Editorial

By Paul Schratz

Suppose you were asked to organize a symposium on the Canadian health-care system. You'd probably look for speakers who would address the weaknesses of the current system, some defenders, as well as someone who believes there's a place for more privatized care. In short, you'd try to pull together a diverse range of viewpoints.

It would probably come as a surprise, then, to learn that when the University of Toronto Faculty of Law put together a symposium to mark the 20th anniversary of the Morgentaler decision, and entitled it "Reflections on the Judgement and Abortion in Canada Today," not one of the 20 scheduled speakers addressed the problematic elements of abortion.

In short, it wasn't a symposium, it was a rally, replete with an abortion provider explaining why he does his job, a pro-abortion journalist, representatives of abortion clinics and groups, and on and on.

Abortion remains a subject many Canadians wish would just go away, while many others want to see it receive more attention.

In between are the majority of Canadians who don't realize abortion remains an issue, which sure makes it obvious that those who want more public debate on abortion have got the better argument.

Sadly, those who want the topic to go away will seemingly say anything to get their way. In last week's Globe and Mail, a debate of sorts took place between ethicist Margaret Sommerville, known for her cogent pro-life arguments, and the Globe's health columnist.

It was a slam dunk. Sommerville's impeccable logic addressed every major reason why more abortion debate is necessary.

The pro-abortion argument, on the other hand, was an emotional rant strewn with falsehoods. One quote: Canada's Supreme Court has "ruled that the state has no place in the uteruses of the nation...."

In fact, the Supreme Court said the opposite: that protection of fetal interests by Parliament is "a valid governmental objective."

On both sides of the border, historic abortion decisions are getting abundant attention. It's the 20th anniversary of the Morgentaler decision here, and the 35th anniversary of Roe v. Wade in the U.S.

In that country, the nation is a supreme court justice away from overturning Roe v. Wade, the highly contentious ruling that relied on a litigant who was manipulated and has since retracted her story. Just last week a quarter of a million people turned out for the annual March for Life, a figure reduced to "thousands" in most media accounts.

In Canada, even major, pro-abortion media are marking the Morgentaler anniversary and assessing the decision, reopening a debate that makes most abortion supporters queasy. In addition, while the government has no plans to introduce legislation to restrict abortion, it's not obstructing initiatives to recognize fetal rights, such as when the unborn are victims of violence against their mothers.

The momentum is building. As prenatal technology improves, as society becomes more aware of what that "clump of flesh" actually looks like, and as more young people embrace the Culture of Life that Pope John Paul II called them to, expect to see "pro-choicers" forced to make more use of totalitarian means as their sole tool for trying to win the debate.

Expect it, but pay no heed to it. The fact is, we could be within a lifetime of reaching the day when our children or grandchildren look back on this time with disbelief.

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