Pro-life, or just pro-birth?
On Nov. 4, Tennessee voters narrowly approved Amendment 1, giving the state legislature the authority to “enact, amend, or repeal statutes regarding abortion, including circumstances of pregnancy resulting from rape or incest or when necessary to save the life of the mother.”
Approximately 52 percent of Tennes-seans celebrate this, while about 48 percent believe this is a flawed and dangerous amendment, and feel decisions a woman has to make about her medical care should be done without interference from politicians. Nonetheless, it is now law, written into the constitution.
So where do we go from here? Most of those who supported this amendment would classify themselves as pro-life. The question I raise is: Are they truly prolife, or merely pro-birth?
I find it ironic that many (though certainly not all) in that movement do not support measures for the safety and welfare of children and thus are anything but prolife. If indeed pro-lifemeans a respect for the sanctity of human life, then we need to rethink the very terms prolife and pro-choice.
As a person of faith, I find myself in both camps. For me, the term pro-life should not begin at conception and end at birth, but should extend throughout one’s life.
Let’s start with Gov. Bill Haslam’s refusal to extend Medicaid to this state’s poorest citizens, which means many low-income adults who would be eligible for coverage under the Affordable Care Act will not get it. More than 180,000 people who need it the most will be denied essential medical care.
Data strongly suggest that such coverage improves access to care, use of preventive screenings and immunizations to avoid or manage disease and helps in the treatment of disease. Let’s see how a “pro-life” legislature responds.
One of the essentials of supporting life beyond birth is a living wage, so that parents, especially single parents, are able to afford the essentials needed for their children. In Tennessee, about 117,000 workers earn about or below the federal minimum wage of $7.25 an hour. I dare our legislators to try to live on $15,080 a year. A living wage would be a clear pro-life move.
Let’s talk children. The Urban Child Institute estimates that about 25,000 children in Shelby County alone are witnesses to or victims of domestic violence. It used to be assumed that young children were less affected than older children by such violence, but recent studies have clearly refuted that.
It has been shown that effective interventions do work, but we need more high- quality, accessible programs in our schools, churches and neighborhood centers to break the cycle of violence. Children need to feel safe. Let’s ask our legislators what they will do to fund such programs, and see if they are truly pro-life.
While we’re on children, I do not need to remind leaders where Tennessee ranks in education, anywhere from 46th to 49th, depending on the study. Are legislators willing to fund universal pre-K? Do they have the courage to expand Head Start, arguably one of the most effective programs of the War on Poverty?
Finally, I would have hoped that after Columbine, Newtown, Virginia Tech, Aurora and other scenes of mass murder, common sense might prevail to encourage strong laws regulating guns, but the National Rifle Association has effectively weakened what laws we have. Simply put, I will not refer to someone who pickets Planned Parenthood but refuses to support commonsense gun laws as pro-life.
Respect for the sanctity of human life does not end at birth, but has to include how a life is lived, supported, enhanced and protected throughout all our days.
Stephen R. Montgomery is pastor of Idlewild Presbyterian Church.