In her rebuttal to my original letter to the editor, Ms. Connie Kleysteuber actually affirms my point rather than refuting it.
My primary point was this: Shouldn’t we (progressives/liberals/pro-choicers/pro-aborts included) extend the same compassion to the unborn that we extend to the homeless, the marginalized, future generations, etc.?
And this was followed by the rather unavoidable observation that no, in fact, progressives do not extend that compassion to unborn children but instead focus it all on the mothers and their “right” to extinguish the human wife in their wombs.
Ms. Kleysteuber did not, in fact, offer a shred of evidence that such compassion existed or explain why it seems absent. Instead, she re-affirmed the same talking points that I was in fact criticizing by citing a laundry list of progressive causes that we should be supporting.
She also made the point that I cannot be against the killing of unborn children in the womb unless I have made concrete efforts to help women or children in unfortunate circumstances.
Hmm. Does that mean you can only be pro-gun control if you have forcibly disarmed a a gun holder? Or that you can only be anti-animal abuse if you have adopted a rescue dog? Or that you can only be against pollution if you have 100 percent eliminated the use of plastic in your life? Or, that those against slavery 180 years ago could only oppose the practice if they themselves had freed slaves?
The answer to all these questions is “no.” You can and should be opposed to moral or ethical wrongs even if you have done nothing yourself to directly contradict them, if only because sometimes it is impossible to do so.
And, by the way, I actually have adopted two beautiful daughters, so I guess that even by Ms. Kleysteuber’s standard, I have a right to criticize those who support killing children in the womb.
Regarding her insistence that pro-life people also support such causes as gun control, climate change, criminal justice reform, etc., I think there is some common ground there and I don’t know a single pro-life person who would not advocate doing whatever we can in our society to help the vulnerable in our society. We may disagree on how to help and the assumptions behind some of these assertions, but it’s simply false to claim that we care nothing for such things.
But none of Ms. Kleysteuber’s causes matter much if people don’t first have their “right to life” protected.
If she or anyone else is interested in actually helping women facing the choice of whether or not to have an abortion, please visit the following website: www.pregnancyaidclinic.com. There you will find people who try to find a solution that benefits both the mother and the unborn child, instead of sacrificing the one for the benefit of the other.
Trey Hoffman
Peachtree City, Ga.
