LETTER: We are Pro-choice – not Pro-abortion

22

Dear Editor:

We are Pro-choice – not Pro-abortion

Thanks for your clear coverage of Justice Jan Drysdale’s dismissal of the Attorney General’s scandalous claim that the abortion law was repealed in 1995 (17th October).

And we are pleading with all to be more mindful of the language you employ in covering our challenge.

We are being described as “abortion rights activists.”  We are nothing of the sort.  We are not promoting abortion.

And many as 80% of women who attend public health clinics in Antigua reported that their first pregnancy was unintended.  About 60% of them will turn to abortion.  We are trying to end that.

Our research, public education, and advocacy are geared to improving contraceptive usage, elevating male responsibility, reducing unintended pregnancies, and so minimizing the need for recourse to abortion.

Sadly, both the language and the photograph in your report are imported from the US.  Both are unhelpful to constructive dialogue.

The focus on abortion is fetus centred.  Our focus is on women’s health.  We want women to have agency and choice of pregnancy.  We are for safe motherhood.  We are pro-family.

We are pro-choice activists.  Our adversaries are anti-choice. 

They want women to be compelled to carry pregnancies regardless of the circumstances of their pregnancy and regardless of whether they want to be pregnant.

We are pro-choice because we are pro-life.

We find being described as pro-abortion, misleading, meaningless, and frankly offensive.  Please see us as we are: pro-choice.

Sincerely,

ASPIRE

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22 COMMENTS

  1. This is The most asinine thing I have ever read. Sensitising language doesn’t change anything. You support women’s ability to seek aborTions. “pro-aborTion”/”pro-choice” The end resulT is The same. Dead babies. Give me a break please.

    They know what they advocate for is evil, that is why they want iT reporTed using softer language, to make it more palatable to the masses. If you are going to hold a position own it and own it completely, that way we can at least take you seriously.

  2. I am pro-choice to. I am for free-will, as God gave me that. I may not like some of the things we do with our free-will but that should always be protected. Woman should have freewill and gays should have freewill.

    I am not a woman or gay but I am pretty sure I have the freewill to have multiple woman (I do not) and the freewill to have sex before marriage (I have). Here, I am exercising my freewill without threat of harm, I think those people should be able to do that to.

    If they are faced with harm for exercising their freewill in these context, then the government officials who are cheating on their spouse, and exercising those freewill they have but we consider to be wrong should face the same threat of harm and punishment also.

    That is the argument I had with a guy they said is my brother who is located in Antigua, not the medical doctor.

    I explain to this man, it is Godly for a leader to allow people to have a choice, even when their choice will not be what we hope for. This, I said, was Godly, and this man, with no understand of God is saying I am speaking nonsense, and then went on like some idiot.

    God has never once turned me into a robot and take away my freewill, even when I pick sin. Why on earth should man take away such rights, pertaining to these kinds of freewill?

    Again, I am not in agreement with the choices but I am in agreement they should have such choice. Our only duty is to inform them of what the right choice is biblically and the harms the wrong choice will bring biblically and then our duty is over. But not taking away their rights to pick. Not force our spirituality and religion on them.

    I am for freewill like my God is for freewill. So, that was the beginning of the educated-dunce argument in which I was called that name by this person I was told is my brother.

    And then it continued when I said it was wrong for Samantha Marshall and Gaston Brown to say they will not help me get my endeavor started but the only help I wanted was to have the police make the approval they already gave me effective immediately, as they said even though I had the approval, and it says approved, it is not effective until I sit in some 2 hour class. So, I am walking around with an approval letter but is not effective because the condition precedent or is it subsequent that must occur, the 2 hour class, did not happen while I am waiting for over 3 months. I had to leave Antigua going crazy sitting there waiting and nothing happening.

    I even provided them with my certification in the area, asking for a waiver. I just did another 2 days ago in the US because it took my about 2 weeks to be approved in another state. I sat in that class for 1 hour and had to shoot 80% or higher and passed.

    So, this is how ignorant family can be, they believe in politicians and their dungeness and failure more than they believe in family and those who did not have to enter politics to start making millions. You are successful if you can make money without abusing the power and trust you have as government officials. And this is not a statement targeting any specific person but to all government officials who knows in their heart they have abused their power, missappropriated, and other wrongs.

    Sorry for going on a tangent but this topic bring back memories dealing with many idiots that will probably never get far in life if they continue thinking like dunces and idiots and not raising their self-esteem. They should promptly disown me.

  3. This is a clear violation of the Almighty’s law and statutes.
    Clearly this is a demonstration of rebellion against the most high God, our creator.
    This is also an opportunity and wake up for all you believers to press on in the work we were called to pursue, be brave and bold and call sin by its rightful name, testify of the Lords goodness and mercy, go tell his word across the lands far and near.

