We can also conclude based on some of the violent protests that have taken place over the years based on this debate that the two sides of this issue so adamantly think they are right that they will go as far as to kill to support their arguments. If you don’t believe this, just do a Google search for abortion protests. (Although ironically it tends to be the “Pro-life” side of the debate that is the more violent of the two.)

An Understanding of the Issues

Neither side really takes the time to understand the other side’s point of view. Pro-lifers support the rights of the unborn fetus. Pro-choicers support the rights of the mother. Both sides support someone’s right, and for that reason, there is some common ground between the two sides. It’s not a question of supporting or not supporting someone’s rights; rather it is a question of whose rights each side supports.

The key to understanding the issue of abortion is to fundamentally understand its difficult nature. Let’s say I were to ask 100 Pro-lifers and 100 more Pro-choicers the following same question: Based on your stance on the abortion issue, is there any legitimacy to the other side’s argument? Fascinatingly, I would say that of these 200 people, more than 185 would say, “No, there is no legitimate argument to be made for the other side of the issue.”

How fascinating it is that a debate of this scale that so starkly divides our nation, our religious groups, and our political parties could have members on each side that so adamantly support their own stance on this issue that they literally cannot see any legitimate argument for the other side.

Let me break this down for you. No matter how bitter the debate is, both sides will generally agree that a mother has the obligation to support her baby and make sure to take its best interests to heart. Both sides will also agree that a woman generally has the right to support her own best interests and secure a positive and enjoyable future for herself, with or without a pregnancy.

The debate comes along when these two obligations come into conflict with each other. The abortion debate is nothing more complicated than a group that supports babies’ rights against a group that supports women’s rights. Members of each side of the abortion debate can think of 100 reasons why they are right and the other side is wrong, but ultimately we must see that this debate is what lawyers call a conflict of interest. In other words, no matter what decision any court on earth makes about it, it remains a “No Win” situation.

As adults, we must understand that many such circumstances exist in the world, and they always will. There will always be an us vs. them, or even a “them vs. them” that divides people. And we must understand that there is no way that we can solve the problem that will benefit every party involved.

I will add this caveat though. Even though there is no way to solve this problem in what any of us would call the “best” way, it is vital that we keep the abortion option open in cases where it is needed. That is why people that support women’s right to choose abortion are called “Pro-choice” rather than “Pro-abortion.” The Pro-choicers support a woman’s right to make this decision, rather than the court or legislature’s right to make a blanket decision for women.

Those of us sitting in our comfy chairs having a lively debate on the issue will be able, as I said, to come up with 100 reasons why we are right and the “other side” is wrong. But if you are a young mother with everyone pointing their fingers and passing judgment on you and telling you what you should do, the agony makes such a decision much less obvious.

I encourage people who feel strongly about either side of this debate to allow themselves to feel compassion for those who suffer because of it and put aside, at least for a brief moment, your own political and religious agendas. After all, there is no religion or political affiliation that believes that compassion does not move us forward.