March 29, 2024

About a Girl

Aug. 27, 2015

My view on abortion changed on July 17, 1994 at about 1:30 in the afternoon. It might be time for the rest of the country to catch up. On July 17, at about 28–29 weeks, because she was in distress, my daughter was born by caesarian section. She weighed 2.5 pounds. With help of a breakthrough synthetic surfactant she was able to breathe on her own in just a few hours. Her will to live was strong, and although other babies in the NICU had downturns and rough days, Madeline fought every day until we took her home in August. In many U.S. jurisdictions she could have been aborted without a second thought.

There is only one reason why the United States does not have a realistic, consistent policy on abortion, and it’s because of polarizing, rigid positions on both side of the issue. While both sides believe their opinions are absolute, neither have science, reason, or compassion, and both are responsible for the death resulting from the fight.

On the pro-life pole, we have those who will only accept the notion that life begins at conception, even though that’s a fairly impossible interval to determine. They will reject any candidate and position that does not adopt their firm position, and are really looking for a candidate who must be a religious believer as they are. Someone who is completely against abortion but is an atheist would not be an acceptable candidate to this group. Under the guise of a policy position, they are really looking for confirmation of their religious beliefs.

At the other end of the spectrum, the prochoice position refuses to acknowledge that there is a human life involved at some point. They don’t think it’s a baby until it is completely outside the mother’s womb; they have even accepted the concept of partial birth abortion, where a viable child’s life is ended while it is partway through the birth canal (I’m not making this up). Their commitment to the superiority of any woman’s choice ignores the rights of the child even when that child is a future woman. Their candidates must also share their unwavering commitment to "women’s rights" at all costs.

As a result of these polar opposites we have a patchwork of laws based on forty-year-old science. Many in inteligencia like to use Europe as a model, but compared to Europe we are barbarians. In Germany abortion is nearly impossible after 12 weeks, and women seeking one before that are required a waiting period and counseling. In the Netherlands, there is a five-day waiting period and abortion is illegal after 22–24 weeks. In Finland, abortion is legal only until 12 weeks of pregnancy, and only after women provide a "social" reason. In Russia, abortion is also restricted to the first 12 weeks of a pregnancy. The one place in the world where American pro-choice advocates would find a home is China, where abortion is legal, encouraged, and in some cases the only option since they have a strict one-child restriction, which is hardly a pro-choice option.

Yet there is reason, science, and compassion on the abortion front, and we all know it. Couples who find out they are pregnant often keep quiet for at least a month or two to make sure it’s real. We know that it’s not uncommon for pregnancies to fail early on. We may not be able to know exactly where life begins, but after eight weeks an embryo is called a fetus. With current ultrasound we can see the fetus at about 13 weeks. It’s enough of a human at this point to diagnose Down Syndrome. Near the end of the first trimester we discern a head, legs and, sometimes, tiny arms.

The mystery pretty much ends as the second trimester begins. By 18–20 weeks, details are clear enough to tell the gender of the child and even confirm heart rate and growth of internal organs. Things get pretty academic here. Parents will say clearly, "we are having a baby." But at 22 weeks most fetuses are just getting to be a pound.

When the third trimester begins, it’s a baby in there and we all know it. Growth is rapid and in a few weeks the weight will double. There are many examples of early babies under two pounds surviving with some amazing medical intervention. Again, any woman who has been pregnant will tell you a tissue mass doesn’t kick and poke you in the bladder. I had the joy of watching my daughter grow outside the womb. So I know at under three pounds, just a few days into the world, and still not 30 weeks from conception she would smile when she heard voices and struggle to turn her head when I sang to her.

It’s time for Americans to wake up. Stop listening to the militant feminists who insist we hurt women when we acknowledge an obvious human life. We need to bury religious pride and stop forming lines of families holding signs along the lakeshore. Keep your kids out of this. This is an adult problem, not a sporting event where it’s your team or mine. We might not be sure where life begins, but we do know that after 12 weeks, without much fuss or intervention, most of the time you’ll get a baby. We know for certain with walking, living proof, that after about 28 weeks there is a human being in there. Let’s get out of the margins and have a debate about ending abortion somewhere after the first trimester. Let’s leave politics out of this and have a little respect for humanity.

Thomas Kachadurian is a photographer, designer and author. He lives on Old Mission Peninsula with his wife and two children. He is currently the President of the Traverse Area District Library Board of Trustees.

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