Abortion is an intentional procedure to terminate a pregnancy, resulting in the death of an unborn child. Because the value of a human life does not depend on the stage of development, abortion is both a moral issue and a justice issue.

Every human being has inherent worth. The dignity of a human being is not a result of his or her age, independence, appearance, or wantedness. America is a country which has, for two-and-a-half centuries, proclaimed to the world that all people are created equal. Nevertheless, in every generation of this country, the promise of equal worth is denied to serve the interests of the more powerful. This is how injustice often takes place, not by outright denying the premise of equality, but by consistently narrowing the class of people to whom that fully applies.

An unborn child is not exempt from this dignity because it is dependent and underdeveloped. A human fetus is biologically a living human being. The intentional killing of an innocent human being is immoral and unethical. The American Solidarity Party rejects discrimination based on arbitrary human traits. Birth is not a moral dividing line. No other demographic in the country would tolerate this exclusion from legal protection on an arbitrary basis without creating a public outcry. The unborn, alone, are outside the circle of concern. Not all of them have fully formed features or organs. Not a single one of these differences makes them less human; it only makes them less safe from other humans.

What, then, are we to say to the very real challenges mothers face during pregnancy? The pro-life position is, in the first place, built on the premise that human dignity is very real. And if it is real, it applies to both mother and child. Not one of them, both of them. A society that asks women to choose life places many obligations upon itself. The government must provide access to prenatal care, competent medical care, support during childbirth, and meaningful help after birth. We bear an obligation to make sure no woman is driven to desperation by poverty or lack of support. A society is unable to defend life while leaving mothers without guaranteed medical care. A person’s well-being should not be dependent on income.

Both of the United States’ major political parties contain interests that normalize death when it serves their coalition. One side supports the termination of life in the name of personal autonomy. The other tolerates (and even romanticizes) lethal violence in the name of personal freedom. The Democratic Party’s support for abortion is well-documented. The Republican Party, after successfully overturning Roe, has retreated from the responsibility that pro-life politics require, while the number of abortions has increased since the June 2022 ruling.

The right to life must be recognized in all levels of government. We must build a society that does not seek to alleviate suffering by eliminating the vulnerable, a society where both mother and child are protected, and a society rooted in solidarity. The principle of solidarity is abandoned when personhood is narrowed by dependency and development. Solidarity means that we do not abandon one another. That includes those of us who are hidden from public view but still matter. It includes those of us who are politically convenient to ignore but are still alive. And it includes those of us who have yet to be born but are still members of the human family.