Can You Be Pro-life And Still Not Approve Of The Overturning Of Roe v. Wade?

July 3, 2022July 19, 2022 Stephanie G. Cox, M.S.Ed

I believe that the answer to this question is a whole-hearted yes! As I write this blog post, I am sickened by the Supreme Court overturning Roe v. Wade. Just a few years ago I would have celebrated it, but watching the world situation the last few years, and opening up to the other side of abortion has changed my beliefs about this. Plus, Covid has shown me that the very people who are supposed to be pro-life aren’t at all. They won’t do anything to protect themselves and others from this serious virus that is causing harm and death to millions of people around the world daily.

According to this article, somehow the Supreme Court used this case to overturn Roe v. Wade. “The court’s decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization upheld a law from Mississippi that bans abortion after 15 weeks of pregnancy, roughly two months earlier than what has been allowed under Supreme Court precedent dating back to Roe.
In siding with Mississippi, the court’s conservative majority said the Roe decision was egregiously wrong in recognizing a constitutional right to an abortion, an error the court perpetuated in the decades since.”

To be honest, I truly don’t understand how they went from an appropriate limit on abortion to completely overturning the whole law. I personally believe in limiting the abortion to 12 weeks gestation unless it’s a medical emergency.

I hate abortion! However, watching how the world is so inconsiderate of other people, and how a former president who is horribly narcissistic even tried to overthrow the election, I see now that the “pro-life movement” is truly just pro-birth. They don’t want to do anything to help women, men, and babies.

Here are some of my own definitions regarding abortion and pro-life. Again, these are based off my own observations and opinions.

Pro-birth

Pro-birth: Just getting the baby born without doing much to support families and teenagers during and after the pregnancy. Going through the states on this website, it seems like the states that are outright banning abortion only allow it for a medical reason. And some of them are trying to do away with the Plan B pill.

“What does Plan B exactly do?
Plan B One-Step is a type of morning-after pill that can be used after unprotected sex to prevent pregnancy. Plan B One-Step contains the hormone levonorgestrel — a progestin — which can prevent ovulation, block fertilization or keep a fertilized egg from implanting in the uterus.
https://www.mayoclinic.org/tests-procedures/morning-after-pill/about/pac-20394730

Some states are limiting access to emergency contraceptives such as Plan B because they equate it with the abortion pill, but this isn’t the abortion pill, and it’s outright dangerous for rape/incest victims, people who don’t have the ability to care for the baby for any reason, and people with disabilities who are seven times more likely to be raped and/or sexually assaulted! They are not capable of handling pregnancy and the emotional trauma of having the baby taken away is tremendous.

Thankfully, in the midst of getting this post edited, President Biden signed an executive order to protect emergency contraceptives, abortions that are to save the life of the person who is pregnant if the child can’t also be saved, and beef up the Obamacare mandates of providing contraceptives. See this article as well as this one for more info about these protections.

I also worry about forced sterilization for people with disabilities and other people who are “different” because some of these pro-birth people are also White Supremacists that might try to limit who should be allowed to have children.

Pro-life

Pro-life aims to protect the life from conception to natural death. It recognizes that there are times when abortion is necessary for the woman who has a medical issue, the baby is dying, rape, incest, and people who are unable to carry the baby. It’s being willing to choose as much life as possible without having to deny that the baby is a baby.

Pro-life: Being willing to help stop an abortion through providing free support, birth control, health care, family health care, family leave longer than 6 weeks, free lactation consultants, help for child care, high quality child care, more sick days, access to healthy food for the entire family, classes on child care, and mental health care.

Some of these people call themselves pro-choice. I don’t have a problem with that as long as they truly believe in giving people the information they need to make the appropriate decision for the women and family. Many of these people want limitations on abortion and don’t believe it should be done after the first trimester unless it’s a medical emergency and the doctors try to save both the woman and the baby.

Abortion is a hard word because sometimes the baby is so wanted but he/she is found to have a condition that is slowly killing him/her and hurting him/her. In these cases, if these babies are viable, they simply have the woman deliver the child and hold the baby as he/she naturally passes away. This should never be prohibited! Unfortunately, this type of humane treatment is also called “abortion.”

