In the wake of the revelation that Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump does not support a national abortion limit many pro-life activists have suggested that the pro-life movement has entered a new era of incrementalism.
In his newest LifeChat, Roland covers three conditions that make the incrementalist approach less likely to be successful. These conditions also set the stage for a better approach that the pro-life movement must take moving ahead. I’ll highlight one condition in this post around the flaws of incrementalism. Watch the full LifeChat for more.
Watch the full LifeChat: Rethinking Pro-Life Strategy
Incrementalism is a strategic approach that seeks to make small or incremental gains toward an ultimate goal. In the case of pro-life incrementalism, the assumption is that the ultimate goal is the total abolition of abortion. Incrementalism often appears to be a logical and practical approach, but given the current state of pro-life politics, does incrementalism actually make any sense?
Incrementalism bans, such as the 15-week abortion ban, undermines the core pro-life belief that all unborn life is sacred from conception
For example, a 15-week ban would only make 2-4% of abortions illegal, leaving the vast majority, 98% of abortions will remain legal.
“An incrementalist approach only works if the reasoning behind the increment does not undermine your core values,” says Roland Warren.
We need a new direction. We need to align our legislative strategies with our moral imperatives. Since we’re seeking to save unborn children in the womb from abortion, why don’t we take the thousands of organizations working daily—ones that are helping women and men choose life for their unborn babies— and direct a significant portion of our limited resources toward them?
For instance, let’s mobilize churches and support the work of pregnancy centers and maternity homes. This work will prevent far more than 2 to 4% of abortions.
Care Net has developed resources like Making Life Disciples to mobilize churches and help the church maximize their effort in serving families. This work is directly saving lives and supporting women in crisis pregnancies.
No matter the political shift or the growing reliance on incremental strategies in the pro-life movement, we must review and question the notion of incrementalism. “If it’s always immoral to end the life of an innocent, unborn child; then it should always be illegal,” says Roland Warren.