{"id":3364,"date":"2017-10-09T10:30:15","date_gmt":"2017-10-09T17:30:15","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.ourthoughts.ca\/?p=3364"},"modified":"2017-10-09T10:30:15","modified_gmt":"2017-10-09T17:30:15","slug":"on-defending-the-unborn-when-you-cant-even-treat-those-around-you-with-basic-respect","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ourthoughts.ca\/2017\/10\/09\/on-defending-the-unborn-when-you-cant-even-treat-those-around-you-with-basic-respect\/","title":{"rendered":"On defending the unborn when you can\u2019t even treat those around you with basic respect"},"content":{"rendered":"

This guest post is written by Kate Harveston, a writer and political activist from Pennsylvania. She blogs about culture and politics, and the various ways that those elements act upon each other. For more of her work, you can follow her on Twitter<\/a> or subscribe to her blog, Only Slightly Biased<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n

Anti-abortion advocates are adamant that they\u2019re pro-life. The irony of this is their lack of respect for other human beings who have opinions that differ from theirs. There is a long history of violence at abortion clinics<\/a> by anti-abortion activists, and in the 90s, anti-abortion extremists decided murder was the only way to stop abortion. How does that correspond with a pro-life agenda?<\/p>\n

The history of violence<\/h2>\n

The level of unrest with abortion protestors has ebbed and flowed over the years, but it\u2019s always been a constant. Things were stirred up again after doctored Planned Parenthood videos<\/a> depicting workers negotiating the sale of fetal body parts were released in 2015. The fact that the videos were discredited and Planned Parenthood cleared of any wrongdoing doesn\u2019t seem to have made an impact.<\/p>\n

John Ryan, a notorious anti-abortion activist<\/a>, faced a terrorism charge in January after making a bomb threat against a clinic. This man has a vast history of being arrested due to his actions against abortion clinics. He has beliefs radical enough that the Catholic Church and other groups against abortion distanced themselves from him.<\/p>\n

Doctors have been attacked in their own homes. There have been 11 murders and 26 attempted murders. Arsons and bombings have happened in addition to just bomb threats, and women have been blocked from entering clinics with chemicals as well as protestors blocking the entrance with their bodies.<\/p>\n

This month, Ontario announced they were going to introduce the Safe Access to Abortion Services Act<\/a>, after a woman was spit on outside a clinic in Ottawa. This would extend a safe zone around clinics so women and staff could avoid being harassed by protestors on their way into and out of them. It could also extend to hospitals that provide the services and the residences of staff.<\/p>\n

How does this fit in with the pro-life message?<\/h2>\n

Anti-abortion activists always talk about how they\u2019re pro life and this is why they\u2019re against abortion. But what weight does being pro-life hold when they don\u2019t respect people who are alive and right in front of them? It\u2019s one thing for pro-life protests to be peaceful and respectful; it\u2019s another when people are being spit on, violence is involved, or bomb threats are made.<\/p>\n

They advocate for the rights of the unborn, but shouldn\u2019t that mean they appreciate people that have been born? Shouldn\u2019t they and their choices be respected, just as the anti-abortion activists want their views to be respected and heard?<\/p>\n

This is supposed to be about appreciating life itself. Some don\u2019t seem to actually follow through with that message. Extreme activists have decided that murder is the only way to prevent abortion. But one of the biggest points they constantly make is that abortion is murder. How is murdering an adult supposed to be different? Doesn\u2019t that completely go against the agenda they\u2019re trying to serve?<\/p>\n

Women have the right to an abortion. Spitting, assaulting or harassing someone that goes to get one is disgusting human behaviour. Protesting shouldn\u2019t equate harassing. There are plenty of ways to get a message across without getting in someone\u2019s face and making things personal.<\/p>\n

Additionally, the staff at these clinics are just trying to do their job, like any human being. Should they be attacked just because they\u2019re going to work? Many of these clinics offer a host of other women\u2019s health services that don\u2019t include abortion. They\u2019re trying to make the world a better place, which is why they became healthcare providers in the first place. They want to help people. Shouldn\u2019t pro-life activists be completely on board with helping others?<\/p>\n

These activists are violating other people\u2019s rights. People shouldn\u2019t have to fear getting attacked going into the clinic to go to work or to get help with their health. This isn\u2019t pro-life. This is pro-agenda. And it could be a lot of other things. But it\u2019s certainly not pro-life.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Anti-abortion advocates are adamant that they\u2019re pro-life. The irony of this is their lack of respect for other human beings who have opinions that differ from theirs. There is a long history of violence at abortion clinics by anti-abortion activists, and in the 90s, anti-abortion extremists decided murder was the only way to stop abortion. How does that correspond with a pro-life agenda? Continue reading On defending the unborn when you can\u2019t even treat those around you with basic respect<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":174,"featured_media":3365,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[200],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3364","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-abortion"],"yoast_head":"\nOn defending the unborn when you can\u2019t even treat those around you with basic respect<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.ourthoughts.ca\/2017\/10\/09\/on-defending-the-unborn-when-you-cant-even-treat-those-around-you-with-basic-respect\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"On defending the unborn when you can\u2019t even treat those around you with basic respect\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Anti-abortion advocates are adamant that they\u2019re pro-life. 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