PROP 1: On compassionate choices

“What about the woman who becomes pregnant after rape?” 

We are led to believe that abortion is the only compassionate choice to offer that woman. I have another perspective.

A child conceived through violence is not responsible for the crime. The rapist bears that responsibility. Ending the life of the unborn child does not erase the trauma of the assault; it creates another victim.

I know this through personal experience. I became pregnant after being raped. Faced with an unplanned situation, I carried my baby to term. Today, that child is a beloved adult. Through her, I am blessed with a son-in-law, his family and grandchildren. I have never regretted allowing my baby to live. I have never looked at her and seen a monster or remembered the rapist.

I know other women who conceived through rape and carried their babies to term. One was 13 when she bore a daughter. Another offered her son for adoption and enjoys a relationship with him and his adoptive parents. Though studies differ, roughly 1 in 20 rapes result in pregnancy. In states that banned abortion after Dobbs, 60,000 rape-caused pregnancies occurred in a 16-month period. (Rape-Related Pregnancies in the 14 U.S. States with Total Abortion Bans. JAMA Internal Medicine. 2024; 184 (3): 330-332.)

Rape is horrific. Abortion does not erase the pain of the assault. I urge every woman who’s pregnant in hard circumstances to take time to discern the next step. There are alternatives to aborting your child, including parenting and adoption.

Do not use my story to justify why abortion is necessary.

MARY JANE LOCKEMY

Post Falls