I’m pro-life. I’m pro-choice. I’m pro-woman.

I’m pro-choice.

Therefore, I am pro-life.

I’m pro-life.

Therefore, I am pro-choice.

I couldn’t be one without being the other and my support for each side strengthens the other.

Let me ‘splain….No, there is too much. Let me sum up.

I’ll start with this–even though the exact point at which human life begins cannot be pin-pointed by science, I still feel uncomfortable with the concept of abortion. I’d like to think that I, personally, would never get an abortion (though, the way I reacted to the pregnancy scare I had while I was dating my abusive ex-boyfriend is enough to remind me that life is not always that simple).

Basically, I believe even a fetus is a human who deserves the right to be born.

So, I’m pro-life.

And, if life were simple and if everything were black and white, I might be okay with voting for politicians who want to restrict abortions.

But…

Life’s not simple and most of it is grey, and making abortion illegal doesn’t stop abortion. It doesn’t save unborn babies. Making abortion illegal does, however, hurt women.

I can’t, in good conscious, leave those struggling single mothers, hurting rape victims, frightened teenagers, and other women with unplanned pregnancies to coat hangers and dangerous drugs. That’s not being pro-life. It’s just not.

So, I’m pro-choice.

And, if life were simple and if everything were black and white, I might be okay with fighting to legalize all abortion, and then calling it a day.

But, again, life doesn’t work like that. Legalizing abortion doesn’t necessarily protect choice.

Let’s just pretend for a moment that abortion restrictions have been lifted and abortions are affordable and accessible…

What if a woman who has been trying for months to escape an abusive relationship finds out she is pregnant?

What if a single mother, already struggling to make ends meet, barely able to afford to put her child in daycare, finds out she’s got another child on the way?

What if one of the one in four women who will be sexually assaulted in their lives finds herself pregnant due to the rape that she is already struggling to cope with?

Even assuming that these women are able to get abortions, that doesn’t sound like choice to me. In a world that is so hostile toward women, an unplanned pregnancy can put a woman in nearly impossible situation.

So, I’m pro-woman.

No matter your stance on the abortion issue, we all need to strive toward making the world a better place for women. I believe that, if both sides would put aside their picket signs and politics, and work together to free and empower women, I believe we’d see the abortion rates drop.

So let’s be pro-life.

Let’s be pro-choice.

And let’s be pro-woman!