6B Weneda, 012 -
Wednesday, October 2012 3B
I
am pro-life, but I am open to dialogue
PERSONAL STATE MENTby Carmen Allen
the leaders and the worst
by zach bergson and kaitlin williams
LEADERS
a week of daily stories
An elderly British couple cared for a " In Japan, a "co-sleeping specialty
shrub in their yird that turned out to be shop recently opened, where cus
cannabis. The nice old couple faced no tomers can pay a fee to cuddle with
legal repurcussions, proving that you can a stranger all night. Because appar
get away with anything if you're adorable. ently cuddling isn'tjust something
annoying you do after sex.
" Starbucks ran out of the spe-
cial flavoring sauce it uses for
its ever-popular Pumpkin
Spice Latte, prompting fits
of Pumpkin Spice Rage on
the streets.w
" Lady Gaga puked on stage
in Barcelona, but everybody
thought it was just part of
her dance routine.
University Medical School students officially opened a free clinic for the
Pinckney community last Saturday: The.University of Michigan Student-
Run Free Clinic will begin holding regular hours on Oct. 13.
Aug. 29, 2012. Twitter has exploded with the talk of
vaginas. I scan an article that materializes on the
creen. A full-color photograph presents middle-aged
women in oversized vagina costumes protesting outside of
the Republican National Convention. In an accompanying
video, a twenty-something woman - a member of an abor-
tion rights advocacy group - rattles off a speech on how
she wants to "make some waves:" Extreme. Inflammatory.
"Trashy," I mutter, closing the tab.
Inan ensuing discussion with a friend, I think back to Oct.
3, 2011, when I stood quivering on the Diag, every muscle
of my body taut with anticipation, fingers clasped around a
brochure that read, "Is Abortion Genocide?" Behind me, a
massive display bared full-size images of abortions next to
graphic photographs of past genocides.
In a dramatic effort to shake 40,000 students out of their
apathy, I had initiated the display's arrival on campus and
was now prepared for the onslaught. Making waves.
What kind of woman dresses up as a vagina at a political
convention? The same kind of woman who brings an eight-
foot tall picture of a dismembered fetus to the Diag and talks
about genocide. However polarized our messages, those of
us with opinions on abortion tend to raise hue and cry in the
same rhythmic fashion.
I am no stranger to activism. As last year's president of
Students for Life, I have often branded myself as the resident
pro-lifer in campus discussions and activities.
In March 2011, I attended a Planned Parenthood protest
on the Diag in response to the House of Representative's
defunding of the organization. About 150 pro-choicers from
the area gathered in pink t-shirts, sporting pink stickers and
carrying pink signs, all of which said, "I Stand With Planned
Parenthood," inviting a host of speakers to claim a podium
on the center of campus and praise the organization.
I perched on one of the cement benches behind the podi-
um, clutching a black sign that declared, "Women Do Regret
Abortion." When the advocates formed a line in front of me,
I hopped down, stepping through the spaces until I stood
before them. Shooting me venomous looks, they rearranged'
themselves around me.
We spent the entire duration of the event playing sign
wars: I hoisted my black sign high in the air, they attempted
to cover it up with their pink ones.
Following the speeches, the protest marched to Liberty
Plaza. I clutched the same sign, a piece of duct tape plastered
over my mouth as a symbol of solidarity with voiceless abor-
tion victims. Several of the sign-holders approached me, eyes
narrowed. "If you joined our side, then you'd have a voice,"
one girl sang out. I gazed back at her, my face stone.
Next to her, a guy finished his slew of f-bombs with the
biting remark, "You have no right to talk about women's
rights." This comment raised my eyebrows. "That's right,"
he sneered.
This battle of philosophical opposites has defined my
Michigan experience.
But this August, I attended LeaderShape, a University-
sponsored camp that strives to implement change and com-
munity action. Late into the week, we labored over our
"visions," hypothetical newspaper headlines of what our
worlds would look like in an ideal situation. "Zero Abortions
Over Past Year" mine proudly declared. I braced myself for
another outcry. When we finished, the facilitators hung up
our posters, and we strolled around the room in silence, read-
ing the descriptions and posting feedback on sticky notes.,
The experience surprised me, partly because of the affable
nature of the sticky note comments, but primarily because
the vision-reading opened the door to further dialogue about
abortion. Far more common ground existed than I had real-
ized, leading one facilitator to encourage me tq "get out of my
wheelhouse and look for allies."
So I did. I returned to campus eager to collaborate with
the Ginsberg Center to give resources to women strug-
gling with pregnancy. I found my inbox stacked with
questions about abortion from peers across the political
spectrum. Discussions back on campus slowly began to
shift my approach to activism.
Perhaps because the activist in me is weathered, I am
growing impatient for the day that University students can
sit around a table and engage in discourse about the hard
issues without retreating to political jargon. I don't condemn
the Diag activism I have witnessed or initiated, but my hun-
ger for dialogue warrants an appeal for both parties to seek
common ground and move forward.
Maybe instead of greeting the Diag walker with, "Let me
tell you about abortion," it begins with, "Tell me what you
think about abortion," imaginary duct tape sealing our lips
so we can listen. Something needs to defibrillate a conversa-
tion so hopelessly diluted in words thathave fallen limp from
their meaning: war on women, preborn rights, whoever talks
the loudest wins in the endless oratory cycle of our parents'
generation.
Maybe the loudest voices don't create seismic waves.
Maybe the best dialogue doesn't emerge from our own opin-
ions. Maybe conviction itself is born from the hollow womb
of silence.
CarmenAllen is,an LSA senior. o .
* An Arkansas state legislator run-
ning for re-election added his support
for the death penalty for unruly chil-
dren on top of a platform made out of
the dead bodies of unruly children.
Student who clearly butt chugged
lies about butt chugging. Makes sense
though: since the booze went in the
back end, it only makes sense that shit
should come Out the front.
WORST
NATALIE KOLB/The State News
Republican Vice Presidential nominee Paul Ryan spoke at Oakland
University on Monday. Detroit-native Kid Rock introduced the politi-
cian to a packed basketball arena.