I do not support abortion.
There, I said it.
Hopefully, if you're reading this, you'll hear me out before you click off my website and file me under "conservative." I guess I shouldn't even hope for that, because if you're not willing to hear me out, then perhaps your evaluation of my opinion doesn't hold much relevance in my life anyway.
The first lens through which I look at abortion is one of a gay man. One of the biggest things I have been forced to accept is that someday, no matter how badly I want to, I will not be able to combine my genes with the one that I love in order to form a child that is biologically half mine and half his. This is a harsh and sobering reality to come to, one that has even made me stupidly question if I could, perhaps, choose to be straight so that I could have children.
Instead of being able to have my own children, I will have two options:
(1) I will be able to fill out gobs of paperwork, wait for months, and most likely fight an uphill battle to be able to volunteer to take in a child that someone else did not want. And most likely, the source of my struggles will be my and my partner's sexuality, regardless of the fact that we will be willing to give a great deal of ourselves and our possessions to raise a child.
(2) I can hire a surrogate, spend tens of thousands of dollars, if not more, and simply rely on hope that the pregnancy will take and I will not have to spend even more.
As a gay man, to think that someone could simply take something miraculous, such as a child, for granted bothers me. It's something I wish I could do.
I also look at abortion through my generation's lens. I am proud of many of the aspects of my generation--our innovation, our ability to adapt and work hard, but I feel that we fall short on responsibility. I mean, a lot of us grew up knowing nothing more than the sheltered lives we continue to lead now. We've rarely had to encounter true hardship, and most of our problems could be solved with Mommy and Daddy's credit card.
Because I hate absolutes and blanket statements, do not misinterpret my words: I do not believe all women get abortions simply because they accidentally got pregnant. I know that there are some truly legitimate reasons for pregnancy termination; however, I do know of many cases where pregnancies have been terminated out of inconvenience.
However, I also look at abortion through one more perspective. And that is one where I have tried to limit my personal biases.
I will fully admit that I am unable to empathize with women who face this decision. I have never been in this situation, and I will never be in this situation. Inconvenient pregnancy is not and will never be a reality for me. Likewise, women who choose abortion will not be able to empathize with me. They will not understand what it's like to not be able to create a child organically.
It is for this reason that I also believe I have no right to pass a law or create rules regarding a choice such as abortion. At the end of the day, this decision will not affect me any more than the decision to overturn DOMA is going to affect heterosexual couples who disagree with gay marriage in the United States.
We lack empathy. We lack knowledge, yet we make decisions for others. And these decisions that require both empathy and knowledge. They require understanding before acting. They require a reflection on our core values before a decision can be made. America's core values supposedly lie in freedom--freedom to say what we want, marry who we want, and do what we want with our lives and our bodies, as long as we do not limit the freedoms of others.
And this should always continue--regardless of what you, or I, believe to be true.