As I walked down Bascom Hill the other day, it was not long before I noticed the plethora of chalk hearts pinning guilt on women who value their right to choose the option of abortion. Abortion stops one heart and breaks another,"" read the menacing letters on Bascom Hill. This was in reference to the 3,300 abortions that are legally performed every day in complete compliance with the passing of Roe V. Wade 35 years ago.
While being a pro-choice advocate has never been a question for me, I can understand the concern that certain individuals have in regard to the idea of life. The value of an unborn fetus differs by one's personal and moral opinion. And, evidently, when it comes to unborn children, people throughout this state and country do not have identical opinions on the issue. Because of such deep personal and, in most cases, religious differences individuals have toward the biological status of an unborn fetus, decades ago the U.S. Supreme Court decided to allow the freedom for women to choose whether or not they want this unborn fetus to grow into a fully born, living human being.
With all of that being said, I can respect one's deep, moral and personal belief that the unborn fetus is as valuable as any born, living human being. That is why those individuals who believe in pro-life have the option when they get pregnant (the ones who are female, that is) to carry the baby for nine months rather than get an abortion. What I cannot respect is people judging others for choosing the opposite. Abortion, regardless of how one personally feels about it, is an extremely sensitive subject. After all, it is a medical operation performed for a number of personal reasons.
For some reason, hardcore pro-lifers have always been under the impression that getting an abortion is something women view as quite casual. Clearly the close-minded Bascom artists who graced us with their drawings and slogans do not only fail to realize the pain and strife women go through while getting abortions, but also the possible ""heartbreaking"" events that lead them to get an abortion in the first place.
Aside from my feelings that regardless of why the pregnancy occurred the carrier should be the only one making the decision, let's just discuss one of the many reasons it was wrong to draw and write what this individual or group did. Every year, roughly 16,000 abortions are performed for rape and incest. That is an estimated 16,000 women who underwent one of the most traumatizing experiences in all of humanity. These same women, according to our lovely chalk artists, should be forced into some sadistic form of punishment to carry a baby for nine months.
A common argument against this fact is that these cases are extremely rare, seeing as an estimated 16,000 women make up merely 1 percent of the yearly abortions (over 1 millon). This argument, perhaps, is what makes pro-lifers feel justified in writing guilt-ridden statements such as the one I had to read on Bascom Hill. What they do not realize is whether it is 1 percent or .1 percent, the belief that these situations should be neglected because they are rare is absurdly unjust on so many levels.
If only one abortion is performed due to rape or incest (one that is reported at least) per year, that is more than significant. Next time you want to decorate Bascom Hill with lessons on breaking hearts, consider victims who represent the life in front of us and perhaps you will think twice before publicly displaying malicious statements about women who could be victims of one of the worst societal injustices known to the world.
Dan Josephson is a senior majoring in politcal science and legal studies. Please send responses to opinion@dailycardinal.com.
