…you are the furthest removed from being “unbiased” that you could possibly be. The simple fact that you work in an abortion clinic means you don’t see anything at all wrong with women killing their unborn children. In fact, you likely view it as “compassionate”–again, not unbiased at all. They are encouraging women to be completely distant from their own child, from their own bodies in which the child is living so that they can experience a short-term relief from what could be a bigger, broader problem.

“Accurate information” I’ll grant you–is hard to come by in this area–again, those working in an abortion clinic are not well-placed to offer it.

No, being “pro-choice” does not mean being “unbiased”. That’s all I’ll say about this letter to the editor from the director of a (the?) Calgary abortion clinic:

Dr. Stanislaw Iwanicki’s letter is a prime example of the anti-choice movement’s conceited attitudes. He makes the tiresome mistake of equating pro-choice with pro-abortion by saying women should be counselled by an unbiased third party. Pro-choice is the unbiased position.

It means you believe women should be free to choose to continue a pregnancy or terminate it. Pro-choice counsellors are respectful of the decision-making process and provide accurate information to women. They do not seek to influence through scare tactics and junk science as pro-life doctors and pro-life counselling agencies do. Pro-choice counsellors would never refuse referrals or assistance to a woman choosing to continue her pregnancy.

Refusing to refer or assist is unethical; a practice engaged in by those who lack respect for women and their reproductive rights.

His patronizing suggestion of a time out to “allow the patient an opportunity to reflect upon her decision” dismisses women’s intelligence and moral agency.

It is ignorant of the decision-making process women go through when faced with an unwanted pregnancy, the wait times to obtain abortions, and the counselling they receive prior to the procedure. His criticism of doctors who have the courage, skill and compassion to provide abortions can easily be redirected back to those me-first, anti-choice doctors who abandon pregnant women who choose to terminate their pregnancies–after billing for their services, of course.

Celia Posyniak, Calgary

Celia Posyniak Is Executive Director Of The Kensington Clinic.