Voting for Life
When you're a writer, a thinker, and a advocate for social justice, people become curious of your views on certain topics. For example, I look to great leaders - I read their bios, I follow them on social media - for their views on topics in which I find myself conflicted. I take personal stories, case-studies, and scientific articles into consideration before I come out and stand firm on any of my beliefs or values. I have observed success and less cognitive dissonance in the lives of others when they are able to prove, through the scientific method, why they favor or support one side of a topic. For instance, vaccinations. It is through scientific journal articles, the mass adoption of pro-vaccinations among the American Medical Association and the Centers for Disease Control, that I have been able to stand firm on the belief that vaccinations save lives. Anyone who is even remotely familiar with the medical field - both researcher and practitioner sides - know the rigorous standards of academia and of educating and keeping this society healthy. One cannot say they're anti-vaccination and still go to the doctor to get treated for an infliction (well, they can, but that would cause some serious cognitive dissonance).
I'm not here to talk about vaccinations, though. I'm here to talk about abortion. And it's important for me to talk about it now because it seems like it is the one issue that is keeping decent, critically-thinking, socially-minded people from doing the right thing and voting for the right, socially-minded, emotionally intelligent, humanity-loving person. I'm not here to change minds. I'm here to give you my story and my views.
I was raised Methodist. We went to Sunday school every Sunday, I participated in youth group, in the church choir - the whole lot. My mother volunteered frequently at church with the Bazaar, the nursery, and even teaching Sunday school. Church was a huge part of my life. However, in those 18 years of active church involvement, I have no memories of ever being exposed to any church-sponsored event regarding abortion.
Adjacent to this life was the life to which my father introduced me. He was very active in politics - either running for office or campaigning for others. I was young - probably between 10 and 12, when I accompanied him to a Bill Clinton rally in Columbus, Ohio. I vividly remember walking by what my dad referred to as protesters. They were holding large signs with pictures of blood-covered fetuses on them. I remember feeling scared, repulsed, and unnerved. As we scooted past them into the crowd of people, I remember consciously having to look for happy, warm faces to get my mind off of those disturbing images.
Eventually, I learned what those protesters were protesting about: abortion. I learned what abortion was. And I grew extremely uneasy with it. As a young girl with first-generation, college-educated parents (who financially and emotionally supported myself and my three siblings), there was never a question as to whether I thought abortion was wrong. I thought it was absolutely wrong because I, myself, could never be okay if I ever decided to do that. And, why would I need to? I was saving myself until I was married (yes, that was the plan).
As I grew up and matured, I got boyfriends. And we got intimate - and saving myself for marriage was no longer a value of mine (y'all can gasp, but common now, be real). And even though my parents threatened to kick me out of the house if I ever got pregnant, my mind never went to abortion. Instead, my mind went to moving in with my boyfriend's parents or my neighbor who would surely take me in and help me raise the baby. My first year of college, I realized that I could get birth control at the health center without my parents knowing. It was easy and cheap. And again, it let me never have to think of the possibility of having an abortion. The health center also had the morning after-pill that you could get immediately if you thought you may be at risk for pregnancy for some reason (i.e. - your partner was completely irresponsible with his part in birth control). Again, another easy-access way to prevent pregnancy so I didn't ever have to be in the situation where I would need to think about abortion. And also, the morning after pill prevents implantation of an embryo - it does not "kill" a baby.
Moving further into adulthood, I was well supported and I had access to contraceptives. Even if I did get pregnant, I had the support, health, mental capacity, and means to raise the baby. To me, it would have been part of the plan because I would have assessed and adjusted my own life goals to account for early motherhood. And then I got married, and family planning was something we actively did. We tried to conceive most of our children. One just happened to be a pleasant surprise. They were planned out, beautiful, loved, wanted human beings. We were lucky enough not to run into obstacles in trying to have our babies. And I thank God for that every single day of my life - in the morning, in the afternoon, in the evening, and every minute in between. The thought of not having my children - to love, to be loved by, and to inspire to love others - is unnerving.
But that's me. That's us. And I know not everyone walks in my shoes, has the same support I have, the same medical access, the same love and trust of the universe that everything will work out.
What I learned 20 years ago in college was that it was not up to me to sway a person to choose to carry a baby. And it's definitely not up to lawmakers. After having my own babies, it is evident that carrying a baby to term is a major life-altering event. And here's the awful truth - not everyone is cut-out for it - mentally, physically, financially. If you know that about yourself, then good on you. Take care of yourself, and know that I will do everything to support you no matter what you decide. Abortion is not black and white, and we are doing society a huge injustice in thinking that it is that easy. People aren't running out to get abortions just because they can. Because while we are fighting about whether a woman can control what happens to her own body, people's rights are being stripped away from them. Our democracy is hanging on by a thread. Antisemitism is on the rise. Unarmed people of colored are being killed for no reason. Drugs are taking the lives of our loved ones. War-grade guns and gun paraphernalia are taking the life of hundreds per month. People are going bankrupt from their medical bills. A large section of the country is currently under the spell of fringe groups wishing harm upon others just because they are fighting for equality in our society. And we just lived through the hottest ever January on record.
If it is abortion that is keeping you from voting for the right people, my hope is that you'll think critically about your feelings versus the feelings of others and your circumstances versus the circumstances of others. And that you'll think of society as a whole - and how many more lives you'll save if you put your heart and mind towards public servants that are fighting tooth-and-nail for the millions of vulnerable people in this nation. I still believe that abortion isn't and won't ever be for me - but again, that's because I've never been in a position where it has even been a possibility. I've always trusted my doctors, I have access to healthcare, my partner understands his role in birth control and family planning, and I have a great support system.
