Specious Ad
"Black children are an endangered species"
Billboard by Georgia Right to Life in Atlanta
The inflammatory wording indicates that blacks are a species distinct from "homo sapiens", which would be blatantly racist. ( Will Republican National Chairman Michael Steele and Texas Senator John Cornryn be as zealous in denouncing this verbiage as they were in blasting Senator Harry Reid for using the term "Negro dialect?" Don't hold your breath!) But I do not believe that this meaning was intended; rather the author of the ad meant that the high incidence of abortion among black women was endangering the existence of black children in the future, likening that group of people to "endangered species" such as whales and bald eagles.
Since the abortion rate among black women is three times that of white women, abortion plays a significant role in curbing population growth among African-Americans. But, unlike truly endangered species, the black population is still increasing every year, so the survival of the race is not really in jeopardy. The ad is disingenous, if not misleading.
In addition to the billboard campaign , Georgia Right to Life is also backing a bill in the Georgia legislature that would prohibit abortion providers from "soliciting business on the basis of the race or sex of the unborn child." Since I doubt that anyone is doing that now, I do not see the need for the proposed law.
Georgia Right to Life contends that abortion clinics are deliberately locating in black neighborhoods in an effort to curb population growth in those communities. I believe that they locate where the most potential patients live, irrespective of the impact on population dynamics. In my view, the reason that the black abortion rate is three times the white is not attributable to the marketing strategies of the abortion clinics, but rather to the greater need for such services among black women. This is due to the higher incidence of unprotected sex among black teenagers than among whites. Moreover, the churches most vehemently opposed to abortion are predominately white.
Opponents of legal abortion have been stymied by the 1973 Roe v Wade decision, which by now has the status of "settled law." Democratic control of the White House for the next three years makes it highly unlikely that it will be overturned anytime soon. In Georgia the anti-abortionists are introducing the "race card" to win over African Americans to their cause, just as the late Atty. Johnny Cochran used it to sway a predominantly black jury to acquit his client, O J Simpson. Although this tactic is perfectly legal, I find it morally repugnant to use racial sentiment in this way, especially where race is not really the issue.
But is it possible to reduce the abortion rate in black communities without inflaming racial animosity? Yes, if the young people in those communities would abstain from sex before marriage, and then use birth-control until they were ready to raise a child. Try putting that on a billboard!
Billboard by Georgia Right to Life in Atlanta
The inflammatory wording indicates that blacks are a species distinct from "homo sapiens", which would be blatantly racist. ( Will Republican National Chairman Michael Steele and Texas Senator John Cornryn be as zealous in denouncing this verbiage as they were in blasting Senator Harry Reid for using the term "Negro dialect?" Don't hold your breath!) But I do not believe that this meaning was intended; rather the author of the ad meant that the high incidence of abortion among black women was endangering the existence of black children in the future, likening that group of people to "endangered species" such as whales and bald eagles.
Since the abortion rate among black women is three times that of white women, abortion plays a significant role in curbing population growth among African-Americans. But, unlike truly endangered species, the black population is still increasing every year, so the survival of the race is not really in jeopardy. The ad is disingenous, if not misleading.
In addition to the billboard campaign , Georgia Right to Life is also backing a bill in the Georgia legislature that would prohibit abortion providers from "soliciting business on the basis of the race or sex of the unborn child." Since I doubt that anyone is doing that now, I do not see the need for the proposed law.
Georgia Right to Life contends that abortion clinics are deliberately locating in black neighborhoods in an effort to curb population growth in those communities. I believe that they locate where the most potential patients live, irrespective of the impact on population dynamics. In my view, the reason that the black abortion rate is three times the white is not attributable to the marketing strategies of the abortion clinics, but rather to the greater need for such services among black women. This is due to the higher incidence of unprotected sex among black teenagers than among whites. Moreover, the churches most vehemently opposed to abortion are predominately white.
Opponents of legal abortion have been stymied by the 1973 Roe v Wade decision, which by now has the status of "settled law." Democratic control of the White House for the next three years makes it highly unlikely that it will be overturned anytime soon. In Georgia the anti-abortionists are introducing the "race card" to win over African Americans to their cause, just as the late Atty. Johnny Cochran used it to sway a predominantly black jury to acquit his client, O J Simpson. Although this tactic is perfectly legal, I find it morally repugnant to use racial sentiment in this way, especially where race is not really the issue.
But is it possible to reduce the abortion rate in black communities without inflaming racial animosity? Yes, if the young people in those communities would abstain from sex before marriage, and then use birth-control until they were ready to raise a child. Try putting that on a billboard!
posted by Gerald S Glazer at 11:50 AM
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