Posted on 02/07/2009 5:56:51 PM PST by Dawn Elizabeth Slike
(My beautiful daughter had died in a tragic garage fire only days before, but I asked the paper to please publish this as planned. A previous OP-ED piece by a local councilwoman cited Martin Luther King as well as she reveled in the impending inauguration of Barack Obama. It made it that much more imperative that my pro-life piece be published.)
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On the 36th anniversary of Roe v. Wade and Doe v. Bolton, I’ve been reminded of and contemplating the glaring cultural polarity which jumps out at us when abortion is discussed. On one side we have an ever-growing population of Americans who are recognizing that the conception of a child necessitates the subsequent care of this child, permitting his or her birth and taking action to ensure the child receives nurturing, either through continued parenting or through foster care or adoption.
This portion of America recognizes that children are our very future, not pieces of property to be squandered away in deadly destruction under the knife of the woefully misused term "choice."
Then there are those who do not yet recognize and respect this most basic of human rights, the right to remain alive, the right of tiny children to escape and transcend the violence of abortion.
Rev. John B. Brown of the United Church of Christ offered this ponder-worthy challenge to fellow clergy in his forward to the book The Right Choice:
"Silence, however, is not for us. Where God has spoken, we must speak, as best we can…to break silence and to sound forth the Word of God regarding life and abortion. This Word is the truth that provides the basis for our freedom as human beings: male and female, young and old, black and white, disabled and able-bodied, born and unborn."
Dr. Martin Luther King, in his famous letter from a Birmingham, Alabama jailhouse, wrote that "injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere." Later in a sermon he said, "How long? Not long. Because a lie cannot live forever." His words challenging the grave injustice of racism are as relevant today when applied to the equally grave injustice of legally exterminating our youngest.
In early 2007 an uplifting recognition of the preference of life over death was issued within the Ohio Revised Code, under Section 9.041:
"It is the public policy of the State of Ohio to prefer childbirth over abortion to the extent that is constitutionally permissible."
While this brief statement does not end the scourge of in-utero killing, it does present a challenge to all of us, regardless of our social roles, to rise above apathy toward our youngest and most vulnerable neighbors and toward their mothers who carry and give birth to them.
We must all, as good neighbors and good citizens, listen within our hearts to the silent cries of these children in our midst. We must translate within our hearts that which we see when we look into the eyes of the people around us, eyes which serve not only as windows to troubled and uncertain souls, but windows of opportunity to bring authentic compassion and service to the needy. We must open our eyes so that we may fill our hearts.
Even 36 years later, it is still not too late to bring our culture back to one which humanely respects and cherishes the extraordinary gift of life.
Dawn Slike, Operations Director
Lake County Right to Life
Mentor OH
Prayers for your family!
Thanks for writing this letter to the editor.
My heart goes out to you for the loss of your daughter.
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