Pro-voice: listening and storytelling on the hard issues

Aspen Baker: A better way to talk about abortion

Aspen Baker starts out by talking about her first time talking to someone who willingly talked about their abortion. As a new college graduate she worked as a bartender, but one night at a point when she would normally have a drink she couldn't because she was pregnant. Aspen was raised in a vehemently christian community that was strictly pro-choice, she never thought that she would have an abortion. She was raised to see abortion as a very solemn issue that wasn't to be discussed, until it was possible that she would have one. Unsure of what to do about her pregnancy, she turned to her friend Polly who calmly said, "I've had an abortion."

Baker went on to have an abortion, but the night she spoke with Polly stuck with her. Polly made her realize that abortion and issues like it don't have to be something that we're afraid to talk about and that it's not simply pro-life or pro-choice. She discusses how since the issue has become so politicized we neglect talking with one another about abortion, which is fairly common for women in America, and instead talk at each other. This discovery prompted Baker to make it her life's focus to shift conflict over issues we can't talk about to a place of discussion through listening and storytelling.

Through an organization she founded Baker opened a talk-line for people to get emotional support about the real-life side abortion. In doing this she found many instances where it simply isn't possible for people to just pick a side in the abortion issue and thus pro-voice was created. Pro-voice aims to create a new perspective on issues that have been heavily debated for years like immigration, religious tolerance, and abortion, but also issues that are very personal. The keys to pro-voice are fairly simple: listening and storytelling, but it's not as simple as it seems. Issues seen from a pro-voice perspective are the one's that there is a lot of controversy over and that people don't want to discuss.

Baker then goes on to talk about how to be a good listener, an important trait to have in pro-voice activism. Her tips include simple things such as asking open-ended questions and using reflective language. On the flip side of listening there is storytelling and Baker goes on to talk about the potential danger in it. Baker talks about how empathy is created through storytelling and how it's not wrong for someone to have done something different or felt differently than you given the same set of circumstances. This illuminates the nature of pro-voice which doesn't try to push everyone into sameness concerning their views on the tough issues, but instead creating a culture where everyone's opinions are valid and their differences are respected. Baker concludes by saying that experiences aren't always right or wrong, but that they can exist on a spectrum.

The purpose of this Ted Talk was to inform people of the existence of another perspective on abortion that exists beyond pro-life and pro-choice, pro-voice. Baker is attempting to create interest in something that she has devoted her life's work to. The main way that Baker does this is by telling stories. Storytelling is one of the main concepts involved in pro-voice activism, so Baker uses this to her advantage to create an extremely pathos fueled Ted Talk. With every major point she brings up, she accompanies it with a story. In doing this, she further reinforces the ideals of pro-voice by using stories related to abortion, especially those concerning her own experiences with it. By giving various examples of times that pro-choice has impacted her outlook or others on the tough issues she is showing the audience it's practical application.

I chose this Ted Talk because abortion is an issue that I am very passionate about, I even did my ToK presentation on it. When I first saw the title of this Ted Talk I thought it would be interesting, but the small possibility that it could be someone who was pro-choice lingered in my mind. I always groan a little (ok, a lot) when I hear abortion being discussed from a pro-choice perspective, but I chose to watch this talk anyways. This talk caused me to change the way that I view pro-choice perspectives and talking about tough issues in general.