Canadians’ views on abortion are often more nuanced than we think

by David Korzinski | November 25, 2022 8:41 am

By Shachi Kurl, President

We live in an age of technology and access to knowledge. Never before, on any given topic, have we had the benefit of so much information, so many perspectives, at our fingertips. So why does it also feel as though we live in an age of reductive, hyper-simplified discussion over some of the most complex issues?

As a political and medical battle rages in the United States with the reversal of Roe v. Wade over the summer, Canada’s status as one of the few countries in the world[1] without a law guaranteeing or restricting access to abortion has been the subject of renewed argument this year. And yet, the life experiences of the three-in-10[2] Canadian women who have faced an unwanted pregnancy over their lifetimes, their anxieties, challenges and choices, are often among the least discussed aspects of the abortion debate.

Instead, we revert to the most reductive language: “pro-life,” “pro-choice,” with those on both ends demanding absolutism on matters of policy and legislation. Think: protesters yelling at women outside abortion clinics; and political leaders blocking anyone with any less than a totally “pro-choice” view from representing their parties.

And yet, Canadian opinion, including among those aforementioned women who have faced the tough decisions over what to do with a pregnancy they didn’t want, turns out to be more nuanced, more complex than that.

Read more from the article in the Ottawa Citizen here.[3]

Image – Aiden Frazier/Unsplash

Endnotes:
  1. one of the few countries in the world: https://ottawacitizen.com/opinion/kurl-canadians-views-on-abortion-are-often-more-nuanced-than-we-think
  2. three-in-10: https://angusreid.org/abortion-canada-personal-experiences-unwanted-pregnancy/
  3. Read more from the article in the Ottawa Citizen here.: https://ottawacitizen.com/opinion/kurl-canadians-views-on-abortion-are-often-more-nuanced-than-we-think

Source URL: https://angusreid.org/canadians-views-on-abortion-are-often-more-nuanced-than-we-think/