On the opposite side, to abort a baby just because he/she has a certain condition that is livable is totally wrong! We deserve to live.

Pro-abortion

Pro-abortion: Not always wanting limitations on abortion. Not always wanting to make sure that the people are informed about what they are about to do. Also, some of these people are fine with partial birth abortion. Partial birth abortion is sick and murder!! There’s absolutely no reason to have a partial birth abortion. No!

I’m pro-life. I want children to live in a world that protects them long after birth. I’m sorry that there are times abortion is necessary, but it is. I would love to see it become more humane and respectful if the baby is removed from the womb closer to the 12-week-mark of pregnancy.

I’m very concerned about a number of topics that I have already covered. I think that this is a horrible precedent to set. And the fact that these judges lied under oath in order to get a position on the Supreme Court is a travesty!! So does that mean judges are free to lie under oath without any consequences? What does this mean for the justice system? It is already messed up with racism and other corruption, so now it may become even more corrupt.

Along with the majority of Americans, I am worried about the rights of the LBGTQ community that is already under fire. Please see my previous blog post about this. I’m worried about the rights of Black people, various other minority groups, disability rights, and the falling of our nation because of people who are narcissistic, right-wing extremists that want to stop progress and go backwards.

Yes, this is a truly scary time for the country!

Talking to young children about this

Finally, I would like to share a few tips for talking to young children about this.

Explain to the children that a woman has the ability to grow and deliver a baby. It is a wonderful thing!
However, sometimes the woman can’t keep growing the baby and that is sad.
When a woman is unable to grow the baby, the baby is removed from her body by a doctor and it’s traumatic, but necessary for her well-being.
The baby goes to Heaven (or the version that is appropriate for whatever spiritual beliefs that the family has).
The government is trying to take this away which will really hurt women and their families.
We want to protect this and protect babies from suffering.

This is a very complicated subject and emotional. I wish people could come together and set appropriate limits on abortion and prevent unwanted pregnancy from happening. Reversing Roe v. Wade isn’t a win for anyone. More will die because of this and that is NOT pro-life!!!!

Clarifying Respect And Age

August 14, 2017August 14, 2017 Stephanie G. Cox, M.S.Ed

A while ago I wrote a post in which I stated that I don’t believe people should be respected solely because they are older and that true respect is mutual.

Beka from “Climb A Tree With Me” created this meme from that blog post.

Some people had a hard time with this, so let me see if I can explain. I know not everyone will agree with me because we still live in an age where “respect your elders” is shoved down our throats from birth and if children dare assert themselves in a way that is deemed “disrespectful” to their elders, they are punished.

If you spend time reading my blog and book and other social media outlets, you know that I am a huge advocate for respecting everyone from conception to death. I don’t see age as a requirement for automatic respect. Everyone deserves basic respect, kindness, and courtesy.

The problem is that some people abuse their position as an authority figure or as an older adult to demand respect. As I pointed out in my blog post to which I linked at the beginning of this post, this often occurs in the parent-child relationship. The parent demands respect from the child, but doesn’t treat the child with the same respect.

A child who is not raised with respect will not respect the parent. He/she fears the parent and then becomes rebellious and/or resentful. How can we expect children to respect us when we treat them as second-class citizens?

Childism is alive and well in our society. Here’s the definition of childism:

“Childism is defined as ‘a prejudice against children on the ground of a belief that they are property and can (or even should) be controlled, enslaved, or removed to serve adult needs'” (Gold, 2012, https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/child-in-mind/201201/understanding-childism-are-we-prejudiced-against-children).

This comes in the form of abortion, cry-it-out, demanding things from children that they are incapable of doing, yelling at them, saying harsh things to them, shaming them, spanking/hitting, grounding them, not listening to them, not taking them seriously, and just acting as if they are far below us.

The worst thing is that children have no voice! Every other minority group has formed groups to give them a voice and change the way they are perceived and treated, albeit we have a long way to go in how minorities are perceived and treated in this world, but at least they have a voice.

