An Unfair Choice

By Alan Thorne, Director, Created4Life

2009 marks the 41st anniversary of the British law change that allowed, in effect, the freedom of choice to kill unborn children.

"But you can't take away a woman's right to choose to have an abortion!" came a fiery protest from the front row of a class of 16-17 year old students. The young woman was obviously strongly opposed to my opinion and shouted out her objection. But I wanted to challenge her, gently, to find out why she believed this so passionately. So I made up an imaginary situation...

An artificial womb

I said, "Suppose a human egg is fertilised in a test-tube. Now when that happens today, in IVF fertility treatment, one of the many newly formed embryos is then placed into the womb of the mother. But imagine that the embryo is placed in an artificial womb, a machine rather than a woman.

"Who will decide then," I asked, "whether that baby will be released from the machine and allowed to live or if it will be killed? Whose choice would it be?"

There was silence for a moment. I presumed the students were weighing up if it should be the decision of the father, the mother or both. Then, to the great astonishment of everyone, the young lady in the front row angrily called out, "It's the machine's choice of course!"

Freedom to choose

I've found there is one thing that will get some people really annoyed: suggest taking away their freedom to choose. The idea, that we all have this so-called 'right to choose', is deeply fixed in people's thinking. It is such a deeply held belief, that it has caused many to be muddled in their decisions concerning right and wrong.

The classmates laughed at the reply given by the young lady in the front row. "It's the machine's choice!" really was a silly answer because machines don't make free moral decisions. But she applied the same reasoning to the imaginary situation as she had done in real life. I think her reasoning was this: if a baby is growing in a woman's womb, it is that woman's right to have an abortion; if a baby is growing in an artificial womb then it must be the machine's choice. It was the logical answer.

Since 1967, with the passing of the Abortion Act, pregnant women in Britain may ask for the termination of their pregnancy. Although two doctors must approve the decision, it has become widely regarded as a woman's right to choose. Abortion is therefore seen as an option to be chosen, if so desired by the mother.

Whose choice?

The sad irony of the hallowed 'freedom of choice' is that many women say that they 'had no choice' when it came to the decision to abort their babies. It was not something that they really wanted to do but there seemed no other way. Moreover, the baby in the womb has no say in the matter. I'm sure every pre-born baby, if he or she could communicate with us, would say, "Mummy and Daddy, I don't care what your circumstances are, please let me be born! I want to live!"

The 'freedom to choose abortion' is everywhere in our society and has been around a long time. That means there are many women who are struggling with crisis pregnancies and considering an abortion ... in your locality. Every three minutes, in Britain, the decision is made to abort a baby. These choices are being made in your neighbourhood and mine. Lives are being lost because no-one is willing to say anything. Where are the 'Good Samaritans' offering the right advice and the support needed to help in these crisis situations?

About the author: Alan Thorne, born in England in 1957, has been involved in public speaking and campaigned on behalf of the unborn for the past 20 years. He has spoken on the streets, in schools and debated at universities. He is a blues musician and enjoys sailing. He co-founded Created4Life in 2007 and has developed new and effective ways to reduce the demand for abortion and help those struggling from an abortion experience in the past. Visit the website to see this new approach in action. www.created4life.org