The irony of an anniversary

May 31, 2012 was the third anniversary of the death of Dr. George Tiller, who was shot and killed while entering Reformation Lutheran Church in 2009. Spreading across headlines nationwide at the time, the murder of Dr. Tiller (one of America’s first public late-term abortionists) continues to be brought up in the abortion debate today. His story was revisited by many this third anniversary.

On Planned Parenthood’s Facebook page, they wrote:

Abortion is a deeply personal and complex issue that people have many differing thoughts and opinions about. But if there is one thing we should agree on, it’s that violence has no place in any of it.

I agree. The pro-life movement agrees! There is no place for violence in the abortion debate. Pro-lifers shouldn’t go around shooting people, and pro-choicers shouldn’t tear apart babies in the womb. The very act of abortion is the ultimate act of violence. It’s just as bad to shoot a breathing older person as it is to abort a baby. Neither act should be committed.

Countless people called Dr. Tiller a “hero” for what he did. Take this for example:

He persevered for over thirty years through the continuous threats on his life, continuing to provide women with much-needed health care when no one else would, and should be considered nothing less than a true hero.

“Much-needed health care”? I think not. Dr. Tiller performed late-term abortions on mothers whose babies were diagnosed with disabilities, and those who did not want to continue carrying their babies for various reasons. Abortion is not a necessary component of health care. Aborting babies with disabilities is not a heroic thing, and late-term abortions pose serious risks to the mother.

The people who wrote these things ignore the irony of their statements. They mourn the loss of Dr. Tiller but are not moved at all by the 4,000 babies who are aborted every day.

In a piece written on a previous anniversary of Dr. Tiller’s death, one writer says:

Those who oppose abortion don’t have a copyright on the word life — when I last checked, Life was still the name of a vintage board game and a breakfast cereal — nor on the prefix ‘pro’. The literal meaning of pro-life, ‘favoring or supporting life’, is not the exclusive domain of anti-abortionists. On the contrary, the pro-choice movement is committed to saving, protecting, supporting and valuing the lives of women and girls; whereas the absolutist pro-life movement — single-mindedly favoring the unborn — devalues girls and women, puts their lives at risk and, at its fringes, condones violence and murder.

It’s important to note that yes, there is a huge difference between “pro-life” and “anti-abortion.” Pro-lifers believe in the right to life of every human being – even abortionists. Anti-abortion believers are simply against abortion. The man who murdered Dr. Tiller (Scott Roeder) was an anti-abortionist who had been charged with crimes before this and had been found mentally unstable. People try to pin this crime on all pro-lifers? Gimme a break. This was a crime committed by an unstable criminal and not consistent with the teaching of the pro-life movement.

The author of that last quote had things rather backward. Claiming that the pro-choice movement is committed to “saving, protecting, supporting, and valuing the lives of women and girls” is baloney. Yes, some people who identify as pro-choice do care about women. But abortion destroys women and girls. It kills baby girls, and it hurts mothers. If a person truly values women and girls, she won’t be for abortion.

It’s very clear to me that the author’s representation of the pro-life movement is terribly twisted. Pro-lifers care not just about the unborn. Why would pro-lifers open pregnancy centers for mothers, maternity homes, adoption agencies, and shelters if they cared only about the unborn? They wouldn’t. A truly pro-life person values all life, and works to defend all life, not “just” the unborn.

Being pro-life does not “devalue” women and girls. In reality, treating women’s bodies as they were meant to be treated by nature is valuing them in the highest degree. And finally, a true pro-life person does not condone violence. That’s why we’re pro-life. We’re against violence, and all attacks on human life, whether it be the life of an unborn child or an abortionist.

This is where there is a huge inconsistency in the pro-choice viewpoint. Many mourned the loss of Dr. Tiller, but those same people do not mourn the loss of 4,000 babies every day. As a pro-life person, I cannot help but mourn the loss of every person, born and unborn. What about you?