An Open Letter To Senator Bernie Sanders

Senator Sanders,

I truly, genuinely respect a lot about you and various positions you take in sympathy with the vulnerable and marginalized. I believe you are an honest man, with his heart in the right place, and in politics, that is rare. As a Catholic I appreciate your respect for Pope Francis and willingness to be interviewed on Catholic platforms. I believe we do have common ground to share, and should share it to the enth degree of our conscientious ability.

When given the opportunity, I went to see you speak at Gettysburg College, when I felt no particular inclination to see any of the other presidential candidates (who at the time included President Trump and Senator Clinton). My interest in the race largely left it when you left it, for you, at least, I felt I knew, and that is a great compliment from me. “He is what he is,” as they say, and there is comfort to be drawn from that. You remind me so very much of my own family across the NY/NJ area, and that perhaps adds to my sense of familiarity towards you.

Even the silly mitten memes that united social media in the aftermath of President Biden’s inauguration cheered me most because, somehow, amidst the more obvious humor generated by the meme-makers, they represented the no-nonsense approach of a man who we knew, and indeed a man who knew himself. As the Bard of Avon wrote, “Thus be it ever: To thine own self be true.”

All of this being said, your stance on abortion will forever grieve me. I know, perhaps some would say it is a given in light of your other policies, but I disagree. Injustice to one is injustice to all, is that not so? I doubt you will ever change in this regard, and I know you think you are doing justice to vulnerable women in crisis pregnancies who deserve what you term bodily autonomy. But this is at the cost of human lives at their most vulnerable stage and location, brutally snuffed out by being poisoned, starved, or torn apart.

I have seen abortion and it’s aftermath, and it has scarred me, as it has scarred so many in this country and across the world by greater or lesser degrees. I have been a a pro-life advocate nearly my whole life out of sympathy for the vulnerable which I believe we share. But you call this savage business “healthcare;” I call it an ugly, vile, brutal atrocity against fellow members of our species that solves nothing for the mother or child. It just spills blood, which cries out from the earth to the heavens. Violence begets violence, and permission to commit violence is permission to destroy not only another person but also oneself.

I don’t know why, but I feel you, of all people, should have realized this by now, which is perhaps the greatest sign of my respect for you. I consider you too heartfelt and intelligent to deem this denial of the right to life as acceptable in a civilized society. But no, you even voted against a bill to assure medical attention for abortion survivors. No matter how many times you make clear your position on this issue, I continue to be shocked when I hear you speak of it, and wish with all my heart in were not so. It wounds me, and a bit of my faith in humanity.

But being as it is, we must grapple with our dichotomies, and pray God opens our eyes, and even in our blind spots, shows us His mercy.

My prayers, sir, always.

Avellina Balestri