Article adapted from episode content.
The effectiveness of laws, especially those concerning sensitive social issues, is often a subject of intense debate. Some individuals, particularly those opposed to pro-life legislation, argue that laws are inherently ineffective in changing behavior and reducing undesirable outcomes. They may point to instances where laws seem to fail in achieving their intended goals, such as the continued existence of crime despite the presence of criminal laws. However, such a simplistic view overlooks the complex and multifaceted ways in which laws function in society. A closer examination of the evidence, coupled with an understanding of the purpose of law, reveals that laws, particularly those protecting the unborn, are not only effective but essential for shaping societal norms and safeguarding human life.
One of the most prevalent arguments against the efficacy of pro-life laws is that abortion rates have not declined as anticipated following the overturning of Roe v. Wade. This argument, however, often neglects to consider the significant impact of interstate travel on abortion statistics. While national abortion rates may have increased, this is largely attributable to individuals traveling from states with restrictive abortion laws to states where abortion remains readily accessible.
It is crucial to note that birth rates in states that have implemented abortion bans, such as Texas and Tennessee, have witnessed a notable increase. This trend, even acknowledged by media outlets not typically aligned with the pro-life movement, such as CNN, strongly suggests that pro-life laws are indeed achieving their intended effect within the boundaries of those states. The increase in national abortion rates is not a reflection of the failure of pro-life laws but rather a consequence of the legal patchwork across the country, allowing individuals to circumvent restrictions by crossing state lines.
The argument that pro-life laws are ineffective because they haven’t resulted in a nationwide decrease in abortions is akin to suggesting that speed limit laws are useless because people still speed. Just as speed limits deter some drivers and reduce overall speeds, pro-life laws deter some individuals from seeking abortions and contribute to a decrease in abortions within those states. The existence of some individuals who break the law does not negate the law’s effectiveness in influencing behavior and achieving a degree of compliance.
A comprehensive analysis of the impact of pro-life laws must consider not only national trends but also the specific effects within states that have enacted such legislation. Focusing solely on national statistics without accounting for interstate travel and variations in state laws provides an incomplete and potentially misleading picture of the true impact of pro-life legislation.
The assertion that laws are impotent in shaping societal values and morality is equally flawed. Throughout history, laws have played a pivotal role in transforming societal attitudes and establishing widely accepted norms. The 1964 Civil Rights Act serves as a powerful testament to the transformative power of law. Prior to its passage, segregation was deeply ingrained in the social fabric of the American South, with a majority of Southerners supporting the separation of races.
However, within a remarkably short period following the implementation of the Civil Rights Act, public opinion underwent a dramatic shift, and segregation became widely condemned. This historic transformation underscores the profound influence laws can wield in shaping societal values, even in the face of deeply entrenched prejudices and resistance to change.
The idea that law functions as a moral compass is not a novel concept but rather a principle recognized by philosophers and legal scholars for centuries. The ancient Greek philosopher Aristotle, along with other classical thinkers, posited that law serves an essential pedagogical function in society. Laws contribute to the formation of a shared moral understanding by unifying public opinion around certain values and delineating acceptable and unacceptable behavior. This framework of legal norms influences individual thinking and actions, fostering a sense of collective morality and shared societal values.
While changing hearts and minds through persuasion and religious teachings is undeniably important, it is imperative to acknowledge that not all individuals are receptive to such appeals. Human history is replete with examples of individuals driven by self-interest, malice, or disregard for the well-being of others. It is precisely in these instances that the coercive power of law becomes indispensable.
As eloquently articulated by civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr., “Sir, it’s true. The law cannot make the white man love me, but it can stop him from lynching me, and that matters”. This poignant statement underscores the critical function of law in restraining those who are unmoved by moral suasion or appeals to conscience. The purpose of law extends beyond encouraging moral behavior; it also encompasses the vital role of deterring and punishing those who violate the rights and safety of others.
The argument that laws are ineffective in reducing abortion often stems from a misunderstanding of the nature and purpose of law. Laws are not magical solutions that can instantly eradicate societal ills. Instead, they function as a multifaceted tool, working in conjunction with other social forces to shape behavior, protect the vulnerable, and promote a just and ordered society. The effectiveness of laws should not be judged solely on their ability to eliminate a particular problem entirely but rather on their capacity to mitigate harm, deter wrongdoing, and create a framework for a more ethical and just society.
In the context of abortion, pro-life laws serve multiple purposes. They aim to reduce the number of abortions, protect unborn children, and affirm the sanctity of human life. While it is true that laws alone cannot eliminate abortion entirely, they do play a significant role in achieving these objectives. By creating legal barriers to abortion, pro-life laws can deter some individuals from choosing abortion, thereby reducing the overall number of abortions performed.
Moreover, pro-life laws send a powerful message about the value society places on human life, both born and unborn. This message, while not always immediately impactful, can gradually shift societal attitudes and contribute to a culture that increasingly respects the dignity of all human beings.
To claim that laws don’t work is to disregard the historical and contemporary evidence of their impact on shaping behavior and promoting societal good. Pro-life laws, specifically, have demonstrated their effectiveness in reducing abortion rates within states where they have been enacted. Furthermore, laws play a crucial role in establishing moral norms, deterring wrongdoing, and protecting the vulnerable. While changing hearts and minds through persuasion and religious convictions is a worthy endeavor, it cannot be the sole approach to addressing complex social issues.
Protecting the unborn and fostering a culture that respects life requires a multifaceted strategy that includes both the power of persuasion and the force of law. Dismissing the efficacy of law in the fight for life is not only inaccurate but also undermines the very foundation of a just and compassionate society.
