Morgentaler, Morgentaler & Morgentaler

The anti-choicers are planning a July 9th Parliament Hill demonstration to protest Dr. Morgentaler’s Order of Canada.  Just keep it to the streets, guys, and away from the clinics.  Antonia Zerbesias gives voice to mounting fears of violence from the anti-choicers.  And Chantal Hebert remembers the remarkable struggle for abortion rights undertaken by Dr. Morgentaler and his sometimes unsung supporters:

For the many pro-choice Canadians who cheered Morgentaler on, a life of activism is more than reason enough to give him the Order of Canada. For the many others who are more ambivalent about abortion but who prize the Charter of Rights and Freedoms, his contribution to turning it into a living document should warrant the honour.

To this day, it is hard to think of a Charter ruling that is as prominent in the annals of Canadian women’s rights as the Morgentaler decision. He should no more be consigned to the closets of history than the activists who forcefully broke new constitutional ground to champion same-sex, minority language or native rights.

As for the vocal opponents of abortion, they could reflect on the fact that if the Order of Canada committee had really wanted to celebrate our unrestricted abortion regimen, it is the anti-abortion lobby and its all-or-nothing approach to the issue that it should have elected to honour.

See why Hebert attributes some of the congratulations for Canada’s “abortion regime” to the anti-choicers here.

UPDATE:  Rick Salutin on Dr. Morgentaler and the Order of Canada:

Calm down. It’s an award. It’s not the result of a law of physics. Prizes always reflect the composition of the committee. It isn’t the voice of God or even the electorate, which can also be disputed. As for unifying us by reflecting values we all share, what a totalitarian-sounding idea! I thought democracy was when we’re unified even though we don’t agree. What unites us is our past, our mutual respect, our commitment to try to do well by each other.