Inquiry: Disarming textures of pro-life 

Credit: Jean Philippe-Cypres, photographer

by LJ Frank

Being pro-life on the surface promises

a sensitive and courageous philosophical posture

to be translated into a compassionate, humane act;

Yet, the textures possess burdensome queries

with the potential of tragic, collateral effects.

 

Does the posture become lost in the hypocrisy of translation

for isn’t pro-life more than being – pro-birth,

doesn’t it also mean to be

against capital punishment and murder,

what of war…which is a legalized version of ending a life,

and to resist unstable minds wishing to do battle

for the sake of power and greed…

does pro-life entail offering health care for everyone

and equal opportunity for all

along with breathable air and drinkable water,

should pro-life be interpreted as

loving and treating your neighbor

as you would do to yourself?

 

What are the downstream implications

for a person who is raped,

or an already disabled fetus within the mother’s womb

or…

perhaps

saving a mother’s life at the expense of another…

what are the compassionate options?

 

Does a legislator have the moral and legal right to legislate

what a woman does with her vagina

and should a man’s penis be under similar scrutiny

rather than having a double standard,

for isn’t Intent a mental desire to act in a certain manner?

Should a woman’s health and her doctor’s professional advice

be as relevant

as the politics of a politician seeking office?

 

Does a man have the right to grab a woman

Or a woman to grab a man

without her or his consent?

And should a male or female who wish to copulate

have a choice in condom or mesh

or to wear a chastity device or cock cage

while their partners hold the keys?

 

Should people be better sex educated

beginning as a child

to open the doors of the human mind

and allow the brain to see what’s at stake  –

for bearing, nurturing and supporting a child

has a human cost beyond economics

in a world where knowledge and empathy are starving,

and brutal words

create a vacancy in conscience

and the violent thought and act

fills the void.