law–a bill that would impose criminal penalties on those who attempt to coerce women into aborting. They can also call for legislation similar to Texas’ proposed Coerced Abortion Prevention Bill. That would require abortion clinics to offer a private room containing information about assistance programs as well as a telephone with which to contact law enforcement. Voicing support for a ban on sex selective abortions isn’t a bad idea either.
However their most effective option is to grant club status to Students for Life at Ryerson, thus providing it with funding and easier access to university facilities. Because if the RSU is truly concerned about defending women, then empowering people who care about them would be a big help.
