Opinion

PBS misses the real story with plans to air late-term abortion film, “After Tiller”

On Labor Day, PBS plans to air “After Tiller,” a documentary that showcases the work of four late-term abortionists. Except there’s one problem: nowhere in the film is the real “work” of the abortion doctors shown.

What is their “work”? Well, the dead babies of course. The dead babies who sometimes come out in pieces, sometimes alive, but, who nearly always – regardless of the inhumane method used – end up dead.

There’s little debate as to whether these babies are, in fact, babies. Late-term abortions are performed in the third trimester, often mere weeks before babies are due to be born. And many of these babies could quite easily survive outside their mothers’ wombs on their own, given the chance.

Live Action documented this point in a recent investigative project that also captured shocking comments from “After Tiller” star Leroy Carhart which can be seen at the 4:10 mark in the video below:

The project also recorded footage showing disturbing aspects of the facility’s protocol at Southwestern Women’s Options in Albuquerque, New Mexico where “After Tiller” abortionists  Shelley Sella and Susan Robinson practice:

As an article from The Blaze shares:

[A] user simply identified as “L” wrote, “If this airs, the most honest thing to do is to show the entire ‘procedure.’ Viewers need the truth, right PBS? I highly doubt that they will be willing to show what actually happens to the baby.”

And indeed, if PBS – the Public Broadcasting Network – truly desires to show different points of view, it ought to show the other side of abortion. Not just the stories of parents who abort their nearly full-term infants. Not just the stories of the doctors who kill these very alive human beings.

20 week-old unborn baby

20 week-old unborn baby

But the stories of the human beings themselves. The little human beings who are subjected to great pain. The babies who attempt to kick and flee from the instruments of death (see the description under this video). The babies who are born alive, and then killed by drowning, by the slicing of their spinal cords, or by beheadings.

As a commenter on PBS’s site, Gail Finke, writes:

What next, a documentary made to “humanize” ISIS? After all, it’s hard to gear yourself up for sawing a man’s head off, people just don’t understand! TThese four “doctors” specialize in killing human beings for money at any time up until the moment of birth, for any reason. Saying so is not “anti-choice,” it’s “anti-murder.” Not one dime of public money should be spent on this program, and you bet I am writing to my representatives to say so.

E.P.M writes:

Celebrating the killing of the voiceless is deplorable. It is no different than killing a toddler or an adult for that matter. Let’s just call it what it is instead of hiding behind difficult circumstances as an excuse to execute the innocent.

Many abortion supporters argue that “After Tiller” is a worthwhile film because it highlights difficult cases, where babies are diagnosed with a genetic condition or a disability that may/will cause them to be in pain or to die young. But herein lies yet another problem. Showcasing only these stories does nothing to accurately represent the horror that is late-term abortion.

Late-term abortion is also used for easily survivable conditions like cleft lip and Down Syndrome. It is encouraged and sought for babies with spina bifida – despite the great medical advances and opportunities that have been made for these people. Late-term abortion is often presented as the only responsible choice for people who have just discovered a bad genetic diagnosis for their baby.

Parents are rushed and pushed into a late-term abortion decision and sometimes – perhaps often – their baby is nowhere near in as bad of a condition as the doctors originally diagnose. There are many stories of babies who are given life whose condition reverses itself or becomes mostly corrected during their last few weeks in the womb. There are plenty of stories of in-utero surgical correction as well as stories of babies living who were supposed to die once they were born.

Where are these stories, PBS? Where is the other side of late-term abortion?

Of course, even babies who may die soon after birth or who may have a life of potential pain deserve to know the love of their parents and not to be murdered by a doctor who their parents hire. We cannot murder to alleviate suffering. Nowhere else in society do we allow this, and we ought not to allow it before birth, either.

PBS is missing the real story by airing “After Tiller.” The publicly funded channel is glossing over the pain and horrific deaths of tiny babies. It is refusing to show the experience of these living human beings. And it is entirely ignoring many true stories of late-term abortion that show what a horror and what a terribly wrong choice it actually is.

Americans need to write their representatives and senators – as well as their local newspapers – and say that a publicly funded channel ought not to air this propaganda-filled pro-abortion film that showcases the murder of innocent human beings.

At the very least, Americans everywhere should demand that PBS show the rest of the story.

What is Live Action News?

Live Action News is pro-life news and commentary from a pro-life perspective. Learn More

Contact editor@liveaction.org for questions, corrections, or if you are seeking permission to reprint any Live Action News content.

GUEST ARTICLES: To submit a guest article to Live Action News, email editor@liveaction.org with an attached Word document of 800-1000 words. Please also attach any photos relevant to your submission if applicable. If your submission is accepted for publication, you will be notified within three weeks. Guest articles are not compensated. (See here for Open License Agreement.) Thank you for your interest in Live Action News!



To Top