The Abortion Battle

Opinion Brief

Sarah Silverman's 'vile' before-and-after abortion photos

The comedian is no stranger to controversy, but even some of her fans are questioning whether her latest stunt went over the line

Sarah Silverman shows off her burrito-stuffed belly in "before" portion of her controversial, fake "before-and-after" abortion photos.

Sarah Silverman shows off her burrito-stuffed belly in "before" portion of her controversial, fake "before-and-after" abortion photos. Photo: whosay.com/sarahsilverman SEE ALL 43 PHOTOS

Best Opinion:  Big Hollywood, Daily Mail, Babble

The image: The comedian Sarah Silverman just fired the latest salvo in the so-called War on Women. Known for making edgy jokes about rape and the Holocaust, Silverman created an uproar by tweeting a fake before-and-after picture of herself with the caption, "Got a quickie aborsh in case R v W gets overturned." Referring to Republican promises to roll back the landmark 1973 Roe v Wade decision that legalized abortion, the "before" picture shows her with a distended belly (taken, she says, just after she ate a bloating burrito), while her stomach is flat in the "after" image. 

The reaction: Silverman's "brand of abortion-based wittiness" is "vile" and "disturbing," says Jeannie Deangelis at Big Hollywood. While she has drawn support for "voicing liberal pro-choice beliefs," some are condemning her "insensitivity" to a subject that is "no laughing matter," says Olivia Fleming at The Daily Mail. Even her fans might conclude that she's gone "too far," says Kaydi Poirier at Hollywood Life. Actually, people are missing the whole point of the stunt, says Meredith Carroll at Babble, which is to make light of the perception on the right that the "pro-choice movement is all about… killing life at every opportunity." 


Sarah Silverman on WhoSay

 
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Time to outlaw 'wrongful birth' lawsuits?

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The pink-ribboned Susan G. Komen for the Cure breast-cancer charity says it dumped Planned Parenthood to distance itself from controversy. Whoops

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Until this week, the Susan G. Komen for the Cure foundation was a widely admired, largely apolitical breast-cancer charity, best known for its pink ribbons and charity races. Then it pulled the plug on most of its breast-screening grants to Planned Parenthood,... More

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Twin 'reduction': Is aborting one twin and not the other unethical?

A controversial procedure is adding a new twist to the already fractious debate in the abortion battle

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The rise of the 'telemedicine' abortion: Is it safe?

A new study finds that pharmaceutically induced abortions are safe without a doctor in the room, but that hasn't calmed opponents of "robo-abortions"

An increasing number of doctors are using web cams to treat patients remotely, controversially when it comes to abortions.

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