In a conversation with a student at Grossmont College, October 2025
Our culture claims that abortion is ‘healthcare’ and a "human right." Too many people don't really believe and understand that abortion kills a human being. But it does. It's harder to justify the injustice of abortion when you are looking at the body of a dead human being. I had a conversation with a student at Grossmont College in October who was not aware of what abortion really does to another human being. Here’s my recollection of the conversation:
Rebekah: What do you think about abortion?
Allie: I don’t really know what I think about the issue. I’m in the middle.
Rebekah: Okay. Do you think abortion kills a human being at a certain point?
Allie: At a certain point. Probably here. [pointing to the human fetus between 7-12 weeks]
Colleen Smith (right) and me in a conversation at UCSD, October 2025
Rebekah: Okay. Is that because the human fetus at that point is more recognizable to us in that they have more distinct human features?
Allie: Yes.
We spent time discussing the biology, when human life begins, and what makes it wrong to kill human beings. Allie started verbally processing and told me she thought abortion should be legal because there are certain situations where a woman might not be prepared to have a child and can’t care for him, especially if she was assaulted. As she was saying this, she went on and said that even as the words were coming out of her mouth, she understood this wasn’t a good argument for abortion. She shared with me that there was someone very close to her who was raped and got pregnant, and this person continued the pregnancy and placed the child for adoption. I asked her how this person was doing now and expressed how sorry I was that she went through that.
As we continued discussing, I asked her:
Rebekah: Have you ever seen graphic images of abortion before?
Allie: No.
Rebekah: Would you be open to seeing them?
Allie: Sure.
We walked over to the image, and before I pulled back the paper covering the graphic photo, I said:
Rebekah: I understand why some people want to be in the middle on this issue as you brought up earlier. When you take a side on a controversial subject like this, that can be difficult. Before I show you this image, I want to ask you if you ever think it’s okay to do this to someone’s else’s body because of a difficult circumstance someone else is experiencing?" [I uncovered the graphic image of an 11-12 week aborted human fetus.]
Allie: [She paused as she looked at the image] I had no idea that’s what [abortion] looked like. I thought it was more like cells that get absorbed back into the woman’s body.
Rebekah: How do these images impact your view on abortion?
Allie: I think it’s a gray issue.
Rebekah: I think there can be a lot of issues that are gray. How can it be a gray area to mutilate and destroy someone’s body like this though? [pointing to the graphic image]
Allie said she didn’t know. I asked her if she wanted to continue the conversation or if she needed time to process on her own. Allie told me she needed time to think, so I politely ended the conversation.
While earlier abortions might not look as grisly as the image I showed Allie, all abortions, regardless of when they happen in pregnancy, end the life of another image bearer of God. Our culture tries to put a sanitized “face on abortion” and act like it’s just a simple medical procedure. I think it’s important we counter those lies by putting the real “face on abortion” by using graphic images in some contexts and presenting arguments in defense of the most vulnerable among us.
*To view the image I used in this conversation, go to jfaweb.org/brochure. To receive training on how to use graphic abortion images in conversations, take our online Love3 Workshops in December:
December 1, 8, & 15: Monday Evening Sessions (3 Weeks) 5-730PM (PT).
With JFA’s Love3 Workshops, you can learn to create conversations in which you love the woman, the child, and the person who disagrees with you equally at every moment of every conversation. Register at jfaweb.org/register.