RH Reality Check Launches "Common Ground" Forum for Discussion on Abortion

RH Reality Check launched a new forum today for discussion related to finding “common ground” on abortion and reproductive health.

The forum moderator is Christina Page, author of “How the Pro-Choice Movement Saved America: Freedom, Politics and the War on Sex.” Contributors will include Rachel Laser of Third Way; Kirsten Day of Faith in Public Life; Steven Waldman, editor of Beliefnet; Chris Korzen of Catholics United; and Sarah Stoesz, CEO of Planned Parenthood of North Dakota, South Dakota and Minnesota.

The section was created in response to President Obama’s challenge to those with divergent views about abortion to find opportunities for identifying common ground. In her introductory post, Christina Page writes:

Shortly before Dr. Tiller’s murder, President Obama had just begun to usher this movement through the White House doors. His appointees had started calling together leaders from both sides to sit at the same table. His argument has been that the two sides can disagree sharply on a fundamental issue and yet still find areas of agreement on which they can work together.

The brutal murder of Dr. Tiller threatens to poison the nascent dialogue Obama initiated. More pervasively, it threatens to make cynicism about another’s motives acceptable even rational. After such a heinous act it is easy to grow remote, to give up on efforts of understanding, to believe the worst of one another.  The violence perpetrated against Dr. Tiller is an attack on common ground, too, whether intended or not.

But, especially in the aftermath of the murder, a common ground movement must persist, and grow stronger. If not, we surrender reasoned and civil debate at gunpoint. If we retreat to our respective corners, we cede control of the dialogue to extremists, and with it any hope for a better and a different, more constructive way of reconciling, and living with differences.

Initial posts include:

• My Common Ground Fantasy, by Steven Waldman of Beliefnet.com
• Pax Populi, by Katie Paris of Faith in Public Life
• Common Ground Rules, by Rachel Laser of the Third Way
• Courting Common Ground, by Sarah Brown of the National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy
• Seeing Red is Not Always What Youd Think, by Sarah Stoesz of Planned Parenthood Minnesota, North Dakota, South Dakota,
• Should Sex Be Sacred?, by David Gushee, Mercer University
• Education and Pregnancy: Mutually Exclusive?, by Serrin Foster of Feminists for Life

Check it out …