Pro-Life, Pro-Choice & Veganism: An Exploration of Abortion & Animal Rights

Dec 17, 2020

"Our prime purpose in life is to help others. And if you can’t help them, at least don’t hurt them."
-Dalai Lama

Disclaimer

**If you've been reading this blog for a while, you may know that, to me, veganism is all about heart. (If this is your first time here, welcome!) I try to live in a way that most aligns with what I believe is right -- as I assume most people do -- and when I am made aware of new information, I seek to act on it quickly by making positive changes in my life. That being said, I know this topic is quite divisive, and I am bound to ruffle some bushes by discussing it.
**Please keep in mind that this is my personal philosophy which I have formulated through the lens of attempting to live as veganically as possible. My opinions have nothing to do with politics or religion, and in fact, my beliefs are in opposition to both my political and religious affiliation.
**The only thing I ask of you, as the readers, is to please read this entire post to fully understand my argument. I'm very open to learning more and further discussing the topic, particularly because it is sometimes used as an anti-vegan excuse, and if anyone has a different perspective or a new argument I haven't heard before, I'd very much like to learn about it.

Messy Situations

Let's not beat around the bush: I don't agree with abortion. I was once pro-choice, but I was also once a carnist, so my beliefs have changed with my ethics. I have heard many arguments to be pro-choice -- it's a woman's choice because it's her body, some people can't afford to take care of children, a pregnancy would hurt women's education or career opportunities -- and I understand these concerns. I'm not apathetic to the difficulties of having children, particularly when it's not a decision you've made. However, sometimes the right thing isn't the easiest thing.

When I hear these arguments in favor of abortion, it's all about how it affects the mother, not the fetus. Sure, that may seem like an obvious argument, but those are the same exact excuses I hear from carnists about why they couldn't possibly be vegan -- it's a personal choice to eat animals, some people can't afford plant-based food, being vegan would make them an outcast in their social circles. These excuses skirt around the real issue at hand, and that issue, in terms of abortion, is the fetus' right to exist.

One thing I've noticed while doing research to learn more about pro-choice arguments is that many media outlets use the term "anti-abortion" instead of "pro-life" because they don't want it to seem like they're against the most basic human right -- the right to life. By using this kind of language, they portray themselves positively and anyone contrary to their perspective as being strict and rigid, people who seek to limit women's rights, women's choice. We also see this when it comes to their portrayal of vegans and animal rights activists; we are called unhinged extremists, senseless radicals, fringe anarchists.

Potential Life

You will see me use the term "potential life" throughout this piece, and this is a phrase to acknowledge the unborn human while differentiating them from living humans. In my mind, this potential for an organism (or whatever you want to call the fetus) to morph into a living, sentient being is important because that distinguishes them from, say, a germinated seed that will only grow into some kind of non-sentient plant. Because the fetus has the potential to turn into a human who will be granted rights and freedoms, I don't see it as my right to take their potential future away from them, just as I don't have that right with any other human or nonhuman animal who are also due certain fundamental rights.

Vegan Perspective

Going vegan completely changed the way I view the world, so I'd like to share my perspective -- as a person who generally cares more about animal rights than human rights -- as to why I'm against abortion. I see a strange dichotomy when it comes to fetus rights because their rights depend largely on how they are viewed by other people.

On one hand, we have the Unborn Victims of Violence Act, a US law that, in many states, criminalizes an act of harm against an unborn fetus. For instance, murdering a pregnant woman would be considered a double homicide because the woman was pregnant; and regardless of one's perspective on abortion, killing or harming a pregnant woman is seen as nearly as malicious as doing the same to a baby or child. Parents even mourn the death of a fetus when they have a miscarriage, regardless of the stage in the pregnancy.

On the other hand, when a woman unintentionally becomes pregnant, the fetus is seen more as an inconvenience, and it is, therefore, permissible to end their existence. (Please note: I recognize that, for many women, the act of getting an abortion, irrespective of the circumstances, is traumatizing, and I am no way trying to demean anyone who has had an abortion or suggest that women who have had abortions are completely unphased by the act.)

Dairy Mothers

To tie this back in with animal rights, vegans often bring up the fact that many dairy cows are pregnant when slaughtered, as if it is more egregious to kill an expectant mother than just a regular cow (an opinion I share -- killing two is worse than killing one). This realization was my aha moment, where I saw hypocrisy in myself for condemning the murder of pregnant cows and their babies while simultaneously believing that doing the same to a human woman and her baby was somehow different. After all, that kind of speciesism is exactly what I'm trying to eradicate.

Even if the mother were spared and just the baby was killed, that's still reprehensible. So, as a society, we're in a predicament of who is the one justifying the killing. If it's the mom, then it's fine, but if it's anyone else, then it's murder. To the fetus, though, who's killing them isn't relevant because it's their life. It's like the death penalty, which is simply legalized murder; because the induced deaths are done in a calculated, controlled setting (and because the victims are also viewed as inferior to other humans), the killings appear less sinister and are, therefore, justified by many.

Environmental Perspective

After learning about how many new humans are brought into the world every year and knowing that most of those humans are non-vegan, and therefore will be contributing to the genocide of nonhuman animals, I believe we must drastically slow our population growth. There are already nearly eight billion people on the planet, and that is expected to be about ten billion within 30 years. The planet is already struggling to support the life inhabiting it now, and we can't afford to keep bringing new people into the world. However, even though I know how horrible humanity is for our own existence, as I mentioned when discussing my stance on the death penalty, I can't bring myself to say that the ends -- fewer humans -- justify the means -- ending potential lives.

