An unpopular bravery

You hear a lot of media types extolling the “bravery” of people who come out as LGBTQ or strongly voice their defense of abortion or some other Leftist social policy.

But, in fact, those people can hardly be considered brave because they are invariably celebrated by the media and politicians, to the point where they sometimes make millions of dollars for proclaiming their sexual proclivity or newly discovered gender identity.

Dylan Mulvaney is just one example of this phenomenon. He has made his fortune by claiming to be a “girl” about a year ago and then proceeding to act and dress like a caricature of a prepubescent schoolgirl in his many social media posts.

It’s a little creepy to me, but he is nonetheless grandly celebrated, to the point where he was able to meet President Biden in the White House to whine about his status as a victim. The irony is rich.

Contrast this treatment with how conservative Supreme Court Justices are treated. For having the temerity to find fault with the unconstitutional reasoning of Roe v. Wade and returning the abortion issue to the states, they have been subjected to illegal protests at their homes and an assassination attempt. The Dobbs decision itself was leaked for the express purpose of intimidating the conservatives on the Court to back down.

Not only did the Department of Justice not enforce the clearly-written statute that protects Justices and all federal judges from harassment and intimidation, but you had prominent Democrats like Sen. Chuck Schumer issuing threatening statements like “you will reap the whirlwind” and “won’t know what hit you.”

Please keep in mind that the Justices were not ruling on the legality or morality of abortion, but only on the proper constitutional way to handle the issue. As a result, some states have restricted abortion, but some have made it available without restraint for all 9 months of pregnancy. For their measured, appropriate legal reasoning, the conservative Justices have been demonized by the dominant powers in our country.

Threats to their persons and homes weren’t the end, though. Prominent Democrats have also openly questioned the very legitimacy of the Court, threatened to pack it with additional Justices, and are currently engaged in a campaign to impeach Justices Thomas and Gorsuch for inconsequential and spurious violations of the Court’s code of ethics. Nevermind that these same people couldn’t care less about the leak of the Dobbs decision, which was a truly serious violation of those codes and a bald-faced effort of intimidation.

The Left simply wasn’t used to losing when it came to Supreme Court decisions, having systematically dismantled various traditional elements of American culture over the past 5 decades with a winning streak that would be envied by the greatest of sports dynasties.

But once they lost one significant decision, they were utterly incapable of doing what conservatives have done, which is to accept the court rulings and work through the system to try and fight them fair and square. You never saw pro-lifers harassing liberal Justices when they ruled in favor of decisions like Roe or subsequent ones that upheld Roe; nor did you see Republican politicians questioning the legitimacy and integrity of liberal Justices or the Court. No. We played by the rules and finally won after 50 years of patiently waiting and hoping.

(I know that some of you will point out that a few anti-abortion activists have resorted to violence and even murder; those acts were condemned by the vast majority of pro-life activists and politicians and constituted an unfortunate and tragic aberration in what has otherwise been an extremely peaceful movement. Contrast this with the tacit support or silence when it comes to the current intimidation aimed at the Court on the part of Democrats and the press.)

There is very little upside in general to fighting for traditional issues of life and sexuality. It does not win you likes on social media, or gain you celebration by major brands, or win you spots on talk shows and fancy galas in New York.

Often, you lose friends, your job, and sometimes the federal government comes after you with guns to intimidate you into silence, as what happened with pro-life activist Matt Rourk (all charges against him were dropped for a second time, but not before he and his family felt the true measure of Biden’s disdain for his views).

Which brings me to a friend of mine, whose teenage daughter has exhibited true bravery and courage in the face of persecution from friends, teachers, and administrators for her pro-life views. This young woman, whom I will name “Jane,” found out that one of her friends had become pregnant.

While most people were telling her to get an abortion, Jane counseled the opposite and offered to support her through the experience. For this — for standing up for the unborn child — Jane was heavily criticized by “friends” and classmates. Teachers, whom she thought to be wonderful, supportive people, turned on her and attacked her for standing up for her beliefs.

The left talks about how we must respect people’s beliefs and “lived experiences.” They go so far as to say that if someone believes they are a different gender, race, or even species, we must respect that. But, the hypocrisy and logical incoherence of their views are revealed when the person in question has views they don’t agree with.

Then it is okay to harass, intimidate, and even commit acts of violence against them, as seems to be the case with the recent Nashville school shootings.

Jane has had to endure the betrayal of friends and teachers in order to stand up for her passionately held belief that it is never okay to kill an innocent human life, especially one in the womb, even if the circumstances are challenging and gut-wrenching.

Rather than telling her pregnant friend to just “end it,” Jane has affirmed the beauty of her friend and the child in her womb and offered to walk with her through the process of pregnancy and childbirth.

That is true courage. Jane understands the difficult but imperative idea that truth is truth no matter how many people may oppose it, and is paying the price for her principled stand in a way that no leftist ideologue will ever have to, even as they cry crocodile tears and proclaim their victim status amidst the fawning adoration of corporations, politicians, government officials, and the media.

Trey Hoffman

Peachtree City, Ga.