I’m a feminist, but I’m also pro-life

First of all, a disclaimer. I am all too aware that this writing is rooted in what is(to many an unpopular and contradictory belief system. But keep an eye on the “bigger picture” here, and accept that few issues of significance are actually “black and white,” and that we all can and should learn to better accept and respect viewpoints that are different than our own. I’m not saying I’m right – I’m sharing what I believe. And that’s that a woman can be a feminist, while also not being pro-choice. 

More often than not, when people hear the term “pro-life,” they envision a radical, religious protestor — someone who is “anti-choice” or “anti-women.” The intellectual intolerance and stigma that seem to follow this issue have created the misguided assumption that anyone who identifies themselves as pro-choice or pro-life are on the extreme end of a spectrum, that they reflect all the stereotypes and belief systems associated with that particular side (and thus discredit all beliefs of the other). But the generalization isn’t true. Pro-life people can still be feminists, and it’s possible to be passionate (yet reasonable) about this issue and not thereby represent a caricature or extreme stereotype. My intention here is not to persuade or dissuade anyone, nor is it to discredit anyone else’s particular beliefs; instead, it is to shed light on a different reality and hopefully offer an uncommon perspective: there is actually such a creature as a pro-life feminist.

About a week ago, I was zoned out writing a paper for a class when a Georgetown alumnus tapped me on the shoulder. He asked if I could explain the belief system underlying what he identified as contradictory “pro-life” and “feminist” stickers on my laptop. His curiosity, he said, stemmed from the fact that I didn’t “seem uptight at all,” meaning of course that I didn’t apparently fit a perceived stereotype. It was actually refreshing to be asked to explain my beliefs; he didn’t even try to argue me out of them or suggest counseling or anything. (I offer a halfhearted apology for finding humor in almost every situation). My conversation with this man reminded me of the emotions and stereotypes associated with each side of this issue, and encouraged me to re-engage myself on the reasons behind my personal ideology.

Evidently the slogan “pro-choice” advocates for a woman’s “right to choose,” while the slogan “pro-life” references the Christian-based belief that life begins at conception, and that abortion in any case is thereby unsupportable. Thus “pro-lifers” are frequently also labeled as “anti-women,” on the grounds that since they disagree with the fundamental basis of the pro-choice argument, the rest of the stereotype logically follows. To the contrary, I would stress that individuals are both able and allowed to feel that something is right or wrong for their own personal reasons, isolated from the propaganda of a national debate/movement — this is a large part of my logic for considering myself a pro-life feminist. I am in fact both and doubt that I am the only one.

Anyone who has taken the time and energy to engage in a passionate abortion-related debate would have no doubt noticed that any statistic or argument, futile, logical or otherwise, is unpersuasive. Every point ultimately boils down to the same question(s): is it a human? If so, when, and subsequently, is it entitled to protection and human rights? The heart of this debate stems from clashing answers to this question; the two sides simply understand the issue in a practically and morally incompatible manner — pro-choice supporters typically see it as an issue of women’s rights (the right to make their own personal choices for their own reasons), while pro-life supporters typically view it as a matter of human rights, the interests of innocents who cannot defend themselves.

I personally believe that a fetus is entitled to the same rights as humans outside of the womb, but that does not mean that I (or any other pro-lifer for that matter) necessarily adhere to every perceived legal and practical consequence this might entail. Nor, does it mean that I have a right or wish to impose my needs or viewpoints on others. Nonetheless, it doesn’t make logical sense to me to label and treat a fetus as anything besides a human; it is ultimately the same organism throughout its entire development inside a mother, and no one can definitively point to a stage in its development that it becomes a “real” human. I also believe that it’s a dangerous game to declare that a human organism is not entitled to certain basic rights because it lacks (or has not yet grown) certain human capabilities and traits. Think here of the argument that a fetus is not entitled to human rights because it lacks full mental capacity (the ability to “think on its own”)  — if this were the appropriate criterion for determining a human organism’s entitlement to basic rights, would it not exclude people with conditions like Dementia or Alzheimer’s?  

This isn’t an all encompassing summary of my beliefs and feelings on the issue, or the logic behind them. But it should be sufficient to demonstrate my thought process. I guess I consider myself pro-life in a sense by default, as arguments pointing the other way just make far less sense to me. We will never be able to answer this question definitively, and likely the positions on both sides won’t be influenced by facts anyway. I simply believe that when we are unsure of something with such extreme consequences, the right thing to do is to err on the side of caution.

Contrary to substantial modern thought, a feminist is anyone who believes in equal rights for men and women. I consider myself a passionate feminist, even though many would argue that I cannot make that claim because of my stance on the issue of abortion. However, because I believe that a fetus is entitled to basic human rights, I view the issue of abortion to be on a much larger platform than simply a woman’s right to choose. People who identify themselves as pro-choice — in support of women’s rights and believe a fetus is not a human being — would evidently not be able to see these as separate issues. Essentially, no one can or should discredit my stance unless they can prove that a fetus is not human and thereby not entitled to human rights after all — which they can’t of course, but if they could, it would and should then solely be a matter of a woman’s personal right to choose. Prove it and I might change my position.

I stress, once again, that my intention in sharing my thoughts on this issue is not to claim that I am right and/or that people who disagree with me are wrong. How unusual! To the contrary, my purpose has been to highlight what I perceive to be a hyper level of subjectivity, intolerance, and politicization on the matter of abortion, accompanied by highly inappropriate generalizations and stereotypes. This will no doubt piss some people off, and maybe even limit my friend prospects, but I have enough of those already anyway. I have different viewpoints on the issue than many, but my choices are for me logical and not emotionally based. Ultimately, regardless of any reaction to my beliefs, I will continue to label myself as an avid, pro-life feminist and never consider changing the stickers on my laptop.

@TheTab