To the Editor:
This week in Canada, we celebrated the first International Day of the Girl as appointed by the United Nations and spearheaded by the Canadian government. As a young woman, I can personally testify to the milestones that Canada has attained in women's rights and I am thankful for a nation that is targeting support for girls and their basic human rights.
But in the midst of this, Motion-408 put forward earlier this session by MP Mark Warawa from Langley, British Columbia comes to mind. Motion-408 proposes that the House of Commons condemn discrimination against females occurring through sex-selective pregnancy termination. Sex-selection pregnancy termination happens and there are no Canadian laws surrounding pregnancy termination, meaning at any stage, a baby can legally be terminated.
Isn't it ironic that on the same day we celebrate International Day of the Girl, it is permissible for a female baby to be aborted due to nothing more than her gender? I am convinced that the termination of pregnancy in any capacity is wrong but the increasing popularity of sex-selection terminations causes us to look inside ourselves and ask whether we believe that baby inside of us, inside of our spouse, inside of our sisters is a human life or not. You cannot fabricate a heartbeat and you cannot fabricate movement even if you have fabricated the facts.
Guaranteed, if you were put in a state of emergency or you stood by as someone faced death, you would be inclined to protect life not encourage it to be taken away. The moment we have turned against what is inside of us to satisfy demands, ambition, convenience or culture, we have forgotten who we are. We have forgotten that we were made to defend life, not to kill it.
Arguably, it is hypocritical to outlaw sex-selected pregnancy terminations and then watch as young girls outside the womb are living on the streets, abused, exploited or trafficked. We need to make a determination inside of ourselves that life will be protected inside and outside of the womb no matter the cost.
Think about the women in your life; your wife, your mom, your sisters, your daughters. Imagine what they look like and hear the sound of their voice in your heart. Now, think about the baby girls in the wombs of women in Canada and ask yourself, "Do I care if they get less opportunity to live than the rest?"
Only you know your answer.
Ashley Beaudin, Ottawa, ON.
