Secondly, I'm not writing to condemn those women who have chosen to have an abortion, been pressured into one, or believed that having one would make life easier. I know what it feels like to lose a child early in pregnancy because it has happened to me twice. Organizations like Project Rachel support women who need help coming to terms with their feelings after having an abortion. I'm sure that the range of emotions is myriad, and I don't presume to know how anyone else feels. I do, however, wish that there was more pre-abortion counseling and wider access to agencies like Hope Clinic for Women, here in Nashville.
Today, President Barack Obama will take the oath of office for a second time in a small but official ceremony in the Blue Room, according to the New York Times. The president has to be inaugurated on January 20th, by law.
Tomorrow, as we all know, there will be a public ceremony, conveniently scheduled on Martin Luther King Day. I'm pleased that the public ceremony will occur at a time when almost all students are out of school so that they can witness the tradition and freedoms we enjoy in this country.
Tuesday marks the 40th anniversary of the Roe vs. Wade Supreme Court decision, which posits a right to privacy based in part on the equal protection clause of the 14th Amendment yet also emphasizes the need to balance "protecting prenatal life and protecting women's health." The Court's argument for a right to privacy is in Section VIII of the Roe v. Wade decision: " Although, "The Constitution does not explicitly mention any right of privacy," Mr. Justice Blackmun constructs an argument for such a right and indicates that elements of the 1st, 4th, 5th, 9th and 14th Amendment support such a right.
"This right of privacy, whether it be founded in the Fourteenth Amendment's concept of personal liberty and restrictions upon state action, as we feel it is, or, as the District Court determined, in the Ninth Amendment's reservation of rights to the people, is broad enough to encompass a woman's decision whether or not to terminate her pregnancy."
Anyway, I think that people should familiarize themselves with the U.S. Constitution and read these landmark decisions from time to time.
So, I was on Twitter, and I found @ProLifeBlogs, which led me to this video--graphic image warning--called 3801 Lancaster, and I know this is an extreme example. However, a couple of facts jumped out at me.
There is a section of that video in which a woman refers to the fact that the never-born babies will never experience the Civil Rights that Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and others fought so hard to obtain. I learned that most abortion clinics are in poor areas or neighborhoods, and that most of the people "served" by that clinic were brown or black. So, we have yet another example of an industry that preys on the poor; line it up with the prison industry, the liquor industry and the drug trade.Then, I went to the website of the National Black Pro-Life Union, and I can see so clearly how the prevalence of abortion in our society is a slap in the face of Civil Rights leaders. I found this video by Fred Hammond, in which he testifies to God's power in his life before he was born. Not only is his story very moving, he's a great gospel artist.
Here's Fred Hammond's song "Freedom," a tribute to Rosa Parks.
All of these things are linked, and not just by my train of thought. Listen to Dr. King talk quote from the U.S. Constitution. Pay attention to the way our government leaders squash the 1st Amendment rights of Catholics.
Pay attention; agree or disagree. Just think for yourself.
