KAILEE GABOURY

Discussions surrounding abortion debate tend to be heated and emotionally charged, with people on all sides feeling hurt while trying to share their convictions. However, there are situations in which all of us need to change the way we talk about abortion.

Some organizations and people seem to believe the issue of abortion ended in 1988, when the Supreme Court of Canada struck down all our existing abortion laws, rendering it legal during all nine months of pregnancy. This case, known as R versus Morgentaler, was seen as a victory for pro-choice activists.

Although it widened the parameters of legal abortions, the Supreme Court’s decision requires more discussion in regards to the rights attributed to the unborn child.

On campus, the University of Saskatchewan Students for Life club finds that students want to talk about abortion. Even if students fundamentally disagree with one another, they often find the club useful and agree that this is an important discussion that needs to happen.

The problem is that both sides of the debate seem to be talking about a completely different issue. The pro-life side argues that killing an innocent human being is wrong and seeks to provide options for both mom and baby, while the pro-choice side often does not see the fetus as a human being and thus fights for a woman’s right to control her own body.

Both sides truly believe that their position is correct and the opposition is clearly mistaken. Sometimes it feels as if pro-lifers say “A,” but pro-choicers hear “B,” while pro-choicers say “Y” but pro-lifers hear “Z.”

The only way we are going to be able to come to an understanding is if we can accurately and justly comprehend the opposition’s stance while still being able to provide reasons for it being deficient. We must fully understand the opposition’s argument in order to have a strong argument ourselves.

Too often, people dismiss their opponent in the abortion debate as ignorant or worse, as having a hateful agenda. From my experience, both the pro-life and pro-choice sides truly want to help women, and we need not forget that when discussing the issue of abortion.

Listening is imperative if we are to talk about abortion effectively. Every woman’s abortion experience is different, and we should let her speak for herself instead of assuming she should feel a certain way to better vindicate our preconceived beliefs about morality.

A woman should not be told that her experience and feelings are invalid or be told how to feel about her decision.

Listen to the pro-choicer — they may know someone who has had an abortion or had one themselves. They want every woman to be able to succeed in life and to make her own decisions regarding her body.

Listen to the pro-lifer — they also want every woman to be able to succeed in life, recognizing that having a child does not have to impede her ability to do so. They believe every human being is valuable and deserving of human rights, including the unborn child.

Both sides of the debate can engage in more productive dialogue when we are filled with compassion and understanding for women in crisis pregnancies. We should also strive to provide adequate information and resources for all three options: adoption, parenting and abortion.

Many people tend to primarily focus on the latter, unfortunately, often at the expense of the other two options. The abortion debate has ultimately become a war of ideas, sometimes forgetting about the real women who need support or ignoring the science behind fetal development.

Much of the conflict in the world would be resolved if we just took the time to listen to one another before making judgments about those with whom we disagree. With about 300 abortions occurring per day in our country, funded by our tax dollars and technically legal through all nine months of pregnancy, we can do better than letting disagreement get in the way of dialogue on this significant issue that touches many of us personally.

Abortion can be a touchy subject for some people. It needs to be discussed with the utmost respect and understanding for pregnant women and women in general. There is still much to discuss, much to learn and many stories we have yet to hear. Let’s talk abortion, for this discussion is far from over.

—

Image: Jeremy Britz / Graphics Editor