Abortion

A surrogate was hired.  Then, at 20 weeks, he was diagnosed with a serious heart defect, and everything changed. McKenna West, a 28-year-old cardiac nurse and mother of two, says the intended parents asked her to abort their biological son after he was diagnosed with hypoplastic left heart syndrome (HLHS). Their surrogacy agreement reportedly required termination for a fetal abnormality if the intended parents requested it. McKenna scheduled the abortion. Then she refused to go through with it. Instead, she began researching how to save the baby’s life, eventually relocating to Texas, where he was born and underwent major heart surgery. Now comes the extraordinary twist: the same parents who requested his abortion are pursuing treatment to save his life Read More ›

What happens when a mother facing a devastating pregnancy complication is told that continuing her pregnancy could cost her uterus or even her life? When Julia Wilson-Franks’ water broke just after 19 weeks, her daughter Lucia was still alive. But Julia says that over the next 10 days, numerous OB/GYNs repeatedly pressured her to induce labor or end her pregnancy. One doctor asked her, “Are you willing to leave your son without a mother?” Sitting beside Julia when she heard those words was her 10-year-old son, Quinn, whom she had also been advised to abort years earlier. Julia refused. Ten days after her water broke, Lucia was born naturally at 20 weeks and 6 days. She lived for six minutes Read More ›

Can a 13-year-old order abortion pills online without anyone verifying her age, confirming her pregnancy, or speaking with her face-to-face? Dr. Christina Francis, a board-certified OB/GYN and CEO of the American Association of Pro-Life Obstetricians and Gynecologists (AAPLOG), decided to find out. She went undercover, posing as a 13-year-old with multiple serious medical risk factors, including severe anemia, an IUD, a history of ectopic pregnancy, multiple prior C-sections, and blood thinner use. According to Francis, despite the red flags, she was able to obtain abortion pills through the mail without an ID check or an in-person medical evaluation. What arrived four days later raised even more questions about medical oversight, informed consent, follow-up care, and what happens when complications occur. Read More ›

An awful story has broken into the headlines illustrating the moral peril of commercial surrogacy. From the Texas Tribune story: [McKenna] West, a nurse, entered a surrogacy agreement in Alaska, where she lives, with the intended parents, Nausheen Gilkar and Omar Ahmed, through Worldwide Surrogacy Specialists, LLC, a Connecticut-based surrogacy agency. Typically under gestational agreements like the one that West signed with Gilkar and Ahmed, the intended parents, not the surrogate, have the parental rights to make choices relating to the fetus. The fetus West is carrying was diagnosed with hypoplastic left heart syndrome at 20 weeks of pregnancy, and Gilkar and Ahmed allegedly asked her to undergo an abortion and they have said they will refuse to let the Read More ›

Four years after Roe v. Wade was overturned, did Dobbs actually save babies? Many headlines claim abortions have increased, pro-life laws have failed, maternal deaths have risen, and women are receiving worse medical care. But does the data support those claims? In this evidence-driven conversation, Dr. Michael New, assistant professor at The Catholic University of America, Senior Associate Scholar at the Charlotte Lozier Institute, and one of America’s leading researchers on abortion policy, examines what has actually happened since the Supreme Court’s 2022 Dobbs decision. We discuss: Whether you’re pro-life, pro-choice, or simply looking for an honest examination of the evidence, this episode goes beyond headlines to explore what the data actually reveals. For the latest episodes, episode resources, and Read More ›

She took the abortion pill… then changed her mind just hours later. Is there anything that can be done? Thousands of women have found themselves in this heartbreaking situation, believing there was no hope. But according to family physician and abortion pill reversal pioneer Dr. George Delgado, that isn’t always the end of the story. In this in-depth conversation, Dr. Delgado explains the science behind abortion pill reversal, how progesterone can counteract the effects of mifepristone, and what the published medical evidence actually shows.  He also shares the remarkable story of how abortion pill reversal was first discovered after women asked physicians for help, leading to a worldwide network that has now helped save more than 8,000 babies. We discuss: Read More ›

Did the women’s movement get hijacked? Former Cosmopolitan writer and Subverted author Sue Ellen Browder says yes, and she says she helped do it. In this eye-opening conversation, Sue shares what she witnessed inside Cosmopolitan during the height of the sexual revolution, how media narratives helped reshape American views on sex, marriage, motherhood, and abortion, and why she believes the women’s movement became fused with abortion politics. We discuss the influence of figures such as Betty Friedan, Larry Lader, Simone de Beauvoir, and Kate Millett, the origins of modern feminism, the role of propaganda in shaping public opinion, and what Sue uncovered in her research into Roe v. Wade. Was the sexual revolution an organic cultural shift or a carefully Read More ›

On April 20, Wesley J. Smith appeared on Ave Maria in the Afternoon, hosted by Marcus B. Peter, to discuss his recent article, “Bioethicists Argue That an Unborn Baby Is Merely a ‘Gestator’s’ Body Part.” Smith explains how the authors of a recent Journal of Medical Ethics article employed philosophy to redefine human life, defying the established definitions of science. He also explores the political and legislative implications if this changed definition is accepted. “We can make metaphysical claims, we can make moral claims,” Smith told Peter, “but they should not be such that we deny basic biology and, of course, the claim of a soul does nothing of the kind. But the claim that this is a mere body Read More ›

Anyone paying attention knows that the medical establishment does not believe in any restriction on abortion, and moreover, that it should be provided free anytime a woman wants to terminate a pregnancy. For example, a current editorial in The Lancet celebrates the editors’ view that more than 800 million women recently gaining better access to abortion, while decrying “barriers” such as waiting periods (and unstated, ultrasound imaging) that data shows, save the lives of unborn babies: Gains in legal access to abortion are worth celebrating. An analysis between 1994 and 2023 by Katy Mayall and colleagues showed an incredible trend towards the liberalisation of abortion laws across all regions of the world. 825 million women now have access to abortion Read More ›

The push for unlimited abortion access is now advancing beyond the issue of “choice.” A newly published article in Ethics, the University of Chicago Press’s prestigious peer-reviewed journal, argues that pregnant minors must abort — even if that requires coercion and force.

The authors, a University of British Columbia philosophy professor and an aspiring philosopher, emphasize the fact that minors are children. From “Justice for Girls: On Provision of Abortion as Adequate Care” (citations omitted, my emphases):

Both opponents of abortion and liberal defenders of a woman’s right to control her own body make a mistake in relation to impregnated children. They both overlook that an impregnated girl is a child. As such, the adults responsible for her care should never pressure or compel her to continue a pregnancy. Nor should they confront her with the three “options” of abortion, adoption, or mothering, as medical professionals are currently advised to do. Instead, her adult caregivers should view her impregnation as a malady and take steps to terminate it.

On the transgender issue, we are continually told — I don’t know about these particular authors’ views — that a minor girl can decide to have her puberty blocked or breasts removed. Somehow, when it comes to continuing a pregnancy, she can’t?