Vision Statement

The session participants wrote the following to summarize their shared goals and guide proposal development:

We envision a world where Wisconsinites have greater support for planning and sustaining their families. While we hold some divergent views on abortion, we are united in our conviction that it is crucial to address its root causes. Unintended pregnancies and poor fetal and maternal health outcomes are experienced disproportionately by women of color and women living on lower incomes. Most abortion seekers say a lack of financial resources or the need to care for other children are motivating factors. Better community and social supports — including for children and families, as well as during pregnancy, childbirth, and the postpartum period — help those who become pregnant feel like they have options for continuing their pregnancy.

We believe increasing access to medically accurate, comprehensive information and high quality healthcare where the patient is trusted and their autonomy is supported will aid in reproductive decision-making.

We value both the mother and baby. Even with more support, some pregnancies will end in miscarriage and prompt, patient-centered care should be made available. Some pregnancies can be life threatening to the mother and, in these cases, abortion should remain available. The complexity and grief associated with many of these situations should be treated with care.

Above all, we agree that the circumstances surrounding abortion are rarely simple. These issues are moral, physical, emotional, and financial. Regardless of the primary lens through which one sees abortion, we should look for ways to reduce harm. We hope all Wisconsinites, regardless of their different perspectives, will choose to support each other in overcoming the suffering created by both the difficult circumstances that result in difficult decisions and the decisions themselves. As a society, we should strive to minimize the number of unwanted pregnancies while treating those who find themselves with an unwanted pregnancy with compassion and support regardless of the choice they make.

To read more about discussions regarding language, check out the glossary.