Life Affirming Bipartisan Solutions
It is difficult to make ground in the pro-life movement in the present atmosphere of political polarization. While the legality of abortion is certainly in play for pro-lifers, I think that, on a political level, we should focus on directly helping women to be in a situation in which they feel empowered and equipped to choose life.
There are many parts to making this proposal a reality. More funding ought to be given to pregnancy resource centers and maternity homes. Women deserve a fuller list of life-affirming services and resources rather than feeling or being told that their only option is to terminate their pregnancy. We need to promote a culture that supports pregnant or parenting students in their balance of family life and educational life. We need the option for putting a baby up for adoption to be more thoroughly represented. Maternity/Paternity leave needs to be put on the table to relieve economic stress on working mothers. The goal is to change the culture, and this process is a long and hard one. However, it starts with everyday sacrifices and expressions of care, such as offering to drive a pregnant peer to a check-up, or throwing celebrations of life such as baby showers for new mothers.
The little things add up to make the movement. The foster care and adoption systems in the United States need to be revamped. Although the process of adoption needs to be done carefully, since it so drastically affects the life of a human being, adoption ought to be presented in the United States as something to strongly consider as an adult. There ought to be greater benefits for families and persons who choose to adopt and more funding ought to go to adoption centers. Personally, my younger brother, Niccolo, was adopted from China and is an irreplaceable part of my life. I love him and I wish so strongly that the millions of orphans worldwide who continue to need families could receive the love of a family as well. To me, the Pro-Life movement should be fueled by love, not hate. I hope that, through love, this country will grow less divided and will work together to facilitate common sense change like wider support for pregnant and parenting women. While these goals may appear idealistic and overly ambitious, I believe that through concerted, bipartisan effort they can become a reality. For their premise is not, and should not be, rooted in advancing a narrow political narrative but rather in creating a society that makes less daunting the prospect of welcoming new life into the world.
(Matteo Caulfield '23)
