In a culture war, whoever defines the terms of the war wins. Are pro-lifers pro-life or anti-abortion? Is the legal joining of two men or two women “marriage”? Is belief in the humanity of the unborn “religious”? What does “diversity” mean? “Tolerance”?

But we don’t just fight over language with the Left. We conservatives, who agree over what we are fighting for, intensely disagree over how to describe what we are fighting for. We argue most about how to speak about abortion. We’re not just quibbling. We want to find the words that will most move the public to defend the unborn. The right words can save lives.

Pro-lifers worry about the use or abuse of the word “pro-life.” We can get upset when people apply it more broadly than we think it should applied. We think doing so removes the priority of protecting the unborn. Some broaden the meaning with the best of intentions, but others want to neuter the pro-life movement. In response, some leading pro-lifers want the movement to abandon the word “pro-life” for the more narrow “anti-abortion.”

That would be a gross over-reaction. It would play right into the hands of our opponents. It could cost unborn children their lives.

The Word “Gay,” For Example

Consider the history of the word “gay.” It once meant “happy,” but is now a pleasant-sounding euphemism for “homosexual.” Pro-family critics say homosexual activists used such changes in language to capture our culture. We should therefore avoid the word, they say. They are half-right. 

It may still make some people associate homosexuality with happiness. But any pleasant-sounding euphemism for something bad will eventually cause the word itself to fall into disrepute. “Gay” was often used as a slur and still is. When the kids say “That’s so gay,” they don’t usually mean it as a compliment. (And even some pro-LGBT writers are having second thoughts about all those letters.) 

My point is that the reverse is true. Just as good words that describe bad things will eventually be tainted by the association, words that describe good things will resonate with the public. So much, in fact, that everyone will want to use your language.

This is why pro-lifers should not worry when others abuse the word “pro-life” by appropriating it for their own political causes. We should just continue to defend its true meaning. When our critics make every possible issue a pro-life issue and then declare pro-lifers to not be really pro-life for not backing all their causes, we should take this tactic for what it is: a compliment. As the old expression goes, imitation is the sincerest form of flattery.

We Won

For the fact is, pro-lifers have largely won the language war and pro-choicers have lost. That is why advocates for other causes want to appropriate the word “pro-life” for themselves.

Despite all the abuse heaped on pro-life activists, our cause has a moral purity about it that is unlike almost any other issue in our national politics. And that is why others, even while claiming pro-lifers are insufficiently pro-life, want the word’s cachet.

Our opponents — who, yes, are often more shrewd than us about these things — know when they’ve lost. That is why they can’t run fast enough from their own 45-year-old euphemism for abortion, “pro-choice.”

There was a public spat between pro-abortion groups a few years ago when Planned Parenthood announced it would no longer use the word “pro-choice,” just as another group had just changed its name to “NARAL Pro-Choice America.” Yet today, even NARAL tends to use newer euphemisms like “reproductive rights” and avoids the word that is in its own name. They can’t honestly claim to be pro-life, but they can get as close as possible by using euphemisms to hide what they are.

Why? Because, when it comes to language, the people get a vote. Elites on both sides of the culture war can try to fashion language to suit their purposes, but the average Joe will figure it out eventually. Those of us who fight for what is true should consider it a blessing that he does. The average Joe knows that “pro-life” means letting an unborn child live. He knows that “pro-choice” means letting that child be killed. 

My pro-life comrades, do not fuss about language. The main thing is to communicate in a language that your audience understands — and your audience understands you when you say “pro-life.” God and common sense will do the rest.