Recently the nation has seen a wave of deaths of celebrities — Ed McMann, Michael Jackson, Farah Fawcett and Billy Mays. Very few people in the general public had personal relationships with these departed public icons. Yet, the intensity level of mourning that the nation has exhibited upon the news of these deaths shows that millions of people identified with these celebrities in a very personal way.

Celebrity Death of Michael Jackson

The public mourning for the death of Michael Jackson has been particularly intense. For several days after his death the news concentrated on both the details of his death and of his life. His music was replayed on both television and radio broadcasts and video images of him dancing to his music were shown over and over again to a grieving public. Likewise, the deaths of Farah Fawcett, Ed McMann and Billy Mays brought forth many special broadcasts on television to commemorate their lives.

Indeed, when a cultural icon passes away we all feel sadness. We all feel that even a part of our lives has also died, and the grieving families of these celebrities should be recipients of our prayers and compassion.

If we contrast, however, the public show of grief to these celebrity deaths with the public response to the deaths of 3,300 unborn children that occur from abortion every day we will have to make a disturbing observation about our nation.

It appears that when a celebrity dies the entire nation mourns but when 50 million unborn children die the nation pretends it didn’t happen.

Abortion has since 1973 taken the lives of over 50 million unborn children. Abortion today takes the lives of 1.3 million unborn children every year. 3,300 every day. One every 25 seconds.

Where is the public mourning for these lives?

Each life taken by abortion was a unique person made in the image of God. Abortion has destroyed the lives of future doctors, lawyers, artists, authors, missionaries and others who could have contributed greatly to the quality of life we all enjoy.

Where is the public mourning for these lives?

Abortion has not only taken the lives of 50 million children but also ends the generational lines that would have followed such children had they been allowed to live. Millions of human beings who would have loved and been loved and provided so much joy and fulfillment to others will never exist because of abortion.

Where is the public mourning for these lives?

As a nation we mourn the passing of celebrities whom most of us did not know personally. But we ignore the deaths of millions because the manner in which they died is a topic that is not politically correct to bring up in social circles.

I suspect that the topic of abortion is to most Americans an uncomfortable topic that one does not enjoy discussing. Certainly, the passion of people on both sides of this issue makes for stress at your everyday dinner party. Yet, continued silence about this issue will not hide the fact that innocent lives are being taken every day.

Who is to mourn for the lives of the innocent taken by abortion everyday?

Until true public awareness of abortion and its ramifications is achieved then there will be no mourning for the deaths of these little ones. Only continued public silence will ensue.

Let us work for an America where this public silence is ended and is replaced by an outcry that will usher in a time period where every human life, born and unborn, is respected and the death of every person, whether a celebrity or an unborn baby, is mourned.

Copyright © 2009 by Thomas A. Glessner. All rights reserved.