Letter To The Editor

This is the draft of a letter I'm planning to submit to the Northeastern student weekly newspaper. My friends at BU and BC are doing the same, since last year David, at BU, got quite a reaction from eloquently joining a editorial-page fracas in BU's daily. What do you think? Post comments on anything that should be tweaked or trashed before submittal. Thanks!

The twenty-ninth anniversary of the Supreme Court's decision in the case Roe v. Wade, 410 U.S. 113 (1973) seemed an opportune time to bring up in a public forum the ever-controversial issue of abortion. I will make my own position no secret - I disagree with the Court's decision in Roe v. Wade, and I believe that abortion is unconstitutional. Without rehashing too much of this seemingly endless debate, allow me to address the most important issue at hand: humanity. The United States Constitution was written and amended to protect people, first and foremost. Compared to other nations, the U.S. was early to recognize the centrality and importance of the individual; contrast America's quite civil revolution with France's, just a few years later. In fact, look at any abhorrent ideology, be it Nazism, religious extremism, or recalcitrant nationalism - I posit that you will find that none of these respects individuals, but rather dehumanizes its enemies or those it deems unworthy of life, with tragic consequences. Since 1973, upwards of 40 million abortions have been performed in the U.S. alone. If any regime killed 40 million unarmed civilians in 29 years, would we hesitate to condemn it? Would we regard another country as a democracy if it allowed genocide when approved by national referendum? Killing is not justified by power, nor is it justified by majority decision: hence the Constitution, protecting the basic rights of all. Thus, the crux of the issue is the humanity of the pre-born. If they are indeed human, then we have committed a grave error, and must strive to mend it. If they are not human, what are they? Babies who are delivered at as little as 24 weeks can now survive, thanks to medical technology. What is the difference between a fetus inside his or her mother's womb, and a newborn in an intensive care unit? The latter, not the former, is more dependent on adults for survival, and is more of a "burden on society." Yet we rightly recognize the full humanity of the very young, understanding that the right to life is natural, and not bequeathed on an individual by others. Will we extend this right to our nation's youngest members, or will we continue to put our own convenience and comfort first, reserving ourselves a place on the blacklist of history?