Priests for Life engages in respectful dialog with those who disagree with us on abortion. We invite supporters of legal abortion to answer the following questions. If you
write to us, we will respond to you, and will be glad to answer questions of your own. The following questions were taken from the 1990 Life Activist
Seminars by Mark Crutcher.
1. "Pro-abortionists say that outlawing abortion would restrict a woman’s
right to privacy. Is that right absolute? Does somebody’s right to privacy
exceed another’s right to live?"
2. "If what you say is true and the issue isn’t really abortion but a
woman’s right to control her own body, why doesn’t your agenda include drugs and
prostitution? Aren’t laws against those just as restrictive to a woman’s right
to choose what she will and will not do with her own body, as laws against
abortion are?"
3. "Why is it that the very people who say the government should stay out of abortion are the same ones who want the government to pay for them?"
4. "Abortion advocates say they are in business to help women. Other than offering to kill their children for them, what are you doing?"
5. "Pro-abortionists say that the unborn child is part of the mother’s body. If that is so, why does it have a completely different genetic code and often a different blood type? How do you explain the fact that it has it’s own immune
system? Why is it male about half the time?"
6. "If we use the absence of brain waves to determine that a person’s life has ended, why shouldn’t we use the presence of brain waves to determine that someone’s life has begun?"
7. "Since you say that your interest is in protecting women, what is your position on these at home, do-it-yourself, abortion kits now being offered by many abortion advocates? Also, do you feel it’s ethical for them to advise women
to avoid the gynecologist’s office for not only these procedures, but regular check-ups as well?"
8. "We are now seeing the unborn being treated for disease, given blood
transfusions and even operated on. When a doctor does one of these procedures,
who is the patient?"
9. "Pro-abortionists try to justify their actions by saying that, while the
unborn may be human, it’s not a ‘person’. Can you give a detailed description of
the differences?"
10. "Pro-abortionists base a significant part of their argument on the
concept of viability. Can you give me a description of what it means for someone
to be viable?"
11. "Does it bother you that abortion is legal after the point where medical
science has evidence that the unborn child feels pain?"
12. "Why is it that abortion advocates say they want women to have all their
options, but they then fight so hard against laws requiring totally informed
consent?"
13. "What rights do you feel a father should have in an abortion decision?"
14. "Why is it that pro-abortionists fight so viciously to keep parents from
having a say in whether their minor daughter has an abortion or not?"
15. "If pro-abortionists are mainly concerned with the health and safety of
women, why do they fight so hard against medical standards as legitimate
out-patient surgery clinics?"
16. "Let’s look at a hypothetical situation: two women become pregnant on
the same day; six and a half months later woman A has a premature, yet healthy,
baby; woman B is still pregnant; a week later each decides she doesn’t want her
baby. Why should woman B be allowed to kill hers and not woman A?"
17. "If it became absolutely clear to you that the unborn child is a living
human being, would you then favor outlawing abortion?"
18. "Why don’t we each look at the downside of our respective positions?
Have you ever thought about what the ramifications are if you are wrong?"
19. "When it was first discovered that the brain cells of aborted babies
were a potential treatment for Parkinson’s Disease, the ABC NEWS program,
NIGHTLINE, carried a story about a woman who’s father suffered with this malady.
She wanted to be impregnated with the sperm of her father, for the purpose of
creating a child, which would then be aborted, and it’s parts used to treat him.
Do you see anything wrong with this?"
20. "Should a woman be allowed to have an abortion for absolutely any
reason, such as sex selection, selective reduction, or job promotion? If not,
when not?"
21. "I am going to take the liberty of characterizing your position, and
then I want you to tell me where I’m wrong. You want abortion to be legal right
up to the moment of birth, in other words for all nine months of pregnancy; for
any reason whatsoever, for no reason whatsoever; for a minor girl of any age,
without parental consent, without even parental knowledge; and if she can’t pay
for it, you think the taxpayer ought to. Is there anything inaccurate about that
statement?"