THE Human Rights Issue of our Day

Are you paying attention?

Alan Shemon:

Did you know it’s wrong to kill an unborn child according to California state law? You will be prosecuted for murder if you do (e.g. Scott Peterson). 

There’s only one exception: when a physician kills the child at the request of the mother. Doesn’t that seem odd? An unborn child is protected under the law like you and me. She is granted full human value. But in a moment’s request by her mother, an unborn child is transformed from a valuable human being into a valueless blob of tissue. She can be killed with impunity. 

This is bizarre, inconsistent, and sad. 

Imagine a hypothetical situation where a woman is pregnant with identical twin girls. Now suppose one of the twins is prematurely delivered at around the 25th week of pregnancy (typical pregnancies around last 40 weeks). The born twin is automatically protected under the law. Her sister still inside the womb, however, can be killed at any time during the remainder of her gestation. Although both girls are the same developmental age, one twin is safely protected outside the womb, while her sister is vulnerable inside the womb. 

The only difference between the twins is their location. Otherwise they are identical. But, as Francis Beckwith aptly recognizes, “Where one is has no bearing on who one is.” Our laws should not exclude members of the human community from legal protection simply because of their location. But that’s what is happening.

Read the rest.

Some may say, "Keep your religion to yourself!"  Did you notice that not one Bible verse was used here?

Should we not care about human rights for all human beings?  Yes, it's extremely complicated and emotionally weighty for the pregnant women who carry unwanted children.  We should do all that we can to help them.  But we do them no favors by failing to tell the truth about the human rights of the smallest, weakest, and most vulnerable among us.  There is too much at stake to keep quiet.  I want to live in a world where we take seriously the humans rights of all human beings.  Not just the ones who can speak the loudest and are the in the positions of power.