    A murder dem want to murder a mek it legal now, just like dem legalize the weed smoking.
    Hope dem ready for the consequences.

    If you don’t want children then stop lie down with man, close your crutch and keep it to yourself, but you want the man money so you open it, get a seed planted, now you want to get rid of the seedling, that’s a sin and God is displeased and wrath with that.
    Sex before marriage is fornication, sex outside of marriage is adultery, you will not enter the gates if you continue to do these things.

    1 Corinthians 6:9-11
    Or do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: neither the sexually immoral, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor men who practice homosexuality, nor thieves, nor the greedy, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God.

  4. 1 Corinthians 6:19-20
    Or do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and you are not your own? For you were bought at a price; therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God’s.

    So then, what gives you the right to choose what YOU will do with YOUR body?
    You people are very much ungodly and God will punish you if you continue to do this evil.

  5. Fine, But let’s do it in all way
    First: Woman: Pro-Choice when to have a baby regardless the Father opinion if he want to support you and you refuse to have the child, But if tte Father refuse to support you from the beginning, you can’t force that man later to paid you child support. Do you want to abort against the Father will? Then don’t go to court asking child support after.
    Second: Paternity test mandatory.
    Third: Father leave…Means if the mother have a better job income, the father can apply for “Father’s Maternity Leave” instead, so the family doesn’t lose the highest Household income for a period of time.
    Fourth: Allows Companies to give allowances without being taxable to workers that have Children’s in orders to support them in the household expenses.

  6. what do Jamale Pringle and Gisele Isaac have to say about this?? Miss Knight say the WOMEN’S FORUM run things in upp.

  7. I truly believe and I know confirmed by God the right thing to do is give folks the freewill in matters like this to choose good or bad. We shall not force God or good on anyone. Doing so while no one is forcing and threatening us with earthly punishment for our wrongs, like cheating on our spouse, and other wrongs we ignore is wrong.

    I wish no abortion occurs, and I wish no man find another man sexually attractive or no woman find another woman sexually attractive but I know the superseding right is to allow them to pick for themself, good or bad, right or wrong.

    At anytime has God taking away your right to to pick good or bad? Look at your life and answer. Have you ever sinned? You have, because you had freewill.

    Our only duty as a society in most cases is to teach, educate, enlighten, etcetera but not to theeaten with prison or take away the rights of folks to pick. We cannot and should not force our spirituality on anyone. Not in situations like these.

  8. yes the Creator created us with FREE WILL. He has also told us that there is a NARROW way and a BROAD way and the end result of both paths. CHOOSE wisely!

  9. @ my way of helping, what you said about “I truly believe and I know confirmed by God the right thing to do is give folks the free will in matters like this to choose good or bad.”

    God already blessed us with a free will from creation, we cannot gave any will to anyone, is any one of us God???
    We are governed by laws of the land and the law is set to keep a particular order for everyone.
    People still have their right to choose what they want to do with the question of abortion, whether to do it or not, they will just face the consequences that follows their decision.
    Why must the law chance to suit people who want to make a child then murder it, does that make sense to you?
    If it does , then you do not deserve your brain. Your brain should be donated to someone else who can fill it with wisdom and put it to good meaningful use.

  10. @Snook based on your conclusion, the perfect evidence on why you are a person who opinion should not be considered and nothing you say consider the rights of others. I rest my case with your words to prove my points are accurate. Thank you.

  11. Why we arguing about abortion? What happen to taking responsibility and being held accountable. If you gonna throw the kids away just use a condom, morning after, IUD, cervical cap or any variation of available birth control. We talking about God but why not abstain and actually hold God’s word holy, having an abortion is not greater a sin that fornication so why don’t we just do the right thing or cover ourselves if we want to have premarital coitus.

  12. Be it not for the Grace of God, there goeth I, let he who is without sin cast the first stone.

    As human beings, we love to pull the bible card. When the truth be told, we have all fallen short in one way, shape or form. We have all broken a law…be it law of God or of man. When the woman was caught in the act of adultery, Jesus didn’t turn his back. So why are we holding people unto a standard that we ourselves can’t achieve or maintain. We all sin. It’s our choice to sin or not to sin. We make the choice, we deal with our consequences. Some of you are talking about keeping legs closed etc. Yeah ok!!!! Most of you who are saying that has had legs opened wider than the ocean, and still not married. And that’s ok… because it’s between you and God. Your choice, your consequence. I am not for abortions. I’m also not for stealing, or murder etc. But I’m pro choice. The choice to choose to make choices. Many women have been raped. As a result, they become pregnant. …12 years old, 13…14…. sometimes even adults. Based on circumstances, they choose to abort. Is it a right choice? That’s between them and God. The same bible also says that God will choose to have mercy on whom he chooses….just like Jesus did with the woman caught in the act of prostitution. Let’s not be so quick to take the speck out of others eyes when we have a plank in our own. Let’s try compassion and try to understand why they may feel a need to abort and support the individual vs the action.