Episode Transcript
This transcript was generated from the episode’s YouTube captions and lightly edited for readability: filler words and the mid-show announcements have been removed. It may still contain transcription errors.
Do pro-life laws work or are they useless? We’re going to talk about that on this episode of The Case for Life podcast. Thanks for joining us today, friends, if you haven’t already visited our social media sites, please do so, and please like us and share our content with those that you know on your pages. There’s a lot of fog out there, bad thinking about the nature of Law and how it relates to abortion, and if you flip on the news or pull up CNN or virtually any news site out there, you’re going to read stories like the following: abortion rates have gone up since the Dos decision.
Laws restricting abortion don’t work. They actually increase abortion and put more women at risk. You’ll hear all kinds of stuff like that. Well, there’s an interesting story out at CNN that I find quite puzzling for those that think the way I just described. Here’s the basic headline: birth rates have increased in states with abortion bans. This is CNN, not right to life news, not, conservative news. This is CNN, and what the story goes on to say is: in those states where there are abortion bans in place, the number of births have gone up dramatically in some cases, and they site States like Texas, Tennessee and other red states that have a abortion laws in place restricting abortion.
Now here’s what’s interesting about that. If it were true that abortion laws are actually driving up abortion rates, why are those states with abortion laws on the book seeing an increase in births? And I think the obvious answer is that the law is quite effective at curtailing the behavior in question. The reason why abortion rates have gone up is because surrounding states those States surrounding red states that ban abortion. These states have seen their numbers go up because people from the red states are traveling to these blue states to get unrestricted abortions.
That makes sense, but that’s not the fault of the law. The problem there is that you have states that don’t have the same law as the pro-life state does. If the entire country had a ban on abortion and protected The Unborn you would see abortion rates drop, as they have in red States now, and you would see birth rates go up. That makes sense. Now there’s another aspect of this that we need to address. There are a lot of Christians, including some I’ve been dialoging with, that think it’s not right to pass laws restricting abortion, that we should just work to reduce it.
How many times have I heard people say: I don’t want to make abortion illegal, I want to make it unthinkable. I wish pro-lifers would stop saying that. Here’s what you should say. I want to make it illegal on the path to making it unthinkable. Now why would I put it that way? Here’s why the law is not neutral. The law is a moral teacher. This is something that goes all the way back to the classical thinker thinkers. Aristotle taught it. Others did as well.
The law acts as a moral guide for people. It kind of unifies public opinion around what we ought and ought not do, and that has moral implications for how we think as individuals. So the law is not just a neutral thing in terms of how we think about things. It actually forms our thinking. To give you an example: prior to the 1964 Civil rights Act, a majority of Southerners believed that segregation was good and they wanted to maintain it. They did not want segregation to go away.
They like the idea of having white and black water fountains, white and black restrooms, white and black dinner counters. They like that. They wanted it to be something that was sustained. Public opinion overwhelmingly supported segregation. But a funny thing happened within two years of the 1964 Civil rights Act. Within two years, a majority of Southerners thought that segregation was bad and they applauded the new laws striking down segregation. What changed? The law changed, and that changed hearts at some level. Now it’s true the law can’t change everyone’s heart.
It’s also true that laws alone are not enough for bringing a person to salvation. I mean, obviously, only the gospel does that. Only belief in the Christian Gospel that Jesus took our place on the cross, died for our sins, bore the wrath of God and was raised from the dead 3 days later is proof of our justification. Only that message saves. However, not everybody will undergo a heart change, and this is key. It’s true the gospel changes hearts and it’s true we need to preach the gospel to change hearts.
But there will be many people whose hearts will never be changed. And here’s where the purpose of the law comes in. The law is not necessarily there to change hearts, though I’ve just given you evidence, citing the 64 Civil rights Act, that often that does in fact happen. But for those whose hearts refuse to be changed either by law or persuasion, the purpose of law is to control the heartless, not necessarily change everybody’s heart, and this is a quote I’ve used many times by Martin Luther King when he was confronted with this question at the University of Western Michigan in 1962.
A man stood up and said: Dr King, the law cannot make the white man love you, so why are you so focused on changing laws? And King gave a brilliant reply. He said, sir, it’s true, the law cannot make the white man love me, but it can stop him from lynching me, and that matters. That’s precisely it. The reason why we pass laws protecting unborn humans is to control the heartless. While we continue the good work of doing pro-life apologetics to change minds, we don’t need to bifurcate between making abortion unthinkable and making it illegal.
The truth is we can work to do both and ought to work to do both, and that’s the job of a pro-life apologist. So two things to take away from today. Number one: don’t believe the lie that law, that laws, are ineffective. I just cited this story from CNN, where they admit that birth rates have gone up in state that restrict abortion again, not a pro-life source, a source that is very favorable to abortion. And secondly, the purpose of the law is not merely to change hearts, because often it won’t, but it does control the heartless, and God has given us two ways to restrain evil in the culture, change hearts through the gospel and control the heartless through the application of civil law.
Both are important for human flourishing. You don’t have to pick one over the other, so don’t be afraid to say wait a minute. Laws that protect The Unborn not only work, they are effective at controlling heartless individuals, and that’s what we’re out for when we pass laws protecting The Unborn. Thanks for joining us today. Look forward to seeing you next time. Remember, visit us on social media and if you have not yet gotten a copy of the new edition of the case for Life, the second edition of the book, please go to our website, scottus andorf dcom and order a copy there, or you can go to Case forlife.com and get it there.
But do visit our social media pages and do get a copy of the book where we deal with this question and others throughout the pages. Thanks for joining us today.