Yet another story has come to light in the last week about a young 15 year old girl’s life destroyed by abortion.
The brave mother of the girl, who is now 16, rung Leighton Smith (a very popular radio talk back host) last Friday, to tell her story of betrayal, hurt and despair. These words are not too strong – in fact are they strong enough? What I am about to tell you is beyond belief and is a very sad example of how politicians, and we as a society, have failed our children.
A few short weeks ago this distraught mother discovered that her daughter, who had just left home, had had an abortion months earlier. Finally her daughter’s downward spiral made sense. This is why her once happy daughter was now depressed, crying constantly, answering her mother back. This was the reason why her daughter had misbehaved at school so much that meetings were called with the teachers. This is why her daughter failed her exams last year. The puzzle was complete.
But finding out that her daughter had undergone an abortion at 16 weeks without her knowledge or consent was just the beginning of the story.
It turns out this child and her family had been failed by so many people along the way.
She was failed by the school counsellor, who booked her a taxi and gave her money to go off to the hospital with a 15 year old acquaintance for the abortion.
She was failed by the boyfriend who walked away and did not stand up to his responsibilities as the father of the preborn child.
She was failed by the acquaintance (who should never have been put in this position in the first place) who left her at the hospital and went back to school to let everyone know just what the girl was up to that day.
She was failed by the school who did not at any time let her mother know that she had had an abortion, even though they were privy to this information.
She was failed by the hospital who would not provide any services when her mother, who was absolutely beside herself, rung for some kind of post abortion help.
She was failed by our laws which say that a child under the age of 16 can consent to an abortion, or receive contraception without the knowledge or consent of parents or legal guardians.
She was failed by our politicians who are too afraid to speak up for our children because abortion is a “hot potato issue”; and who are too eager to worship at the foot of the great god of “reproductive health” and “women’s choice”.
She was failed by us because we have not done enough to speak up for our children. We have not spoken loud enough and clearly enough and often enough as a people that parents are the first teachers of their children and that we have a right to know what is going on with our children. We tend to let it go when we are not heard and we fail to express that we will not be walked over by our policy makers and all those who push their left-wing, family destroying ideologies.
Family Planning, revered by so many parents today as a “safe place” for their children to turn to once they enter into a sexual relationship, would have been no help to this family. They too would ensure that the child received the abortion without parental knowledge or consent. In this instance, the mother would have been still left not knowing what had happened to her daughter.
The answers and healing for this mother might come through trying to get an apology from the counsellor and those she sees as the perpetrators of this crime against her daughter. They need to be held account. But the hurt her daughter is feeling is not just because she was failed by so many people; the hurt is deep because she had an abortion. The daughter knows this. She needs to find peace and healing so that she can be whole again. Then, this mother might see her daughter come back. She will be scarred and bruised, but more like the person she used to be.
It is time that we stop treating our children as mini adults when it comes to sexual matters.
It is time that parents are treated by the powers that be, as worthy of respect and honour, and as important people in the lives of their children.
It is time that parents are kept in the loop about their children – not just about how well (or not so well) they are doing academically and socially, but in every aspect of their lives.
Parents need to know that their daughter is pregnant, or that their son has put a girl in this position. Yes, parents may be angry to begin with – they have a right to be, but most parents want what is best for their children. They want to make things right.
Parents also need to know that while abortion may seem like the easy “quick fix” to a problem which may be perceived as embarrassing or a life-long burden, it has the potential to emotionally and physically harm their child. Do they want this for their precious child? Parents also need to know that abortion will kill their pre-born grandchild. Can they live with this?
Parents need to be given a chance to do their best for their children.
Now is the time to ensure that this story doesn’t repeat.
See this American Fact Sheet about Teen Abortion Risks from the UnChoice.com for further information about some of the effects of abortion teen girls may experience.
On the sidewalk, we see too many teenage girls come with women with clipboards and folders go into the abortion facility…where are the parents? At home unaware.
so true. I see so many teens who speak of being distant from parents they were once close to because they have had an abortion and do not ant them to know. It is terrible