One of the greatest successes of the anti-abortion movement has been to demonize abortions, the women who have them, and the doctors who perform them. Our side has failed to portray abortion as a valid, routine, and necessary part of women’s medical care that should never have been illegal and should never have been funded as childbirth is funded.

The pro-choice movement needs to show that women who choose abortions are worthy of respect because they are taking charge of their own lives and making a reasonable decision. Women deserve praise for refusing to bear children they do not want, are not prepared to love or care for, or cannot support.

The pro-choice movement must be more successful in gaining respect for doctors who help women by performing abortions, even though abortion is the most frequently chosen surgical procedure in the nation. Some physicians even look down their noses at colleagues who perform abortions.

In a recent column, Charles Krauthammer said that abortion should be legal and “stigmatized.” No!

Abortion is a necessary component of good health care for all women. It should be accepted as such, and those who provide it or use it should be respected. That is the challenge we must address.