The Radical Handmaids' Picnic On The Hill

by Jonathon Van Maren

Question: Would the media call a rally with only fifty people in attendance “huge”? Would it gain the attention of the National Post, the Globe and Mail, and many other Canadian media outlets?

Answer: If it’s a group called “The Radical Handmaids” wearing funky crimson red costumes and it’s the only physical opposition to Motion 312, then yes!

But seriously. Here’s a picture of the abortion “rally” on Parliament Hill:

Don’t see it? It’s what appears to be a small picnic on the right. Either that or a protest by the Parliament Hill Cleaning Association. Or maybe the Liberal Party Caucus asserting their relevance.

Now, I realize that the Canadian public is not fully ready for the abortion legislation that the pro-life movement desires. We have much work to do yet. But what the media doesn’t realize is that the Canadian public does not line up with the values of abortion “crowd” either. When the three-headed Cereberus, guardian of the gates of the Hades, almost outnumbers your “Open Season on Babies” protest in a quick head count, you don’t have a very active fan base. And that’s in spite of the fact that you’ve tried to combine the fun costumes of Halloween with the cheery warmth of a bra-burning.

Now, just for a fun comparison, let's take a look at how many people showed up to the March for Life last year:

That’s right. Around fifteen thousand, the vast majority of them young and an increasing number of them dedicated to actually ending abortion in Canada. While Canada’s ever-shrinking pro-choice crowd might be the status quo for now due to the fact that they only have to play defence while the media covers for them, they are increasingly a stagnant pond with a few bullfrogs letting out the occasional televised relativistic ribbit. Once the cameras leave, they haven’t got much going on anymore. Important lesson: If you want a youth movement, don't champion a movement based on killing off the youth.

And I must say that when I realize that our biological arguments are being combated only with their costumes and “knitted wombs,” it’s reassuring. Because it’s only a matter of time before the Canadian public realizes that truth is more impressive than creative knitting.