Consequences & Fairness

Like STDs, pregnancy is a consequence of having sex, and at the risk of sounding like the abstinence police, we have to acknowledge this basic truth that when you choose to have sex with someone -- no matter the precautions you take -- you are accepting the risk that you or your partner could become pregnant. Sure, it's unfair that one mistake or accident could completely alter the course of your life, but that's how life goes.

Similarly, I just can't agree with the most common argument for abortion, that it's the woman's choice because it's her body. Humans are incapable of asexual reproduction, and therefore, one of the two sexes necessary to create life has to be the vessel to carry this bundle of cells until those cells turn into a life ready to brave the outside world. Between males and females, females were the ones evolution deigned fit to carry the babies.

My main points here are: One, a fetus is made up of equal parts from the mother and father; and two, the mother is the one tasked with carrying this potential life until that life has realized its potential and can live on its own without the protection needed while incubating in the mother's womb. Therefore, it is not the mother's choice because the fetus was equally created by the father and the mother -- they're not her body; they're a completely new, unique individual -- and though the woman takes the extraordinary task of carrying the child, that gives her no more or less right than the man as to what happens to the baby. But neither has the authority to make choices on the baby's behalf that risk the child's life and/or safety.

Possible Exemptions

I can't claim to fully understand or agree with the religious stance against abortion, but I believe many people -- whether pro-life or pro-choice -- agree that there are certain instances in which abortions could be appropriate, or, at least, less inappropriate. Particularly with cases of sexual abuse, I completely understand how traumatizing it would be for a victim to have to live with the product of one of the worst experiences of her life growing inside her; a pregnancy could completely destroy her life even more than the trauma itself already had. Now, that doesn't mean an abortion would be morally justifiable, but I am more open to the idea of abortions when it comes to extreme, rare circumstances.

Healthcare & the Future

I've heard many horror stories about what women would do before abortions were legal, and they break my heart. I don't want our society to regress to that place, and perhaps I'm too optimistic, but I believe we can create a society where women don't have to stab themselves with wire hangers or pay someone to beat and rape them all so they can end a pregnancy. We undoubtedly need better healthcare for women, and we desperately need to normalize sexual education. All women, and young girls in particular, should be freely allowed oral contraceptives or whatever form of birth control they prefer to prevent life-altering pregnancies.

Additionally, the morning-after pill should not cost $50 at the nearest pharmacy; it needs to be easily available and accessible for any woman who wants it. (Maybe staunch pro-lifers don't agree with this, but when it's within hours of possible conception, I don't see a problem with it. Perhaps that's a bit hypocritical on my part, and perhaps my perspective on this will change in time, but if there's anything we can do to prevent abortions later on in the pregnancy, those steps need to be freely and readily accessible.)

Foster & Adopt

We also need to de-stigmatize giving up children for adoption and encourage more people to choose to foster or adopt instead of conceiving. Additionally, adopting children should not be so expensive, and though there undoubtedly needs to be extensive background checks on the parents, the arduous process of fostering and adopting should be expedited as much as possible while still assuring the children's safety.

Worldwide, there are millions of children in need of parents, so if families who want children chose to adopt instead, that would not only greatly benefit those children in need, but also (hopefully) encourage more people to give their children up for adoption if they knew the child was likely to go to a good home. (And it would be far better for the planet!) Maybe the government could divert the money given to Planned Parenthood used for abortion procedures and instead give it directly to expectant mothers to help pay for the additional costs associated with pregnancy as an incentive to not end their child's potential life.

Men's Roles

Men, and especially younger boys, also must share equal responsibility when it comes to having sex and participating in a pregnancy. Men need to be held accountable for the equal part they play in creating a pregnancy, which I recognize is a difficult thing to do. (I'm not claiming to have the answers here -- this isn't my area of expertise -- but men and women need equal consideration when it comes to parenting.) For too long, sex -- and, therefore, pregnancy, especially unwanted, unplanned, or out-of-wedlock pregnancy -- has been used to stigmatize women and empower men. It's time to teach boys that they also share the risks of sex and subsequent pregnancies.

For centuries, childbearing and childrearing has been a burden placed on women -- even though women were often in positions lacking power and were seen more as baby-making objects than true partners, especially in the eyes of the law -- and I see our society's current stance on abortion as a way of perpetuating this false belief system, continuing to disempower women by saying the only way to progress is by having abortions instead of teaching us about alternatives and providing us with adequate healthcare to prevent pregnancies in the first place. If we really care about women's rights, we should be doing everything in our power to prevent the trauma of abortion.

Progress vs. Regress

It disheartens me that being pro-life is so strongly associated with evangelism and ultra-conservatism. And because I consider myself pro-life, people may try to fit me into that box. (To reiterate, I am not religious, and I am not conservative.) Being pro-life is seen as regressive, whereas being pro-choice is progressive, but I disagree. The fact of the matter is that as long as humans have existed, women have been getting abortions. The only difference is that it's legal and socially accepted now.

To me, being pro-life is even more progressive than being pro-choice because I want to create a world in which no person ever needs to make that decision. It's not a matter of women's rights versus fetuses' rights; we should be capable of granting rights to both parties. With access to quality healthcare, advances in medicine, and improvements in education, we can put an end to the unnecessary ending of life. And that's my ultimate goal as a vegan: to stop all forms of unnecessary killing.

be conscious, be kind, be vegan