{"id":2165,"date":"2013-01-31T11:19:00","date_gmt":"2013-01-31T11:19:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.catholicnewsagency.com\/news\/changes-in-abortion-language-laws-seen-as-pro-life-progress\/"},"modified":"2013-01-31T11:19:00","modified_gmt":"2013-01-31T11:19:00","slug":"changes-in-abortion-language-laws-seen-as-pro-life-progress","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/catholicnews\/2013\/01\/changes-in-abortion-language-laws-seen-as-pro-life-progress\/","title":{"rendered":"Changes in abortion language, laws seen as pro-life progress"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<\/head>

Washington D.C., Jan 31, 2013 \/ 04:19 am (CNA\/EWTN News<\/a>).- Amid changing abortion rhetoric and significant legislative advances, a group of legal experts in the nation\u2019s capital said that they are confident in the future of the pro-life movement.<\/p>\n

\t\u201cIn this epic struggle,\u201d said Dr. Charmaine Yoest, president of Americans United for Life, \u201cmy money\u2019s on the baby.\u201d<\/p>\n

\tHosting a Jan. 24 symposium in Washington, D.C., Yoest and other speakers discussed changes in rhetoric surrounding the abortion debate, as well as growing legislative efforts in the 40 years since the Supreme Court\u2019s 1973 Roe v. Wade decision established a \u201cright\u201d to abortion nationwide.<\/p>\n

\tMuch of the discussion focused on changes to tactics used by abortion advocates over the years.<\/p>\n

\tYoest explained that while pro-life advocates have been consistent in delivering a message of \u201cdefending life,\u201d the abortion movement has changed the way it framed its arguments numerous times.
\n\t\u00a0
\n\tIn the 1970s, she said, abortion advocates relied upon the \u201cright to privacy\u201d and emphasized that banning the procedure would lead to an increase in \u201cback-alley abortions\u201d and dangerous illegal procedures.<\/p>\n

\tToday, however, abortion is seen as \u201creproductive freedom\u201d and the \u201cirreducible minimum of feminine empowerment,\u201d she continued. The procedure is now supported as necessary for \u201cequality and opportunity for all women,\u201d and some have even tried to rebrand it as a means by which women can feel connected to one another.
\n\t\u00a0\u00a0
\n\tIn a further push to make abortion appear \u201cmorally neutral\u201d and universal, the idea of \u201cchoice\u201d is now being abandoned as well, Yoest said, pointing out that if abortion is necessary for women\u2019s empowerment, it is logical to have every American pay for it, leaving behind any \u201cchoice\u201d in the participation.<\/p>\n

\t\u201cWhat they could not win through choice they intend to impose through coercion,\u201d she commented.<\/p>\n

\tThese rhetorical changes have also affected the debates around fetal personhood, said Laura Garcia, professor of philosophy at Boston College. From the 1970s through the 1990s, she observed, a large portion of the abortion debate centered upon whether or not a fetus was a person.<\/p>\n

\tNow, because of advances in prenatal imaging, Garcia explained, \u201cno one really denies\u201d that a fetus is a human person. Widespread use of 3D sonogram pictures has helped establish the humanity of the unborn, particularly among young people, she said.<\/p>\n

\tAs a response, abortion is now promoted as an unfortunate but necessary reality, the panel speakers noted, adding that the word is increasingly being abandoned altogether in favor of the term \u201creproductive rights.\u201d<\/p>\n

\tWhile the message of the pro-life cause has remained unchanged, symposium participants continued, the legal strategy has evolved over the past 40 years.<\/p>\n

\tEd Whelan, president of the Ethics and Public Policy Center, observed that while \u201cRoe constitutionalized abortion, it did not legalize it.\u201d Therefore, he said, a reversal of Roe v. Wade would not ban abortion within the United States, but would allow each state to determine its own policy on the issue.<\/p>\n

\tTherefore, state-level efforts are a critical part of the pro-life movement, Yoest explained. In recent years, Americans United for Life has worked to craft and promote state laws to limit abortion and defend life across the nation.<\/p>\n

\tAt the moment, Yoest noted, there is a \u201ctremendous supply of legislation in pipeline\u201d at the state level. Such efforts have included bans on government and insurance funding for abortion, ultrasound requirements, abortion clinic regulations and informed consent laws.<\/p>\n

\t\u201cWe have a very definite strategy that is gaining ground and gaining momentum,\u201d Yoest said.<\/p>\n

\n<\/a>\n<\/div>\n

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Washington D.C., Jan 31, 2013 \/ 04:19 am (CNA\/EWTN News).- Amid changing abortion rhetoric and significant legislative advances, a group of legal experts in the nation’s capital said that they are confident in the future of the pro-life movement….<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1031,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2165","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-us"],"yoast_head":"\nChanges in abortion language, laws seen as pro-life progress<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Washington D.C., Jan 31, 2013 \/ 04:19 am (CNA\/EWTN News).- Amid changing abortion rhetoric and significant legislative advances, a group of legal experts in the nation’s capital said that they are confident in the future of the pro-life movement....\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, 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