Rev Michael Bray and the 'Gas Can' Award he received from the Army of God in 2001 for his advocacy of arson attacks against family planning clinics (Source: Ms Magazine)
I oppose binary thinking. Wait, that sounds suspiciously like a non sequitur. Let me put it this way: I prefer to entertain multiple perspectives when it comes to socio-political issues. Let’s just say I prefer to keep an open mind, and I encourage open debate. Binary thinking encourages confrontation, and when confrontation is fuelled by emotion, the outcome can be calamitous.
There are few issues that divide America more than abortion. It’s a stumbling block for politicians. Say you’re pro-life and you are tagged as anti the rights of women, say you’re pro-choice and you are called a murderer. The anti-abortion movement is arguably the most radicalised, and acts of aggression and violence, even murder, directed at medical staff at family planning clinics are frighteningly high.
And yet these are not considered acts of domestic terrorism.
I know what you’re thinking: “‘Domestic terrorism?’ Isn’t that a bit extreme?”
The Daily Maverick’s Carien Els has written a fascinating piece that shows the extraordinary levels of these acts of violence, that under any other circumstances would be addressed as domestic terrorism; and how, not surprisingly given the political sensitivity of the issue, the US government ignores it.
History Commons has a catalogue of some of these acts. They include arson, bomb attacks, and the co-ordinated brutal assault on innocent people. Replace the term ‘anti-abortion’ with, say, ‘anti-government’ or ‘anti-Christian’, and you’ve got full-scale domestic terrorism.
I am neither pro-life, nor pro-choice; but I am against acts of aggression, especially those fomented by people who claim some measure of moral superiority based on their myopic ideologies.
The Quiet Maverick 