Are you pro-life or just anti-abortion?
Prolife … what comes to mind when you hear this term? Do you envision abortion protesters? Does it remind you of your own convictions regarding the sanctity of life? Or maybe you feel more strongly about a woman’s right to bodily autonomy? Regardless of how we think or feel, ‘pro-life’ is a label that means something very specific in our culture. It’s a moral value mostly claimed by people who believe in “saving the unborn” at all costs.
Pro-life = Protect Our Earth
Fact : Our earth is facing major conservation challenges from threats like climate emergency, deforestation, overfishing, and illegal wildlife trade. Half of earth’s species have disappeared in the last 40 years and climate change is causing thousands of human deaths each year and costing us Billions of dollars each year. But protecting our planet and keeping planetary warming below 1.5C (2.7° F) is not impossible and none of us need to do it alone.
Our impact on the planet primarily comes from what we eat, what we buy, how we power our homes, how we travel from place to place, as well as governmental policies and protections. Together, we can take action to create lasting solutions and protect the future of nature.
Pro-life = Protect Children and Their Rights
Many changes in society are having a disproportionate, and often negative, impact on children. Transformation of the family structure, globalisation, climate change, digitalisation, mass migration, shifting employment patterns and a shrinking social welfare net in many countries all have strong impacts on children. The impact of these changes can be particularly devastating in situations of armed conflict and other emergencies.
The fundamental human dignity of all children and the urgency of ensuring their well-being and development. It makes clear the idea that a basic quality of life should be the right of all children, rather than a privilege enjoyed by a few. The healthy development of children is crucial to the future well-being of any society.
Pro-life = Protect Women and Girls
Fact : Women and girls have suffered in silent. As the world continue to retreat inside homes due to the lockdown measures introduced to curb the COVID-19 pandemic, reports showed an alarming increase in the already existing pandemic of violence and mistreatment against women and girls. This mistreatment is not only a violation of their human rights but also a missed opportunity to include women and girls.
Strengthen women’s ability to earn money and support their households by providing comprehensive healthcare and family planning services, maternity leave and quality early childhood support for our women (and men) !
Pro-life = Protect LGBTQO and Trans Community
LGBTQ and trans community deserve to live openly with their loved ones, without fear or constant threat of persecution, micro-aggressions, discrimination, violence, and hate crimes. – including murder – just for being themselves. Fight for the rights of the LGBTQ community to live (and enjoy living) their lives openly and authentically, as much as us , cisgender/heterosexual (cishet), people get to live (and enjoy living) ours.
Pro-life = Protect Health
If you really want to promote pro-life, then you should seek to ensure everyone will have affordable health care coverage providing equal access to age-appropriate and evidence-based health care services (including prevention, promotion, treatment, rehabilitation and palliation).
Good health is essential to sustained economic and social development and poverty reduction. Access to needed health services is crucial for maintaining and improving health. At the same time, people need to be protected from being pushed into poverty because of the cost of health care.
Pro-life = Protect Water
Water touches every aspect of life. It drives economic growth, supports healthy ecosystems, and is essential and fundamental for life itself.
At least 2.2 billion people around the world do not have safely managed drinking water services, 4.2 billion people do not have safely managed sanitation services, and 3 billion lack basic handwashing facilities (source : worldbank.org). Gaps in access to water supply and sanitation, growing populations, more water-intensive patterns of growth, increasing rainfall variability, and pollution are combining in many places to make water one of the greatest risks to economic progress, poverty eradication and sustainable development. Keep our water safe, clean, and accessible for everyone.
Pro-life = Protect Food
If you really a pro-life, then you should deeply concern with the overall policies that would protect and preserve one of the most basic needs of each human life : food.
It’s time for all of us to work together for food security to strengthen a culture of life. Ban chemicals such as roundup that poison the earth and waters and cause cancer in humans and animals. All it requires is global leadership, a strong will, and a commitment to stay the course toward ending hunger.
Pro-life Is not ABOUT Governing women’s body
Let me be clear – no matter your personal stance on abortion, the right to make decisions about your own body without restriction from the government must be protected. An attack on anyone’s bodily autonomy is an attack on everyone’s bodily autonomy.
Reproductive Rights are Human Rights. Politics don’t belong in reproductive health care. Restricting access to abortions doesn’t eliminate abortions, it only creates unsafe abortions. Access to education and affordable reproductive healthcare, including safe abortions, saves lives. Women – who are fully living human beings – deserve the right to decide what happens to their bodies. Here’s the truth :
She is brave enough, she strong enough, and she is capable.
At its core, the pro-life movement should be dedicated to protecting the life and dignity of all people. So, if you really want to be pro-life, and actively pro-life, then you seek to protect the rights and lives of marginalised groups in your own community. That ideal is the pro-life you should strive to be.
The article was initially published on 2nd September 2021.
