“God created human beings in His own image,
in the image of God He created them; male and female He created them.” (Genesis
1:27)
Barack Obama recently pledged support of
gay marriage, leading to a call for a national Marriage Equality Act. This has
emboldened gay rights advocates in associating the plight of homosexuals and
the struggle of blacks for freedom from slavery and for civil rights.[i]
During his gubernatorial campaign, Virginia
Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli “took heat…for
comparing the anti-abortion movement to the fight against slavery.”[ii]
So which of these, if either, is a fair
comparison?
The purpose of this article is to see
if there is a connection between slavery and abortion. (For those who want to
look for a possible link between slavery and homosexuality substitute
homosexuality related terms for abortion related terms.)
A chart equating the treatment of Jews
in Hitler’s Nazi system, of blacks in slavery and of the unborn in a culture of
legalized abortion on demand reveals several things common to all three.
Jews, blacks and the preborn were defined
as less than or lesser human beings, they had their rights and freedoms as
human beings taken away using the language of “choice”, they were a class of
people who had things others wanted or were seen as keeping others from getting
or doing what they wanted, they were seen as a disease on society or diseased
themselves, and they were seen as a drain on society’s resources because they
were unable to and would always be unable to take care of themselves.[iii]
Another chart comparing slavery and abortion
shows these additional similarities: slaves and the unborn were both were considered
non-persons and were treated as property, and they could be bought, sold or
killed in the case of slaves, and kept or killed in the case of the preborn.
Both slave abolitionists and pro-lifers were not supposed to impose their
morality on others. Slavery was and abortion on demand is legal, and both by
7-2 Supreme Court decisions.
Further links between the two can be
found by clicking, at the bottom of the page (below another chart showing
parallels between reasons for abortion and euthanasia), a link entitled “Another
comparison: Slavery vs Abortion”.[iv]
An article that discusses the slavery
debate between Abraham Lincoln and Stephen Douglas as well as William
Wilberforce and slavery in England, points out further likenesses between slaves
and the unborn. These include arguments that they have no Constitutional
rights, that the Constitutional right to privacy protects the decision to own
or kill them, and that because blacks and the preborn have been or might be abused,
slavery or abortion is the best thing for them.[v]
In a blog article, Dr. Alveda King
compares and ties together the three movements for the rights of slaves, women
and the unborn. [vi]
The tragedy is that the slaves have
been freed and women have their rights, but in the name of women’s rights the
preborn have had their rights taken away from them just as women and slaves
once were not allowed their rights.
It seems to me that the
slavery-abortion comparison is not only fair, but that the parallels between
the two are clear and shocking. But does it matter?
Yes, I believe it matters a great deal.
It matters because of a continuing
connection between racism and abortion that will be the subject of my next blog
article, coming soon.
The abortion-slavery correlation
matters because anyone who is against slavery should be against elective abortion
for the same reasons they are against slavery.
The enslaved were and are human beings
created in the image of God, and thus of unique and sacred worth.
