COLUMN: Think Again – Liberals have turned abortion rights into a religion

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 13/06/2021 (1200 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Last week, the House of Commons defeated Bill C-233 (a ban on sex-selective abortions) by a margin of 248-82. Two-thirds of Conservative MPs and one independent voted for the bill. All the other parties voted against it.

This means that Canada will remain virtually the only country in the world with no legal restrictions on abortion. With the defeat of Bill C-233, sex-selective abortions can continue full steam ahead. This is not something anyone should be proud of.

Unless, of course, you happen to be Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. Not only does Trudeau hold to an absolute pro-choice ideology where abortion remains legal for any reason at any stage of pregnancy, but he wants everyone else to believe it as well. In today’s Liberal Party, being pro-choice is an article of faith.

Shortly after the vote on Bill C-233, Trudeau posted the following message on social media: “81 members of the Conservative Party voted in favour of anti-choice legislation today. It is completely unacceptable that they will not support, protect, or defend a woman’s right to choose. Our government always has and always will.”

It’s ironic that Trudeau decries so-called “anti-choice” legislation while denouncing those MPs (including many women) who freely chose to vote for this bill. If Trudeau is such a strong feminist, one would think he would vote to protect unborn baby girls from being killed solely based on their sex. But that would require critical thinking, something Trudeau doesn’t seem particularly interested in doing on this issue.

To make matters worse, Minister for Women and Gender Equality Maryam Monsef sent an open letter to Conservative leader Erin O’Toole calling on him to make his caucus vote against this bill. In other words, Monsef wants a male party leader to order his female MPs (including Cathay Wagantall who introduced Bill C-233) to violate their conscience and vote against protecting the lives of unborn baby girls.

If that isn’t an anti-choice ideology, I don’t know what is. Such is the state of the Liberal Party today.

Interestingly, Monsef included the following line in her letter: “Rates of femicide are rising and those who survive gender-based violence are presenting with more broken bones, more concussions, more trauma.” What, exactly, does Monsef think sex-selective abortions are? If Monsef is serious about addressing the harmful effects of sexism, she could start by banning the killing of unborn baby girls.

The Liberal Party hasn’t always been this one-sided on the issue of abortion. It wasn’t too long ago that the Liberals welcomed both pro-life and pro-choice MPs into the fold. That changed in 2014 when Justin Trudeau summarily announced that all Liberal MPs would be required to oppose any legal restrictions on abortion. Anyone who failed to do so would not be eligible for a Liberal Party nomination.

There is a word for this kind of devotion—religion. According to the Merriam-Webster dictionary, religion can be described as “a cause, principle, or system of beliefs held to with ardor and faith.” The modern-day Liberal Party is so devoted to the cause of abortion rights that it has become a religion.

This religion includes a statement of faith (public acceptance of abortion rights), a set of required actions (must vote a certain way when abortion comes up) and sharing the “good news” about abortion rights with non-believers. Not only that, but we also have Justin Trudeau as the head of the church who can guide his spiritual flock.

If you want to join the Liberal Party’s church of abortion rights, feel free to do so. Just don’t be surprised when others aren’t interested in joining your cult.

 

Michael Zwaagstra is a high school teacher and a Steinbach city councillor. He can be reached at mzwaagstra@shaw.ca.