I am so frakking pissed off right now that I can barely see straight. This morning, Dr. George Tiller was murdered, shot to death in the vestibule of the Lutheran church in Kansas where he was an usher. Tiller was one of the only doctors in the country who performed late-term abortions, which made him a frequent target of anti-choice protestors. In fact, he survived a shooting 16 years ago.
This is terrorism, no two ways about it. That's what we call it when someone commits an act of violence designed intimidate those with different political, religious or social views. If the suspect arrested for Tiller's murder had been a 20-year-old Muslim man rather than a 50-something white guy, there wouldn't be any question. The FBI already would've raided whatever mosque the guy attended and confiscated the computer of everyone who'd ever sent him an e-mail. But now instead we're going to get a lot of tsk-tsking from people who, at least on some level, think that Tiller got what he deserved. Maybe you think that. But know that, on Sept. 12, plenty of people in the world thought the same thing about you. Doesn't feel very good, does it?
Anyone who knows me knows my views: every woman who terminates a pregnancy does so for a different reason, and it's impossible for any government to draft a law that covers all those circumstances fairly. I do believe that humans are human from the moment of conception, but I also believe that laws are comically incapable of managing life. Abortion is a last resort, which is why I support the dozens of interventions that could prevent unplanned pregnancies, or unprepared pregnancies, in the first place - comprehensive, honest sex ed; access to birth control and EC; adequate support for mothers, including paid leave, etc. Lastly, I profoundly believe that, when the potential life inside a womb conflicts somehow with the living, breathing woman carrying that child, that only that woman has a right to decide what to do. Many woman would - and do - sacrifice their lives for the health of their babies. Many don't. I'm not going to presume to pass judgment on anyone placed in that gut-wrenching situation.
Of course I respect the people who think differently. I don't demonize people who oppose abortion - I don't really get where they're coming from, but that's exactly why we need to be talking to one another. Tiller's shooter wasn't engaging in dialogue any more than Mohammed Atta and the 18 other motherfuckers who hijacked the planes on 9/11. "Pro-life" my ass.
Dr. Tiller was a hero for performing the work he did. If I had any aptitude for medicine at all, I'd be doing exactly what he was doing. I'd also be fighting for the right of women to give birth at home, to have vaginal births after C-section and every other reproductive health issue. But since I don't have that aptitude, instead I'm going to call my local Planned Parenthood tomorrow and ask if they need any volunteers. I'm going to send a donation to Medical Students for Choice and any other group I can think of.
Dr. Tiller's murderer and the people who support him may think they're scaring pro-choice activists into hiding, but they've only done the opposite. Tonight, I'm more commited than ever to protecting the reproductive freedom of women, and I'm far from the only one.
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