Something he said that I found very interesting was that "legal abortions have a mortality rate of 0.00073%." I'm sorry, John, but have you not been educated about the fact that every abortion takes the life of a beautiful child? In reality, legal abortions have a mortality rate of 100%. It's pretty common knowledge that "fetuses" are fully human, and science fully supports that fact.
He also knocked laws that required women to be shown an ultrasound before choosing an abortion. So let me get this straight--you want women to make a decision as big as an abortion without being educated on what that decision entails? As someone who is for women and their health, I am surprised that you would not want a pregnant woman to do her research and learn about the choices available before she makes a decision.
John showed a clip of an abortion clinic worker who was upset that laws forced her to turn away a 13-year-old victim of rape, who wanted to get an abortion. He claimed that because of that, the girl had been "sentenced to motherhood". What he failed to say was that adoption is a beautiful option for girls and women in that situation. That if a girl of that age is not ready for motherhood (which is, of course, completely understandable), there are other options available to her. Unfortunately, many women faced with a crisis pregnancy are not educated about other possibilities.
"Every single one of us watching this right now believes that it [abortion] should be legal..."--this was a claim that John made after asking the 19% of Americans who believe that abortion should be illegal under any circumstances to change the channel while he discussed the topic. At the end of the clip, assuming that the 19% had tuned back in, he exclaims "What the **** is wrong with you??"
Overall, the clip showed John Oliver knocking laws that placed increasing regulations on abortions. It did not once consider the scientific evidence proving the humanity of unborn children. It did not once present another option for pregnant women in distress. It did not once speculate about the other kinds of support that a pregnant woman might need in her situation--or the pain and regret that she may feel after an abortion. It presented one side of an issue that can, in reality, never be one-sided.
Unfortunately, many Americans are only shown that one side of the abortion issue. Pro-life citizens are defined as extremists who are against women's health and their right to choose. Pro-choice citizens are portrayed as warriors for the cause of women's equality and freedom. Babies are seen as burdens, and abortions are celebrated as liberating and empowering.
Education is so important. Science supports the humanity of the unborn child. In my Early Childhood Development class at college, we learned about the amazing development that occurs throughout the three trimesters of pregnancy. It is so clear that the fetus is human, but society continues to deny it. For some reason, convenience and preference currently trump basic human rights.
But there is a stirring in the pro-life movement. Last year, the release of the undercover Planned Parenthood videos opened America's eyes to atrocities of abortion that had not been seen before. Legislature concerning the humanity of unborn children and the protection of those lives seems to be popping up even more often than before. Every presidential candidate is expected to have a stance on the issue. I believe that America is slowly waking up to the horror that is abortion. I pray that our leaders stand for life, that our people educate themselves, and that the steady flame of the pro-life movement grows until every baby is given the number one human right that they deserve--life.
