The “Hard” Case by Anna Richey

Anna Richey 2013

 

I want to share with you a truth that I have found in my experiences with Christians, pro-choicers, pro-lifers, and just people in general.  This does not apply to everyone I know, but it does apply to most.  When discussing the subject of abortion, the conversation invariably leads back to the “tough” scenario of that (insert underage number here) year old girl who was raped and finds herself pregnant.

The only kind, loving, and humane thing to do is to allow this girl the option of having an abortion, right?  After all, she isn’t at fault for becoming pregnant, and she is far too young!  No one can expect this girl to raise a child when she is still a child herself, after all!  Adoption is hardly even an option due to the health dangers of carrying a baby to term because the mother is young and so small.  Of course, the conventional wisdom tells us that this girl will never be able to recover from the trauma of having to look at her rapist’s baby every day for the rest of her life.   Generally speaking, both sides of the abortion debate agree in this area.

And I’m here to tell you, both sides are dead wrong! Let me tell you why:

  1. Young girls naturally love babies.  That’s the way God designed us.  We are the lovers, nurturers, and the heart of the family.  That is why little girls play with dolls; they’re play-acting at being “mommy,” a God given desire for many, if not most, young girls.  So, when this little girl, after living through a horrible experience, finds out that she is going to have a baby, what is her natural reaction? Of course, she feels fear.  Her body is changing, and she is facing a future she knows nothing about.  But there is also anticipation.  She knows that there is a baby there, and that baby is hers!
  2. Yes, she is young for raising a child, but I would dare to say not too young. In the past, girls married and had children at a young age all the time!  It is only recently that we have begun changing our views on when a girl is old enough to be a parent.  No, we do not still live in the dark ages, but our inherent nature to be mothers is still there inside of us.
  3. I don’t buy the health danger excuse, at all.  With modern medicine and technology, there is very little risk to the girl.  I am personally a very small person, and know others who are full grown women, who are just as small as I am.  Some even smaller!  We were still able to give birth to healthy children.  Some of us had to go on bed rest for a while, or be monitored closely.  Some of us even had to have our children prematurely, and several had children by caesarian section.
  4. I can tell you from experience, abortion does not unrape the girl.  It does not help her to find healing.  It only adds further trauma to an already hurting girl.  What society is asking her to do is to kill her baby on top of being a rape victim.  Make no mistake, that girl knows she is carrying a baby. I will also tell you that if this girl is in a situation of molestation or incest, the abortion removes the evidence needed to put her attacker behind bars, and frees him to continue to hurt this girl over and over again.
  5. God does not make mistakes.  Ever.  God is the creator of all life.  If He put a child in this child’s womb, he has a purpose for both of them.  We cannot say that we believe in an all-powerful, all-knowing Creator, if we think that he would make a mistake that we must fix.
  6. Most girls who were raped and pregnant agree that the baby will help her to heal from her rape.  Having someone good, innocent, and perfect in her eyes to focus on, love, and live for instead of just the memories of the rape, will help her to get through the hard times.  That baby will give her a purpose, and will love her unconditionally when her whole world has been turned upside down.

So, why would we want or even be accepting of abortion in such a case?  Simply put, it is because of our own selfishness.  We, as a society, don’t want to face the harsh truth that this happens to these little girls.  It’s ugly. It’s horrifying.  It’s evil and we don’t want to see it.  We like pretending that it doesn’t happen, so we try to get rid of the evidence, so we don’t have to think about it.  Rather than receiving true love and support, this young girl is pressured to endure even more horror all so that we can be comfortable in our own little worlds.  While she continues to suffer, we can continue to watch football, go to church, or just stay home, intently focused on the fictitious reality of television and video games like nothing ever happened.

9 thoughts on “The “Hard” Case by Anna Richey”

  1. Whitney Young

    I disagree with a few of your points, not every girl loves the idea of having kids. When I was a kid I had one doll, I loved that doll, but I did not image it was my child. I rarely played house nor did I long to become a mother. That doesn’t make me a bad woman or a woman going against “god’s plan” I like kids but I don’t put motherhood up on a pedestal. You also mention that maybe a girl isn’t “too young” to have a baby, that is also a ridiculous claim. Life was very different in earlier times. The knowledge needed to make a life was way different than what is needed to make it in society now. Yes, a person can mentally be too young to have kids. I have friends who’s parents were young when they got pregnant, they not mentally ready to be parents and did not provide the proper guidance to their kids. As to your point that health dangers are not an excuse, women still die from childbirth. The rate of death from childbirth is much lower than in the past, but it still happens.

    I’m not saying there should be abortions all over the place, a woman who is pregnant from rape or incest should be given all the help she needs. abortion shouldn’t be the first option or presented as the only option. I think it’s a bit disingenuous to suggest that everything will always work out. Shouldn’t women be presented with the full realities of motherhood, it is very hard and can be rewarding, but there is no guarantee that you will feel it is rewarding. When I think of myself in this situation I believe I would choose to terminate, having said that I do not think women who choose to continue their pregnancies are wrong to do so. That’s their right and I would never think their child is a monster, people who think that are the real monsters. I think as a society we need to do a better job of helping rape victims and their children. As I said before when I think of the issue personally affecting me, I can’t say I wouldn’t take that plan B pill.

    1. Thank you for taking the time to share your thoughts. The whole point is to respect all life even when it isn’t “convenient.” Life isn’t fair and I can’t see it ever being fair in the future. We have come to believe that killing another person will make our lives better. What we are saying in this organization is that mothers shouldn’t kill their babies in the womb. It only complicates the problem and one person dies, sometimes two.

      There are always better solutions than killing an innocent person. The person in the womb is just as valuable and has just as much of a right to live as the one outside the womb. Young girls pregnant after rape do deliver healthy babies that are either placed for adoption of the girl’s family raises the baby. And everyone wins. No guilt from killing an infant. Just because we can’t see the baby (except for a sonogram) and we can’t hear that child begging to be given a live birth doesn’t make it right. Jews and blacks were once seen as less than human and we have managed to see the lies in that and grant those people for the most part some respect. The rape conceived are human too and one day I hope people will realize that all babies in the womb are human babies and deserve to have a life just like their parents

  2. I’m curious who the person was to love and nurture the child; along with who has the child right now?
    I’m also curious how a parent does not know that this is happening to their young child in their own home? Just questions I really need answered.

    1. 1. The grandmother is raising the 11 yr old and the baby. Everyone wants to know how a parent doesn’t know it’s happening. Ask survivors and ask parents who are tortured with guilt. It happens. Can you know everything when you are asleep? No one can know everything every minute of the day and night. This mother is an excellent mother and example in her community. CPS would have taken all the kids if that were not so. She is a person who helps children in her community. Sometimes there is no way of knowing. But she DID find out and DID put a stop to it!! THEN she found out her daughter was pregnant!

        1. Oh sorry. As with many abused children they are kept silent with fear. They are told that people will be hurt and it will be the child’s fault. So many reasons. Mom didn’t know because she worked when step dad was home.

          1. You’re fine and it’s really sad this happens. Do the children show signs of abuse? For example, trying to get away from their abuser and stay a great distance from them?

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