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"Where Do These
Kids Come From?"-- Part One of Two
Editor's note.
This editorial first appeared in the December 2006 edition of National Right
to Life News. Please be sure to order lots of additional copies of our
Special January Commemorative Issue. Just click on
www.nrlc.org/news/Jan222007Ad.html.
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Next month we will be
sending out tens of thousands of additional copies of our Special January 22
Commemorative Issue. And that welcome news is because the theme of this
important edition--"The Roe Generation: How Young People Are Changing
America's View of Abortion"--is striking a responsive chord.
Surprisingly often
major changes go unnoticed. The tectonic plates are busy grinding away,
shifting at the edges, but only those with the right "equipment" know about
the impending earthquake.
That is why it is a huge advantage to giving talks in high schools,
organizing oratory contests, creating separate organizations run by high
school and college students, and witnessing the enormous number of young
people at the March for Life and state rallies. Seismic changes taking place
beneath the surface among younger Americans never blindsided you.
To appreciate the
transformation, we have to remember that pro-abortionists have fed them the
same bland diet of "choice" and "women's rights" for nearly 34 years. But by
the millions, they are no longer dining at NARAL's table.
While this was common
news to us, my guess is that when the New York Times ran its now rather
famous article headlined "Surprise Mom, I'm Anti-Abortion" in its March 30,
2003, issue, it was a shocking revelation to most pro-abortionists.
Red Wing, in my home
state of Minnesota, was one of the cities reporter Elizabeth Hayt visited.
She wrote about how many of the students had taken the "anti-abortion" side
in presentations they'd made for a class in persuasive speech.
"I was shocked that
there were that many students who felt strong enough and confident enough to
speak about being pro-life," Nina Verin, a parent of another student in the
class (whose oral argument was about war in Iraq), told Hayt. "The people I
associate with in town are pro-choice, so I'm troubled--where do these kids
come from?"
"Where do these kids
come from?" Is that priceless, or what?
The real question is
not where but why? They need a breath of fresh air. For too long they have
gagged on polluted pro-abortion rhetoric. Increasingly, young women and men
are simply saying "no" to abortion.
Collectively, we have
chiseled away at what was the monolithic pro-abortion consensus in academia
and the media. Even if that groupthink still prevailed, it's now easy to
circumvent.
Thanks in no small
part to the explosion in alternative media, the case for life is accessible
to anyone with a PC. And familiarity with information technology seems as if
it is the birthright of every child in America.
Combine this with the
perennial thirst of young people for personal authenticity and a chance to
be part of something larger--and nobler--than themselves. The perfect outlet
for both is involvement in the greatest Movement for social justice of our
time.
In one of his most
influential books, C.S. Lewis once wrote of change versus transformation.
"It is the difference," he said, "between paint, which is merely laid on the
surface, and a dye or stain which soaks right through."
When we first became
involved, I suspect, for many of us our embrace of life may have been like a
first coat of paint. We didn't know enough, hadn't been involved enough,
hadn't learned enough yet for it to have penetrated deeper.
But the longer we
carry the banner, the more we are changed. As the knowledge of what abortion
does to unborn children, their mothers, and our great nation deepens, we are
transformed. As a consequence we become, as someone once described it,
"Lifers for Life."
Young people don't
carry the baggage many of us oldsters do. They are not only able to make
that conscience-driven move to greater intensity faster, they are also more
willing to reach out to their friends.
There results a kind
of multiplier effect where the original "investment"--convincing one young
person to work on behalf of the unborn--pays off in the recruitment of
additional pro-lifers who in turn bring in still more young men and women.
Please take the time
to go to page 10 and order lots and lots of additional copies of our Special
Commemorative Issue. If, like many people, you don't like to tear up your
NRL News, go to www.nrlc.org. You can
download an order form there.
Let me end with the
conclusion of Elizabeth Hayt's remarkable article.
"In Red Wing, the
certainty of the youthful opinions of the students reminded their
speech-class teacher, Jillynne Raymond, of an earlier generation's
certainty--her own.
"Teenagers have strong
opinions," Ms. Raymond, 41, said. 'It's no different than the 70's when I
was a teenager, but the difference is that the majority of speeches then
were pro-choice. I wanted the right to an abortion as a woman. …
"'Today,' she said of
her students, 'the majority is pro-life.'"
Have a wonderful and
Happy New Year.
If you have any
questions or comments, please write Dave Andrusko at
daveandrusko@hotmail.com.
Part Two |
