The pro-abortion side is changing its approved language as it gears up to counter any reversal of Roe v. Wade with new state and federal laws.
Yes, I said “pro-abortion,” not “pro-choice.” I have been criticized for not using the latter term. But it turns out, “pro-choice” is now deemed harmful. “Pro-abortion” is now the politically correct term.
So decrees the Planned Parenthood Advocacy Fund of Massachusetts in a post entitled What’s wrong with choice?: Why we need to go beyond choice language when we’re talking about abortion.
Part of the reason has to do with Critical Race Theory. “Focusing on someone’s ‘choice’ erases the structural, societal factors that determine how and if someone can get health care, and the quality of that care,” says the post. Many women, especially black women, may “choose” to get an abortion, but can’t get one. “’Choice’ ignores the lived realities of people, especially Black people and people of color, who face barriers that are often compounded by racist and classist policies that keep them from the care they need.”
But there is another reason, perhaps even more to the point. Saying that you are not pro-abortion, you are pro-choice implies that there is something wrong with abortion (my bolds):
Full access to care means not just the ability to get care; it also means that care should be respected and affirmed, without social judgments. Well-meaning folks often contrast “pro-choice” with “pro-abortion,” as in, I’m pro-choice, not pro-abortion. But that’s hurtful to people who’ve had abortions. It implies that abortion isn’t a good thing, that legal abortion is important but somehow bad, undesirable. That’s deeply stigmatizing, and contributes to the shame and silence around abortion, making people who’ve had abortions feel isolated and ashamed. At least one in four people who can get pregnant will have an abortion during their lives, and they should be supported and celebrated. It’s time to retire the phrase “pro-choice, not pro-abortion” for good.
The post goes on to recommend alternative language:
So what can someone say instead of just “pro-choice”? You can absolutely say:
-
- pro-abortion, pro-abortion rights, pro-abortion access, or pro-abortion equity — abortion isn’t a dirty word.
- pro-reproductive health care or pro-reproductive freedom when you’re talking about more than abortion.
- “I support abortion access” or “I’m a supporter of abortion access.”
Similarly, the Congressional Pro Choice Caucus (what? I’m personally offended!), led by Reps. Diana DeGette (D-Col.) and Barbara Lee (D-Calif.), issued new marching orders for Democrats on the language they need to use in discussing abortion.
Here is a copy of the memo:
Notice how those whose conscience forbids them from participating in abortion–whether by paying for it or, in the case of medical personnel, performing one–are completely erased. Such moral qualms are dismissed as “refusal of care.” People who refuse to take part in killing babies in the womb don’t “care,” though they actually care a great deal.
And abortion, contrary to the Massachusetts memo, must be further hidden by the words used to talk about it. It must now be called “healthcare.”
More must be said about how pro-abortion advocates manipulate language. We’ll discuss that tomorrow.
Photo by Lorie Shaull from St Paul, United States, CC BY-SA 2.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0>, via Wikimedia Commons
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