Before I begin to talk about my personal views, I think we need to start with how to have a conversation about abortion. Because there is no point to reading this article if you are just looking to affirm your view or to attack the opposing side. In fact, the goal of reading any political article should be about considering the other side and being civil about it. Sad to say, I rarely hear civil conversation about abortion. It usually ends up being a name-calling competition, with pro-choice individuals calling someone "anti-woman." Perhaps you hear a pro-life person use the label "baby killer." Both are wrong to do this, especially since the labels don't fit. There are pro-life women and most, if not all, are not crazy people that are against women rights. There are many pro-choice individuals that don't consciously think "I want to kill babies."

This is due to the state of politics. We have what many call the "good versus evil" climate where your position is good and the other person's is evil. I am not denying that there are certain beliefs that are evil, but this specific political view is dangerous and dehumanizes people. It also creates close-mindedness in individuals, which is not good. We need to be open-minded and seek the truth. When a society does this, we usually progress in a better direction and improve. If you disagree, just look back in history at empires and nations that became close-minded.

I also think abortion is one of the hardest topics to discuss because it is sensitive. People get heated about immigration and taxes, but people get fired up about abortion. Back in my freshman and sophomore year of college, I had two assignments to write about a controversial issue and support my position on it. My professors said we were allowed to pick any issue, except abortion. At first I thought, why? Aren't they for freedom of speech? Well they are, but it is because they realized how difficult it is to discuss it without getting emotional. Plus, my classmates and I peer reviewed each other's papers. Could you imagine how some people would react while editing someone's paper on abortion? I personally think my professors were smart about this. However, this does not mean we should never talk about abortion. If we choose not to talk about it, then the issue becomes worse. Choosing to not talk about a sensitive issue does not make it go away.

I would like to also acknowledge one thing I hear pro-choice women say to pro-life men that I think is wrong. I hear them say "you are not a woman, which means you cannot say anything about abortion." If that logic were correct, then these women should never criticize masculinity, because they are not men. But I have no problem with a woman talking about masculinity, even if I disagree with many of their views. The same could be said about our wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. I have never served in the military and I don't know what fighting is like, does that exclude me from saying that invading Iraq was a mistake or that we need to stay in Afghanistan? No, it doesn't. So men should be allowed to talk about abortion. Also, that is hypocritical because I don't hear pro-choice women saying the same thing to pro-choice men. You are not discussing the issue or even arguing your position, you are basically demonstrating you don't like someone having a different opinion from you. You may not be consciously thinking that, but that is what you are doing.

And to pro-life individuals who call pro-choice women "baby killers," you are not helping either. How do you expect someone to listen to you when you call them a killer? This name-calling and hostility from either side does not lead to any clarity or truth on the matter.

Because abortion is complex, this is the beginning of a series of articles I am writing. My goal is to present my perspective on the issue, not just repeat what media figures or speakers have said for decades now. I hope to show that effective dialogue can be had about the issue. I will not directly state my position on abortion until the final article, but you will probably infer it from future articles. If this is the only article you read, at least do this. Do not use social media posts or attacks to solve this issue. Talk to someone face to face, make a video, or watch a good debate on it. Keep an open mind and consider the opposing side's background as to why they take their position.

If you stick with my series, then I thank you for being open-minded and willing to listen.