Every Child A Wanted Child?

 Yes, I'm still sharing my thoughts here from time to time...

Once the rallying cry of the pro-choice movement, the slogan “Every child a wanted child” still makes an appearance from time to time. I am opposed to this phrase as an arbitrary & subjective label applied to a child based on the adult’s feelings (& consequently behavior) toward the child, rather than representing the child’s intrinsic value itself. By applying arbitrary labels & subjective value to a child, we perpetuate a culture in which humans, specifically children are  valued & treated in the manner of which they are labeled, in which the case of labeling children “unwanted” we perpetuate the poor treatment of these children based on their status in the adult’s eyes (A good example of this is Dave Peltzer’s biography “A Child Called It”*) Arbitrary values can also be used to demean humans to the status of commodities, wherein people are seen as no more than property to be sold, used, & disposed of, for example such as in the crimes of human trafficking and slavery. Also in past history, we once assigned arbitrary values to humans, in order to justify the poor treatment of certain populations.  See what I’m getting at? Every person is born with intrinsic value, dignity, & worth , which can't be measured or assigned based on others subjective view, for if we do, this is a slippery slope we begin to go down.

*As demonstrated in Mr. Peltzer's situation, resulting from an intended pregnancy isn’t any guarantee against a child becoming the victim of abuse. Once again, it has nothing to do with the child itself, but rather the adults chosen attitudes & behaviors towards the child. It is the adults who need to change their attitudes & behaviors towards children.