Daniel Thomas | More knowledge for the 21 per cent

This is in response to the article published entitled ‘21% of Jamaicans back abortion on demand’ a few days ago in The Gleaner. In the article, pro-death advocate Nadeen Spence makes some interesting and some dangerous remarks.

She stated, regarding the poll showing an overwhelming majority being opposed to abortion, the following: “I don’t think it comes from an understanding of the issues that are critical to an abortion.”

Understanding for the 21 per cent? Here I was thinking that the reason 21 per cent of people said they agree with abortion on demand is that THEY don’t understand the life or death issues at play.

As a doctor, part of my role is to help patients make informed decisions. The truth is, many people still think that the baby is just a blob of tissue that can be removed, like a small, irregularly shaped tumour being cut out.

Pro-death advocates really do their best to keep the public in the dark as it relates to what really happens in an abortion and how developed the baby is at each stage.

ABORTION FACTS

If the 21 per cent had known the following facts, they would have likely opposed abortion altogether:

1. At conception, a human being with a completely unique genetic identity is formed. From this point, the person’s height, and eye and hair colour have already been set.

2. By day 18, the baby has a beating heart; this is many times long before the mother realises that she is pregnant. Abortion stops a beating heart.

3. By 10 weeks, the baby’s sense of touch and ability to feel comfort and pain have started developing. Abortion hurts a living human person.

4. A second-trimester abortion can be done by physical or chemical means. The baby can be scraped out by dilatation and curretage or be burnt alive by the injection of saline into the mother’s womb.

5. A third-trimester abortion is done by dismemberment, where the baby’s limbs and organs are ripped out and the baby’s brain sucked out and skull crushed. I doubt the poll asked if they were ok with this.

6. What kind of person do you think would be ok with that?

Dr Daniel Thomas is a medical doctor who currently serves at the Victoria Jubilee Hospital in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit. He is also president of the Love March Movement, a youth Christian organisation for sexual purity and the family. Email feedback to columns@gleanerjm.com.