How to Talk About Abortion
As we’ve seen year after year, abortion is continually been attacked by politicians across the U.S. Their rhetoric further stigamizes abortion. With this in mind, it is important that we know how to talk about abortion. It is our job to educate our friends and family about abortion. We all know and love someone who has had an abortion. Abortion is health care. Abortion is necessary. Abortion is lifesaving.
Below are some word choice considerations you can make now to begin changing the conversation.
Instead of.. Use this…
| Choice | Decision |
| Anti-Choice / Pro-Life | Anti-reproductive health / Anti-abortion |
| Reduce abortion / Keep abortion rare | Safe and legal / Reduce rate of unintended pregnancy |
| “Late term” abortion | Abortion later in pregnancy |
| Weeks, trimester | Throughout a pregnancy, at different points in pregnancy |
| Heartbreaking, tragic | Complex, personal decision |
| Fetal abnormality, anomaly, impairment | Fetal diagnosis, severe fetal diagnosis |
| Unwanted, unplanned (fine in terms of stats, but not people) | Unintended |
| Language that shames unintended pregnancy / teen pregnancy | Acknowledge no politician can make this decision for someone else |
| Terminate / termination | Abortion, end a pregnancy |
| Heartbeat bill | 6-week abortion ban |