Cultural Change on Abortion
by William Haun
Issue 133 - June 10, 2009

In a Gallup survey conducted from May 7-10 more Americans identified themselves as "pro-life" than "pro-choice" for the first time in the history of Gallup's polling on the issue (they began polling on the issue in 1995). Both the pollsters at Gallup and even some traditionally conservative sites have reacted with confusion for what has precipitated such a change in American's views from only a year ago, when 50% of those polled identified as "pro-choice" and 42% identified as "pro-life".

While this news will likely not be a surprise to groups such as the National Right to Life, who have maintained in recent years that more Americans are pro-life, the reasoning speculated by Gallup, that having the first "pro-choice" President in eight years, which has led to renewed funding of abortion overseas, caused controversy over his commencement address at Notre Dame, and speculation about impending legislation known as the Freedom of Choice Act which would effectively void any state regulation on abortion, likely does explain why conservatives and Republicans in general have become more rock-ribbed in their pro-life convictions as of late.

Yet the Gallup poll does not, I believe, do an adequate job of explaining why the support of being "pro-life" among women polled (who are less likely to be Republican then men) has increased from 43% to 49%, nor why those who take the "middle position" of keeping abortion legal but limiting its use has seen an increase from 17%-23% in support of making abortion illegal in all circumstances, along with a corresponding decrease in keeping abortion legal in all circumstances. Surely, the political conversation over abortion has changed with a "pro-choice" president, but how much has abortion even been discussed in the past year? With the exception of Senator McCain's pick of Governor Sarah Palin for the GOP's vice presidential spot, and the fallout of President Obama stating that knowing when life begins is "above my pay grade" at the Rick Warren debate, I'm at a loss to determine when abortion was ever a campaign issue. Exit polls did not even list it as a top 5 issue in the 2008 elections, and it has not taken center stage during the first 100+ days of Obama's presidency, even after the retirement of Justice Souter was announced.

All of this begs the question if the recent change among Americans on the issue of abortion reflects a more fundamental cultural undercurrent than simply changing political winds. Many American's simply do not pay attention to politics enough for one to assume safely that a change of heart on an issue that for many is a personal, moral, and religious issue is due solely to politics. When one considers the recent advent of movies such as "Knocked Up" which was both praised and criticized for its subtle pro-life message, or "Juno" which, though star Ellen Page objected to calling the film a "pro-life" movie, it was hardly seen by many "pro-choicers" as an affirmation of their views, it becomes worth asking if there is a prevailing aversion to abortion within American culture, or rather that America is a pro-choice country, but it has simply chosen life.

The incremental strategy of the pro-life cause, as outlined very well by Professor Michael New in this article has been successful over the past decade in chipping away at the social acceptance of abortion through a step-by-step political and legislative approach that allows the time for American's skeptical of a pro-life view point to become acculturated to it. Legislation such as the Partial Birth Abortion Act, though difficult for some originalists (including myself) to embrace because of its shaky reasoning on federalism grounds, is nevertheless a successful example of this strategy to allow American culture to gradually distance itself from abortion.

Not only does this strategy seem to make sense if "pro-life" activists do intend to mount a serious challenge to Roe's mythological standing to some, and Casey's standing in the law, it also has an indirect root in the strategy pursued by those who wanted to legalize abortion nationwide in the lead up to Roe. Gerald N. Rosenberg noted persuasively in The Hollow Hope that it was not the decision itself that legitimized abortion nation-wide, but rather an American culture that had some of its highest ever abortion rates before, not after Roe. In short, many parts of America were ready to embrace abortion before the Court did, so it would make sense then for "pro-life" activists to adopt a similar approach to achieve the reversal.

If this trend continues, it could provide good reason for President Obama to forestall a debate on the Freedom of Choice Act, for he may come to find that Americans will chose, but their choice will not be that of Planned Parenthood and NARL.

William J. Haun blogs at http://philosophyofexperience.blogspot.comwhere this first appeared and is a J.D. Candidate, The Catholic University of America, Columbus School of Law, Class of 2012