Alveda King’s Perspective: The atrocities that took place at the West Philadelphia Women’s Medical Society by late-term abortionist Kermit Gosnell should never have occurred.
I sat in a packed Philadelphia courtroom on Tuesday as three of eight murder charges were thrown out against Gosnell, whose clinic was described as a squalid "house of horrors."
The judge hearing the case — Common Pleas Judge Jeffrey Minehart — apparently did not believe based on the evidence presented that three of the babies Gosnell was charged with murdering were viable — that is born alive and killed as prosecutors alleged.
The 72-year-old physician, nevertheless still faces the death penalty if convicted of first-degree murder in the four remaining baby deaths for which he is charged. Prosecutors have argued that Gosnell and his staff killed these so-called “viable” babies by cutting the backs of their necks after they lived through an abortion procedure.
The judge also upheld murder charges in the case of an adult patient, Karnamaya Monger, 41, who died of an overdose of anesthetics prescribed by Gosnell.
You don’t have to be a pro-lifer to know that what this doctor is accused of is wrong, but thanks to the efforts of life-affirming bloggers and social media advocates, the public is finally getting to hear the kind of misery that takes place every day in America’s abortion clinics — albeit very few rising to the insidious nature for which Gosnell now stands accused.
It's tragic that unjust legal loopholes like gestational age and size of a baby make partial acquittal possible — even if only for some of the charges. Our laws are weak when it comes to protecting the dignity and rights of babies, and their vulnerable mothers.
Prior to a social media campaign on April 12 and April 17, there seemed to be a media blackout of the Gosnell trial. Almost nobody from the pro-abortion movement was speaking up either. A TweetFest was organized by Bryan Kemper, youth director of Priests for Life, and Andy Moore of AbortionWiki, who understand the importance of getting the word out.
Some liberals even had the guts to admit that they were squashing the story.
But now that the media has been moved into covering the trial, some reporters seem all too eager to comment and condemn the actions of abortionist Kermit Gosnell — but not the system that created him.
Described as the growing "mushy middle," some people have even taken the quantum leap to blame pro-life activists for abortionists like Gosnell. They argue that the pro-life legislation to better regulate the abortion industry has somehow forced clinics to operate in an unsafe manner.
Don't be deceived by this spin.
Gosnell is NOT the exception and abortion is not safe, particularly for women of color.
Some 2,000 women, including me, have filed an Amicus brief with the U.S. Supreme Court to show the high court that legalized abortion has caused any number of medical complications in many otherwise healthy American women.
Proponents of abortion argue that Gosnell is a throwback to the days before Roe vs. Wade — when back-alley abortions were common.
Gosnell is happening now, post Roe vs. Wade.
Sunday's Washington Post reported that abortion ranks high among safe medical procedures.
WRONG! As Father Frank Pavone puts it, "Gosnell is the rule!" These types of atrocities are happening all over America right now in under regulated abortion mills.
Hundreds of women have died from legal abortions. A list of nearly 400 deaths is posted on safeandlegal.com.
The new documentary, “Voice of John,” the Florida case of the live baby thrown from a roof, and a new website — AbortionDocs.org — provide examples of numerous unsafe — and definitely not rare abortions.
David Grimes, former head of the CDC abortion surveillance branch, said recently that the problems with abortion are so small that the branch no longer exists. He said more than 1,000 women per year died from abortion during the 1940s as compared to only a handful today.
SILENTNOMOREAWARENESS.ORG has also documented hundreds upon hundreds of cases where women have been harmed by abortion.
Rachael's Vineyard ministry, healing after abortion, now offers more than 950 healing retreats annually in 48 states and 57 countries, to help women and men who have been harmed by abortion. Their retreat manual had been translated into 22 languages as of last year.
Don’t believe lies and half-truths.
Abortion is evil. Abortion hurts women and kills American babies and their mothers. Abortion must be abolished.
Gosnell is just the tip of the iceberg quickly melting in the pure fire of truth.
Reuters and the Associated Press contributed to this report.
Dr. Alveda C. King grew up in the civil rights movement led by her uncle, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. She is a pastoral associate and director of African-American outreach for Priests for Life and Gospel of Life Ministries. Her family home in Birmingham, Ala., was bombed, as was her father’s church office in Louisville, Ky. Alveda herself was jailed during the open housing movement. Read more reports from Dr. Alveda C. King — Click Here Now.