Since children don’t have a voice, it’s up to people who see them as the beautiful human beings that they are to speak up for them. As someone who wasn’t always treated with respect by my elders, I am even more passionate about this. And due to my severe cerebral palsy, I still often get patronized and disrespected by adults of every age.

And, as I pointed out in my original post about this, sometimes disrespect continues in family relationships as the stronger one tries to bully, shame, and manipulate the “weaker” one. When this happens, the most respectful thing to do is to set boundaries and/or walk away. I have had to do this many times throughout my adulthood.

Unfortunately, children cannot “just walk away” or set boundaries. Children are stuck in that relationship until they are adults. This is not fair.

Children are born social beings who love unconditionally! They are just learning about everything and we are their teachers. We teach respect by being respectful to them. This does not mean we don’t set limits and boundaries or don’t discipline them. It means we discipline them without punishing them and without being harsh.

Yes, everyone deserves respect. The elderly deserve respect. But just because we are a certain age doesn’t give us the right to demand and force respect. Respect is earned by being respectful and apologizing when we mess up.

This world is becoming less and less respectful. It’s not because we’re not “disciplining aka punishing” children, it’s because we are treating them with less respect.

Respectful children have been raised with true respect, and thus, offer true respect to their elders.

Processed with MOLDIV

Compassion Matters!

July 10, 2016July 22, 2016 Stephanie G. Cox, M.S.Ed2 Comments

The other night I posted a post called ALL LIVES MATTER! Imagine my horror and frustration when I find out on Facebook A.K.A “Hatebook” that some white supremacist groups have taken over the “all lives matter” phrase and it is seen as racist.

First, I’m truly sorry that evil groups have hijacked something that is so true. I thought I was clear that I condemn both the two police brutality cases in which two black men were murdered for no good reason AND the cop killing!

Sadly, extremely sadly, it seems that context no longer matters. Just because hateful people misuse a phrase does not mean that someone like me who had no idea about this is using it to be hateful. When I say “all lives matter,” or now, “every life matters,” I truly mean just that!

I don’t mind if you’re one of the following:

“American Indian or Alaska Native: A person having origins in any of the original peoples of North and South America (including Central America), and who maintains tribal affiliation or community attachment.
Asian: A person having origins in any of the original peoples of the Far East, Southeast Asia, or the Indian subcontinent including, for example, Cambodia, China, India, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, Pakistan, the Philippine Islands, Thailand, and Vietnam.
Black or African American: A person having origins in any of the black racial groups of Africa. Terms such as “Haitian” or “Negro” can be used in addition to “Black or African American.”
Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander: A person having origins in any of the original peoples of Hawaii, Guam, Samoa, or other Pacific Islands.
White: A person having origins in any of the original peoples of Europe, the Middle East, or North Africa.

Ethnicity Categories
Hispanic or Latino: A person of Cuban, Mexican, Puerto Rican, South or Central American, or other Spanish culture or origin, regardless of race. The term, “Spanish origin”, can be used in addition to “Hispanic or Latino”.
Not Hispanic or Latino” (http://www.iowadatacenter.org/aboutdata/raceclassification).

Your life matters! You matter if you’re gay, bisexual, lesbian, transgender, or queer. You matter if you’re physically disabled, mentally disabled, or both. You matter if you’re a baby in the womb or an elderly person.

You matter if you’re a woman or a man. You matter if you’re a Jew, Christian, Muslium, Hindu, Buddhist, Atheist, Agnostic or any other religion.

You know what is truly unfortunate? My post the other night focused more on how to stop violence and racism and bigotry, but due to a phrase that I unknowingly used, instead of people thinking of ways to stop the hate, they are arguing over the phrase! They are arguing that cops don’t deserve respect because of a few bad ones who did wrongly by murdering two black men that were not doing anything to warrant being shot!

Right now, as you argue about this, children of all races and ethnicities are being left to cry-it-out, spanked/hit, taught that they don’t matter, being murdered in the womb, being murdered by evil people, and being harshly punished.

