Debating Abortion on Campus: Let Both the Pro and Anti Sides Speak

Abstract

As an advocate of sexual and reproductive health, I greatly value the ability to speak out and to raise issues, questions and concerns in the public square. I speak out in the hope that I can bring people closer to my perspective, because I believe my perspective has the most to offer a free and democratic society. Naturally, there are some who disagree with my perspective as a Catholic who believes that women and men must be free to follow their conscience on matters of sexual and reproductive healthcare and rights. I respect their right to disagree. While arguments can often feel uncomfortable, they are necessary and, indeed, healthy — especially if we want our communities to be places where no one is afraid of the battle of ideas. We can learn by listening to different perspectives in the forge of sometimes heated debate. Sadly, it seems that such a simple desire to have informed and diverse debate is increasingly the opposite of what is happening on college campuses across the US and the UK.