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> Then, almost overnight, "abortion" became an issue, and religious beliefs were no longer confined to church. Before that, the political issue churches were s

> Then, almost overnight, "abortion" became an issue, and religious beliefs were no longer confined to church. Before that, the political issue churches were supporting was civil rights; a century before that, it was the abolition of slavery. I don't think it is possible for anyone who takes positions on right or wrong to be truly apolitical: 'I avoid politics' mostly means 'I find the status quo tolerable.'

trasz 5y ago
Except that civil rights were an actual problem, as was slavery. Abortion, on the other hand, is not - it's an artificial problem invented for political reasons.
- floor2 5y ago
  Ironically, abortion is in fact a continuation of civil rights, society is just still in the dark ages on it. Society has been dehumanizing people to deny them basic rights forever, the civil rights movement has been the fight against that, and today the most dehumanized group is unwanted babies. The civil rights struggle has largely been about society coming to terms with oppressed groups being worthy of having equal human rights, whether that was on the basis of race, gender, sexuality, nationality, religion, disability, whatever. Suggesting that a fetus doesn't deserve a right to live is no different than suggesting that any other marginalized, dehumanized group doesn't. In essence, human rights for the unborn today are where human rights for Black people were in the 1850s. Hopefully someday we'll treat young life with the same respect we treat old life.
  - trasz 5y ago
    Quite the opposite: abortion ban dehumanises woman by denying them their basic human right: the right to decide about their body. Abortion ban isn't fundamentally any different from mandatory organ donation from living donors. (This of course ignores the fact that the ideological basis for abortion ban is literally just stupid; it was Acquinas himself who explained how flawed the idea of "life from conception" was.)

trasz 5y ago

Except that civil rights were an actual problem, as was slavery. Abortion, on the other hand, is not - it's an artificial problem invented for political reasons.

floor2 5y ago
Ironically, abortion is in fact a continuation of civil rights, society is just still in the dark ages on it. Society has been dehumanizing people to deny them basic rights forever, the civil rights movement has been the fight against that, and today the most dehumanized group is unwanted babies. The civil rights struggle has largely been about society coming to terms with oppressed groups being worthy of having equal human rights, whether that was on the basis of race, gender, sexuality, nationality, religion, disability, whatever. Suggesting that a fetus doesn't deserve a right to live is no different than suggesting that any other marginalized, dehumanized group doesn't. In essence, human rights for the unborn today are where human rights for Black people were in the 1850s. Hopefully someday we'll treat young life with the same respect we treat old life.
- trasz 5y ago
  Quite the opposite: abortion ban dehumanises woman by denying them their basic human right: the right to decide about their body. Abortion ban isn't fundamentally any different from mandatory organ donation from living donors. (This of course ignores the fact that the ideological basis for abortion ban is literally just stupid; it was Acquinas himself who explained how flawed the idea of "life from conception" was.)