The pro-life vs. pro-choice debate has been going on for centuries, but being pro-life means so much more now than it ever has. There is a huge disconnect between being pro-life and anti-abortion. Statistics show that pro-life supporters make up about 49% of the U.S. population this year, but would those numbers change if we distinguished between those that are pro-life and anti-abortion? 

The government and the general public have long been in favor of pro-life arguments. Federal funds haven’t been able to be used for abortions because of the Hyde Amendment since 1976. In 2011, nine states voted to withhold funding from Planned Parenthood. In thirty-four states, those seeking abortions are required to receive prior counseling. People are more in favor of controlling women’s bodies than protecting fetuses, but that’s a story for another day.

In a post-2016 election world, human rights are being threatened every single day, but there seems to be one life our president cares about—an unborn child’s. Trump addressed this issue one year after his inauguration. He said, “The March for Life is a movement born out of love. You love your families, you love your neighbors, you love our nation and you love every child born and unborn because you believe that every life is sacred, that every child is a precious gift from God.” He added, “Under my administration, we will always defend the very first right in the Declaration of Independence, and that is the ‘right to life.’”

However, this wasn’t always Trump’s stance on the issue. In an interview with Tim Russert in 1999, Trump said, “I’m very pro-choice. I hate the concept of abortion. I hate it. I hate everything it stands for. I cringe when I listen to people debating the subject. But you still … I just believe in choice.” This isn’t the first time we see President Trump change his mind. What can we say? He knows his audience.

But this brings us back to the overarching question: Can you be pro-life and pro-Trump? The short answer is no. But the longer one is: You can be pro-fetus but you can’t be pro-life if that doesn’t include black and brown babies, babies that weren’t born in the US, babies that aren’t babies anymore, babies waiting to be adopted, babies that are addicted to drugs and alcohol, babies that aren’t cis or straight or disabled in any way.  

The “life” in pro-life seems to only cover a very specific demographic. These fetuses are easy to advocate for because you can idealize them into something you want and expect. Will you still care for this life once the third trimester is completed? Or is ownership of women’s bodies all you really cared about?

White embryos should not be the only beings factored into the term “pro-life.” Life is much more than those nine months and it encompasses everyone, not just those that are palatable to you.