  13. Best we pro -choice everything.
    We should pro-choice every household having the right to have at least one firearm.
    Everybody do whatever dem feel like with dem body, free up the laws a lill bit mek we get like a slack draws here in ANU, start mek baby oil and mek sure everybody oil up, slack up all the laws mek we tun inna sodom.
    this place is slowly becoming a total mess.
    soon bare devils and demons will roam here if the laws continue to become loose, just like the dam weed dem legalize

  14. Too late Sheldon, look around you…you don’t have to look too far. People are already doing what they wanna do with their bodies. And that’s their damn business. That’s between them and God. And while you’re condemning them, don’t forget to condemn yourself and all the things that you have in your closet. Wait a minute…that’s none of our business….that’s between you and God..

  15. You say you are “Pro-Choice” not “Pro-Abortion” but that is just as bad because you are Pro-allowing people to decide whether other innocent people (babies) should live or die for their own convenience. You say 60% of persons with unplanned pregnancy will choose abortion but you have no basis for that possibly made up statistic. Even rich married women don’t “plan” their pregnancy in these parts. So, unplanned pregnancy statistics don’t mean much in these parts and are not a reason to promote abortion. Who says babies have to be “planned”? The ideal is for young people to get an education and a job before coupling up and engaging in adult activities so whenever a baby arrives after they are in their stable adult lives (preferably married) they are ready to roll with it. You say that you care about women’s lives but not foetuses. But, “foetuses” are also human lives and no life is more important than the other. Women are not more important than babies. You cannot be pro-life and not care about the life of “foetuses”. And, if you really care about women’s lives you would support women to live out their full womanhood including having babies not tell them that they are too weak to have or raise children if their life does not fit a certain modern mold. These are American talking points. No significant percentage of women in these parts have been demanding any of these changes. We do not need to be colonised by America’s way of thinking about reproduction.

  16. Women already have agency and choice of pregnancy. It’s called, abstainance and contraception. As stated in a previous article, abortion is already allowed in cases of rape. What more do u want? This is just the abortionists trying to tone down their message because of the unexpected backlash. Everthing else that they claim to offer or encourage us already available to us. Leave our society alone. We care for our members, including the vulnerable ones…those who don’t even know they exist yet. By the way, where does it stop? When a person gets dementia such that they don’t even know who they are, should we be allowed to dispose of them so they don’t become a burden to society? Sounds far-fetched but the “developed” countries these deranged people come from are already further down that road than we realise.

  17. @my way of helping – If a man wants to go behind another man it is wrong but it is his choice but ending the life of an organism bearing the human genome is called murder… case closed. Its a human fetus…..a HUMAN

  18. Abortion is big business in the “developed” world, and govt pays for it. They just backing these people cause they looking to open a new market. That’s all… Just cold hard cash

  19. So… one person deciding if another person should work, go to school, drive a car, vote….or even be born, for their own convenience or economic success. Isn’t that what we just escaped from with the abolition of slavery? The first step toward abolishing slavery was getting people to recognize that slaves were indeed humans whose only differentiating factor from free people were the conditions under which they were born. Fast forward to 2024, the first step to killing babies and profiting from it(more on that later) is convincing people that they are not human. My question to them is, what makes a foetus in 2024 any less of a human than a black person in the US in the 1800s? They both had no say in them being there.

    Don’t think that this isn’t a lucrative business. Abortions are performed strictly by paid doctors and many clinics are parts of nation-wide franchises. The unborn babies are sold for stem cells, to test new vaccines, etc (things we wouldn’t dream of doing to animals). Their taste receptors are even extracted to use in testing new flavours of cola, so they’re looking to do it all over again, buying and selling people with the help of locals (who do you think the slave traders bought slaves from? )

  20. Ecc 8:11-13 KJV 11 Because sentence against an evil work is not executed speedily, therefore the heart of the sons of men is fully set in them to do evil. 12 Though a sinner do evil an hundred times, and his days be prolonged, yet surely I know that it shall be well with them that fear God, which fear before him: 13 But it shall not be well with the wicked, neither shall he prolong his days, which are as a shadow; because he feareth not before God.

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