John Brown & the Fringe Element: Abortion, Violence & History

Whenever there as been a great moral cause at stake in this country, emotions are engaged, feelings run deep, sides are taken and, on either side of the issue, one or both sides see violence as the solution.

Slavery was rooted in violence. From slave traders to slave auctions, many slaves were gruesomely abused under the tortuous system of slavery. Slavery and violence are forever linked. Others in the south risked their lives and lost fortunes to help free slaves from the shackles of slavery. Harriet Tubman, herself a slave, escaped slavery only to return again and again to bring whole families to freedom. At one time, she had a price on her head of $40,000--dead or alive.

On the other hand, John Brown believed confrontation the only solution to slavery. Violence exploded between pro-slavery and Brown's anti slavery proponents in Kansas with innocent people massacred, giving Kansas the nickname "bleeding Kansas."

John Brown was a violent fringe element in the anti-slavery movement. The mainstream anti-slavery movement, however, sought more peaceful solutions.

The Civil Rights movement of the sixties began with peaceful demonstrations and sit-ins, but was propelled by a fringe element (and corresponding response of those in opposition) into riots, destruction of property...violence.

Today another movement, the pro-life movement, seeks rights for all human life, including the unborn. For like the individual under slavery, the unborn child has been stripped of rights and devalued into "property" to be disposed of at will through abortion. Ignored is scientific reality that each unborn child is not simply a "blob of tissue", but a unique living entity different, though dependent upon, the mother both before and for several years after birth.

As slavery became self-perpetuating because of an economic factor, so abortion is a gigantic and substantially unregulated business--the business of abortion--of killing--for profit.

Media has also played a part of each movement. Northern media supported the anti-slavery movement. Media supported the civil rights movement. But, by and large, the media has not supported the pro-life movement's attempts to protect vulnerable pre-born babies from abortion. In fact, the national media's coverage of the pro-life movement and their stance on abortion has often been decidedly unbalanced and often distorted.

In all these historic movements national media has a factor in common, the encouragement of the violence-prone fringe element. In the case of abortion, however, the national media seldom reports violence of clinic personal toward peaceful pro-life demonstrators, intimidation tactics toward pro-life professors in some liberal leaning universities, and police manhandling of unresisting demonstrators, though violence by anti-abortion organizations makes banner headlines.

Is violent retaliation toward persons and property supported by mainstream pro-lifers? Absolutely not! Being anti-abortion does not mean violence to the living.

In fact Matthew 5:44 states the approach of most pro-lifers: ...Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you.

John Brown not only caused the death of innocent persons, but also sharpened the division between the opposing sides of the slavery issue--a division that led to war.

When the civil rights movement turned violent, many who agreed with the goals, turned away in disgust; so to with the violence in the pro-life ranks. Violence divides, hurts the innocent as well as the guilty and damages the forward movement of the cause--the valuation of all human life. Violence encourages the media to broaden their portrayal of pro-lifers as unbalanced and their view of abortion as hypocritical.

Historically, anti-slavery, civil rights, and other movements such as the women's suffrage movement had their violent side. That did not invalidate the importance or the moral basis of their cause. In time, they prevailed. The fight to recognize the unborn child is also not nullified because of the violence of the few on the fringe.

As long as babies are sacrificed to abortion on the altar of self-gratification, greed, and ignorance, there will be those who oppose the killing of the unsuspecting unborn. It is up to each of us, including the media, not to encourage violence--however high the emotions, however right the cause.

Whatever the gender or size, whatever the race or place of residence, whatever the "quality of life" or philosophy, life must be valued, for each human life is a far too valuable a resource to waste.