Frederica Mathewes-Green

About the author: Frederica Mathewes-Green is the author of Real Choices: Listening to Women Looking for Alternatives to Abortion.

The antagonistic rhetoric of the abortion debate creates animosity between pro-life and pro-choice groups and fails to acknowledge that the two groups share a common goal: to create a society in which women no longer want abortions. The pro-life movement's message that abortion kills an unborn child alienates women who support abortion rights; similarly, the pro-choice assertion that anti-abortion advocates are "against choice" or "sexist" estranges pro-lifers. Common Ground, an organization that promotes discussion between pro-life and pro-choice activists, attempts to reframe the abortion debate by searching for beliefs shared by both sides. Among the organization's goals are to establish a database of agreed-upon facts about abortion, find ways to prevent unwanted pregnancies...