The Palins are the Poster Family for Choice

This was published on September 6 as a Guest Opinion in our local paper but I've had some requests to repost it here. Happy reading:

First, let me be clear that I agree wholeheartedly with Barack Obama that candidates' families should not be used as evidence for or against their ability to govern. I take no issue with the Palin family. What I do take issue with are the right-wing extremists who are trying to hold up their family's story as a shining example of "family values."

Pro-life pundits have clamored to congratulate 44 year-old Alaska Governor and Republican Vice Presidential Nominee Sarah Palin's choice to give birth to a fifth child who was diagnosed in prenatal screenings as having Down's syndrome. These same "pro-family" groups have also publicly applauded her support for her 17-year-old, unmarried daughter, Bristol, who is pregnant and plans to keep her baby and marry the father. The religious right hails these choices as "evidence" for Palin's staunch commitment to the pro-life position. Both the Palins and the McCain campaign, however, have gone out of their way to emphasize the choice Sarah made to not terminate her pregnancy, and that Bristol made her own choice to carry her pregnancy to term. Contrary to what evangelical leaders would have us believe, the Palins are a poster family for choice.

For those of us who support a woman's right to choose when and how she becomes a mother, the intimation that we see babies as a burden rather than a blessing, or that we support the right to a safe abortion, performed by trained medical professionals, because we think more people should have abortions is heart-wrenching and simply wrong.

Rather, the pro-choice position supports a woman's right to understand and explore all the possible outcomes of pregnancy with her doctor, her clergy, and her family without fear of reprisal so that she can make the best choice for herself, her family and her community.

If the pro-life position were simply about supporting social policy that gave women greater access to early pre-natal screening, and fostering supportive family and community environments that make it easier to choose life, I'd be all for it. This is what the Palins' story is after all -- the story of a family with access to health care and economic resources, the story of a family that is open and accepting of their daughter's difficult situation. Many women who are pro-choice would make the same choices as the Palins in similar circumstances.

The problem with the pro-life agenda is not that they value life (we all do), it's that they think the government is a better judge of circumstance than women and their communities of support. Not everyone enjoys circumstances similar to the Palins'. I find Governor Palin's story both heartwarming and heart wrenching, as do many, but she is not a case study for the pro-life cause. She and her family had choices, and they made the ones that were right for them. That is the pro-choice position.

I hope that the millions of us who know that people who are pro-choice choose life most often, will see in the Palins' story one that exemplifies the advantage that comes from living in a society where mothers can make choices about their lives and their bodies in ways that are most in line with their personal beliefs and circumstances. I hope those that wear the pro-life label will see how having a choice helps people make good choices and re-examine their policy positions.

In Palin's case, she has made her policy position perfectly clear: she believes that abortion should be illegal, even in cases of rape, incest, and when the health of the mother is at risk. The only exception she would make is if the mother's life is imminently threatened by continuing to carry the baby. She has also explicitly stated that she does not support comprehensive sexual education -- abstinence-only programs are the only ones she will support.

The pro-choice position is a pro-dialogue, pro-conversation position that enables life to be freely chosen. I remain concerned that Governor Palin so staunchly supports legislating the outcome of wanted or unwanted pregnancies. She should know better than anyone what a deeply personal choice that is for mothers and families.