I’m writing this column on the eve of my birthday. This fact is only significant because I came to the realization that this year is my only Dobbs birthday. Dobbs, of course, is shorthand for the Mississippi abortion case currently before the Supreme Court. The court’s decision could mean the end of Roe v. Wade as we know it. No longer will we have a grave regime of abortion throughout a pregnancy ruling us. States will decide their own abortion laws, which will mean most of the unborn will be protected in those states.
Other states — like my own New York — are another story entirely. They’ll continue to expand abortion and become abortion destinations. Our governor here — a graduate of The Catholic University of America’s Columbus School of Law — welcomed Texan women to New York for their abortions because of the heartbeat law there. She announced last year that Lady Liberty would embrace them just days after marking the solemn anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks on the United States, which no New Yorker will ever forget.
Her remarks were reminiscent of the former governor, Andrew Cuomo, lighting up the Freedom Tower, built after the World Trade Center was destroyed — what should be a symbol of resurrection — after expanding abortion in the Empire State. He also had the bridge he named after his father, former governor Mario Cuomo, lit up in celebration. At least his father tried to justify his pro-abortion position, straining to say he was personally opposed (as if somehow that mattered). It doesn’t help the children who are killed by abortion and the women whose lives that fact immiserates.
This is the year we need to rededicate ourselves to life anew.
I’m near 50, but not quite there yet. I was born after Roe was decided. That I would live was not a given — the law certainly didn’t protect me. Mercifully, my parents did. So, I’m tremendously grateful for life. On the day of the Dobbs oral arguments on Dec. 1, I spoke at the pro-life rally outside the Supreme Court.
Later, I wound up having a conversation with my Uber driver, who asked what was going on. He made it clear that he disagreed with me. He also was honest and said that it’s good for men that abortion is legal because sex is fun and sometimes things (pregnancy) happen. That doesn’t mean anyone is a parent.
He went on to tell me that he wishes his mother had had an abortion instead of giving birth to him, because she would have been happier — she could have left his father. It’s because of a half-century of abortion that he could ever think his life is his mother’s decision, that he is not worthy of existence. Conversations like that and so many others make clear that we have a lot of work to do to create anything like a culture of life — a culture where people know their lives are worth living and the innocent are worthy of protection.
I am grateful for my life. And I am grateful I even have the context to be — because I know of the tremendous love of God and his graces in my life, including parents who valued my life.
As this is my only Dobbs birthday (month), I am encouraging people to give to the Sisters of Life. They dedicate their lives to God and the charism of life — they are the answer to how the Church helps pregnant women and moms in need (and they become a long-term part of their lives). If you donate here, it will count toward my Dobbs birthday campaign, or send them a check at Sisters of Life, 38 Montebello Road, Suffern, NY, 10901, and note that it’s for the K-Lo birthday campaign.
We all need to step up to the plate more to support life and show people they are loved. The Sisters of Life are the most compassionate army to love women back to life — including in helping them heal from abortion. Thank you for helping reach a $30,000 goal to help them with new financial challenges in the life of their community. They are frugal, and they just happen to save lives.
Kathryn Jean Lopez is a senior fellow at the National Review Institute and editor-at-large of National Review.
