Over the past decade, there has been a raging argument in pro-abortion circles over messaging: Should they be discreet talking about abortion, or should they wear their pride on their sleeves? Recently, the latter path was on display at the Democratic National Convention.
Planned Parenthood president Cecile Richards was the first speaker at this event to drop the dreaded “A” word: instead of talking euphemistically about “reproductive rights,” she spoke about abortion. Good for her—let’s have an honest discussion. Now she needs to tell us what is being aborted.
The following night, NARAL Pro-Choice president Ilyse Hogue told the crowd how she handled a pregnancy years ago. “I wanted a family, but it was the wrong time. I made the decision that was best for me—to have an abortion….” She did not say whether it was best for her baby. But no matter, when she finished her confession, she paused, waiting for applause. There was little of it. Our only regret is that her speech was not given during prime time—it really should have been.
These two abortion advocates are not an anomaly. Indeed, they are very much in step with the Democratic Party Platform. The 2016 Platform breaks ranks with all previous party positions on abortion by calling for a repeal of the Hyde Amendment. It now wants to force taxpayers to pay for abortion.
In 1975, atheist Anne Nicol Gaylor published a book titled, Abortion Is A Blessing. It was endorsed by feminists Betty Friedan and Gloria Steinem. Friedan previously had close ties to the Communist Party, and Steinem had an abortion when she was 22. In 2009, Rev. Katherine Ragsdale, an Episcopalian priest, also boasted that “Abortion is a blessing.” Are the Democrats now ready to join this merry band of abortion enthusiasts?