That is my hope. And isn't that what life is all about?
I'm not here to talk about vaccinations, though. I'm here to talk about abortion. And it's important for me to talk about it now because it seems like it is the one issue that is keeping decent, critically-thinking, socially-minded people from doing the right thing and voting for the right, socially-minded, emotionally intelligent, humanity-loving person. I'm not here to change minds. I'm here to give you my story and my views.
I was raised Methodist. We went to Sunday school every Sunday, I participated in youth group, in the church choir - the whole lot. My mother volunteered frequently at church with the Bazaar, the nursery, and even teaching Sunday school. Church was a huge part of my life. However, in those 18 years of active church involvement, I have no memories of ever being exposed to any church-sponsored event regarding abortion.
Adjacent to this life was the life to which my father introduced me. He was very active in politics - either running for office or campaigning for others. I was young - probably between 10 and 12, when I accompanied him to a Bill Clinton rally in Columbus, Ohio. I vividly remember walking by what my dad referred to as protesters. They were holding large signs with pictures of blood-covered fetuses on them. I remember feeling scared, repulsed, and unnerved. As we scooted past them into the crowd of people, I remember consciously having to look for happy, warm faces to get my mind off of those disturbing images.
Eventually, I learned what those protesters were protesting about: abortion. I learned what abortion was. And I grew extremely uneasy with it. As a young girl with first-generation, college-educated parents (who financially and emotionally supported myself and my three siblings), there was never a question as to whether I thought abortion was wrong. I thought it was absolutely wrong because I, myself, could never be okay if I ever decided to do that. And, why would I need to? I was saving myself until I was married (yes, that was the plan).
As I grew up and matured, I got boyfriends. And we got intimate - and saving myself for marriage was no longer a value of mine (y'all can gasp, but common now, be real). And even though my parents threatened to kick me out of the house if I ever got pregnant, my mind never went to abortion. Instead, my mind went to moving in with my boyfriend's parents or my neighbor who would surely take me in and help me raise the baby. My first year of college, I realized that I could get birth control at the health center without my parents knowing. It was easy and cheap. And again, it let me never have to think of the possibility of having an abortion. The health center also had the morning after-pill that you could get immediately if you thought you may be at risk for pregnancy for some reason (i.e. - your partner was completely irresponsible with his part in birth control). Again, another easy-access way to prevent pregnancy so I didn't ever have to be in the situation where I would need to think about abortion. And also, the morning after pill prevents implantation of an embryo - it does not "kill" a baby.
Moving further into adulthood, I was well supported and I had access to contraceptives. Even if I did get pregnant, I had the support, health, mental capacity, and means to raise the baby. To me, it would have been part of the plan because I would have assessed and adjusted my own life goals to account for early motherhood. And then I got married, and family planning was something we actively did. We tried to conceive most of our children. One just happened to be a pleasant surprise. They were planned out, beautiful, loved, wanted human beings. We were lucky enough not to run into obstacles in trying to have our babies. And I thank God for that every single day of my life - in the morning, in the afternoon, in the evening, and every minute in between. The thought of not having my children - to love, to be loved by, and to inspire to love others - is unnerving.
But that's me. That's us. And I know not everyone walks in my shoes, has the same support I have, the same medical access, the same love and trust of the universe that everything will work out.
What I learned 20 years ago in college was that it was not up to me to sway a person to choose to carry a baby. And it's definitely not up to lawmakers. After having my own babies, it is evident that carrying a baby to term is a major life-altering event. And here's the awful truth - not everyone is cut-out for it - mentally, physically, financially. If you know that about yourself, then good on you. Take care of yourself, and know that I will do everything to support you no matter what you decide. Abortion is not black and white, and we are doing society a huge injustice in thinking that it is that easy. People aren't running out to get abortions just because they can. Because while we are fighting about whether a woman can control what happens to her own body, people's rights are being stripped away from them. Our democracy is hanging on by a thread. Antisemitism is on the rise. Unarmed people of colored are being killed for no reason. Drugs are taking the lives of our loved ones. War-grade guns and gun paraphernalia are taking the life of hundreds per month. People are going bankrupt from their medical bills. A large section of the country is currently under the spell of fringe groups wishing harm upon others just because they are fighting for equality in our society. And we just lived through the hottest ever January on record.
If it is abortion that is keeping you from voting for the right people, my hope is that you'll think critically about your feelings versus the feelings of others and your circumstances versus the circumstances of others. And that you'll think of society as a whole - and how many more lives you'll save if you put your heart and mind towards public servants that are fighting tooth-and-nail for the millions of vulnerable people in this nation. I still believe that abortion isn't and won't ever be for me - but again, that's because I've never been in a position where it has even been a possibility. I've always trusted my doctors, I have access to healthcare, my partner understands his role in birth control and family planning, and I have a great support system.
When I see bumper sticks that say, "Vote for life!" or license plates that read, "Choose Life," I always comment aloud to my kids, "I do!" I do vote for life. I vote for the lives and rights of everyone. And I trust that in voting for the right people, that others less privileged will eventually be thrust towards towards the equity they deserve. They will have access to contraception, a solid partner, affordable healthcare, an education, a trust for the universe to always sort things out, and a stellar support system. Therefore, the need for abortions will drastically be reduced.
That is my hope. And isn't that what life is all about?
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