Right now, as you argue about whose lives matter most at the moment, a child dies of cancer, hunger, illnesses that can be prevented with modern medicine, and infection. Children are being raped, forced to do hard labor, forced to get married to older people, sold into sex slavery, murdered and/or beaten for being gay, bisexual, lesbian, transgender, or queer.

Right now, as you argue that black lives matter, a child is being abused or murdered because he/she is disabled. Children are murdered because they are the wrong race, ethnicity, gender, and religion.

Right now, as you argue about what is loving, children are losing parents due to hate. Cops are parents. Blacks are parents, Hispanics are parents. Native Americans are parents. Asians are parents. Whites are parents. Homosexuals are parents. Jews are parents. Musliums are parents. People with disabilities are parents.

Go ahead. Waste time arguing. Ignore the hate you are perpetuating by insisting that one group is more important than the other because they are oppressed. Go ahead and use other hurtful words to other groups of people such as “retard,” “fucktard,” “spaz,” “handicapped,” “slow,” “cripple,” “incapacitated,” “invalid,” and “disabled people.”

I hear these regularly, and yet, I don’t scream, “People with disabilities lives matter.” We are discriminated against in small and big ways, but I don’t scream, “People with disabilities lives matter.” I have a Master’s Degree but can’t seem to get my career off the ground, and yet, I don’t scream, “People with disabilities lives matter.”

Look, Black people have been treated horribly throughout history. Racism is alive and well. But that doesn’t make you better than the Jews who were murdered in the Holocaust. Jews who are still murdered today. Or other groups who are regularly murdered for being who they are.

And, I’m sorry but a black man shooting white cops is just as racist as a white cop shooting a black man for no good reason!

We, unfortunately, have many, many oppressed groups, children included. How about we stop the arguing, hate, side taking, approval of violence against whoever we’re currently angry at, and work together to make this a better place? That begins with valuing all human life from conception on!

Get off Hatebook and start showing love to all!!! Because in the end, COMPASSION is what truly matters!

“For through the grace given to me I say to everyone among you not to think more highly of himself than he ought to think; but to think so as to have sound judgment, as God has allotted to each a measure of faith” (Romans 12:3, NASB).

My husband and I enjoy Reggae music. We heard this song Heaven Help Us All by Luciano and were brought to tears. It is exactly the message I am trying to get across. Take a listen.

They Have Souls. They Are Innocent!

February 6, 2016 Stephanie G. Cox, M.S.Ed

Psalm 139:13-18 (NASB):
“For You formed my inward parts;
You wove me in my mother’s womb.
I will give thanks to You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made;
Wonderful are Your works,
And my soul knows it very well.
My frame was not hidden from You,
When I was made in secret,
And skillfully wrought in the depths of the earth;
Your eyes have seen my unformed substance;
And in Your book were all written
The days that were ordained for me,
When as yet there was not one of them.
How precious also are Your thoughts to me, O God!
How vast is the sum of them!
If I should count them, they would outnumber the sand.
When I awake, I am still with You.”

I love this Scipture for two reasons.

God created us in our mothers’ wombs. Therefore, a baby has a soul from the moment he/she is conceived. Even John The Baptist leaped in his mother’s womb when Mary visited Elizabeth while pregnant with Jesus (Luke 1:41). Therefore, it is important we recognize that babies are babies in the womb and help the pro-life movement by giving to pregnancy crisis centers. Picketing at abortion clinics does not help.
The other reason I love this Scripture is that it says nothing about sinfulness. Yes, the parents are sinful, but God creates babies. Babies are incapable of sinning. Therefore, we need to respect them and treat them in a way that reflects God’s love to them.

Here’s another beautiful Scripture showing us how God feels about babies and young children:

“O Lord, our Lord,
How majestic is Your name in all the earth,
Who have displayed Your splendor above the heavens!
From the mouth of infants and nursing babes You have established strength
Because of Your adversaries,
To make the enemy and the revengeful cease” (Psalm 8:1-3, NASB).

If young children are so “sinful,” why would God have established His strength in them? He is in our babies. Shouldn’t we view young children the way God views them?

They have souls and they are innocent!