Last weekend, while I was taking part in a street information session regarding the issue of abortion, I was struck by an experience that I had in connection with a woman passing by on the busy streets of Dublin.
I was standing in front of the GPO on O’Connell St passing out pro-life leaflets with a few other pro-lifers. The leaflets that we were handing out, asked the question “Is she a child or a choice?” and showed a beautiful image of an unborn child in the womb. Most people were happy to take the leaflet and were intrigued by the message on the leaflet. But, one woman passing by disagreed with us, but it was the way that she expressed it, which inspired me to ponder.
This woman, who appeared to be in her mid-50’s, without even taking a leaflet or giving me a chance to speak, stormed up to me and said, “You’re a disgrace! Don’t you have anything better to do than to stand here? You people make me sick! PRO-CHOICE!” Then, without giving me any chance to state my case or to enter into dialogue, she stormed off. Wait, what? I barely had the chance to catch a breath, let alone respond to her blunt engagement.
Why is it that nearly every time someone disagrees with a pro-lifer, they quickly attack with rhetoric and then run off giving no opportunity for the pro-lifer to refute what was said? The reason I was standing on O’Connell Street was to dialogue with people and to expose the truth of abortion – not to shy away from public discourse or hide from the issues. This woman’s actions in this situation are typical pro-abortionists response to pro-lifers – and I like to call this the flashmob method of debate.
A flashmob is when a person or group of people suddenly assemble in a public place, perform a song or dance usually promoting a product or message, and then disperse quickly at the end. This has been used as a marketing technique for many companies, as it’s a quick and easy way to promote a product. Also, many organisations have used this technique to promote awareness of various political and social issues. While this is a very useful technique to promote a message, it completely cuts off discourse and dialogue. This is why I think the term “flashmob” suits pro-abortionists very well, whenever they encounter pro-lifers.
Like anything, there are exceptions, but this is something that I have consistently witnessed throughout my 16 years as an active member of the pro-life movement. In any situation where a pro-abortionist might be challenged on the facts or have the opportunity to enter into an intellectual debate, they will quickly spew whatever arguments they have in support of abortion and then flee before their opponent has an opportunity to respond. Why is this the case? If you were really confident in what you believe, why would you feel the need to run away?
Public discourse is good because it challenges us to look at what we believe, why we believe what we do, and even to consider other points of view. I stand firmly in my stance against abortion and believe that I have truth on my side; so I welcome every opportunity to discuss my beliefs and why I believe what I do. So, why is it that pro-abortionists seem so eager to shy away from debate? Maybe if they were more willing to discuss the issue of abortion with pro-lifers, they might find some ounce of truth in what pro-lifers are saying and see the need to end abortion and protect all human life throughout the world.
