Sex-Selective Abortions, Harassing and Assaulting Pro-Lifers, and Winnie the Pooh Banned in China.
May 14, 2019
Millions of Missing Girls. A study from the University of Southampton concluded that sex-selective abortion has created a severe gender imbalance in China and India. According to WORLD, “From 1970 to 2017, sex-selective abortions resulted in about 23.1 million missing baby girls.” Demographer Lyman Stone, a research fellow with the Institute for Family Studies and the American Enterprise Institute, said, “Sex-selective abortion, as well as post-birth neglect, are prevalent in many societies. Honestly, if anything, 23 million seems a bit low.” In some parts of China, about 150 boys are born for every 100 girls born. Stefano Gennarini, director of legal studies at the Center for Family and Human Rights, told WORLD “the dearth of women has led to social problems like sex trafficking of women and girls, as well as depression, substance abuse, and suicide among unmarried men.”
Harassing Pro-Life Women. About 1,000 pro-life demonstrators gathered last Friday outside a Philadelphia Planned Parenthood location where a state representative heckled a sidewalk counselor a week earlier. Rep. Brian Sims, a Democrat, posted a video of himself following a woman on May 3 as she silently walked and prayed on the sidewalk outside the abortion center. Sims also posted a video of himself confronting three teenage girls and an adult praying outside the facility on April 18. The mother of two of the girls, Ashley Garecht, wrote a column for USA Today about the incident. “Sims not only aggressively verbally accosted three minors, he also attempted to dox them by offering a financial donation in exchange for their personal information,” she wrote. “His actions were reprehensible and entirely unbecoming of any adult male, let alone an elected official.” The rally on Friday supported the pro-lifers that Sims harassed. Among the speakers at the rally was Abby Johnson, a former Planned Parenthood director and subject of the movie Unplanned. Also speaking were Lila Rose, founder of pro-life group Live Action, and pro-life blogger Matt Walsh.
Other Assaults. The incident in Philadelphis made national news, but it was not the only assault of pro-lifers by pro-abortion activists. In Louisville, Ky., Janaya Alyce Gregory, 31, pleaded not guilty last week to assaulting 82-year-old Donna Durning outside an abortion facility there. Gregory allegedly threw Durning to the ground, breaking her femur. At Western Washington University police suspect vandals intentionally set fire to a pro-life poster that promoted an upcoming talk titled “Lies Feminists Tell” by Students for Life founder Kristan Hawkins. And at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill a pro-abortion activist punched a pro-life activist with the group Created Equal. In a video that went viral, a female student approached a pro-life display. She asked a male student next to the signs, “Did y’all put these up?” When he says yes, she punches him repeatedly in the face and tells him, “You’re a terrible person.” Authorities later arrested Jillian Ward, 19, who is scheduled to stand trial in June.
China Bans Pooh-Bear. Decades ago, Hollywood would wonder whether a movie would “play in Peoria.” Today, Hollywood asks, “Will it play in Peking?” (OK, so they now call it Beijing.) China has Hollywood’s attention. The Chinese film market was about $7.9-billion in 2017, and while the US market is declining, the Chinese market is rapidly growing. So Hollywood is starting to self-censor movies to accommodate the demands of censors there. For example, producers of Bohemian Rhapsody cut parts of the movie that portrayed lead singer Freddie Mercury’s bisexuality and AIDS. Also, as part of a troubling trend toward increasing totalitarianism, China recently eliminated its State Administration of Press, Publication, Radio, Film, and Television and placed media and entertainment censorship directly in the hands of the propaganda department. Even Winnie the Pooh has been banned in China because a popular Internet meme showed a photo of the Chinese President Xi Jinping walking with President Barack Obama juxtaposed with a photo of Winnie the Pooh and Tigger. Apparently the Chinese president didn’t like being compared to the Silly Ole Bear. The ban includes not just social media memes, but also Disney’s recent movie “Christopher Robin.”
Warren Cole Smith is the Vice-President of Mission Advancement for the Colson Center for Christian Worldview.
