Life's Work Life's Work

Life's Work

A Moral Argument for Choice

    • 4.8 • 17 Ratings
    • $11.99
    • $11.99

Publisher Description

In this “vivid and companionable memoir of a remarkable life” (The New Yorker), an outspoken, Christian reproductive justice advocate and abortion provider reveals his personal and professional journeys in an effort to seize the moral high ground on the question of choice and reproductive justice.

Dr. Willie Parker grew up in the Deep South, lived in a Christian household, and converted to an even more fundamentalist form of Christianity as a young man. But upon reading an interpretation of the Good Samaritan in a sermon by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., he realized that in order to be a true Christian, he must show compassion for all people at all times.

In 2009, he stopped practicing obstetrics to focus entirely on providing safe abortions for women who need help the most—often women in poverty and women of color—in the hotbed of the pro-choice debate: the South. He thereafter traded in his private practice and his penthouse apartment in Hawaii for the life of an itinerant abortion provider, becoming one of the few doctors to provide such services in Mississippi and Alabama.

In Life’s Work, Dr. Willie Parker tells a deeply personal and thought-provoking narrative that illuminates the complex societal, political, religious, and personal realities of abortion in the United States from the unique perspective of someone who performs them and defends the right to do so every day. In revealing his daily battle against mandatory waiting periods and bogus rules, Dr. Parker makes a powerful Christian case for championing reproductive rights. “At a moment when reproductive health and rights are under attack…Dr. Parker’s book is a beacon of hope and a call to action” (Cecile Richards, President of Planned Parenthood).

GENRE
Biographies & Memoirs
RELEASED
2017
April 4
LANGUAGE
EN
English
LENGTH
224
Pages
PUBLISHER
Simon & Schuster
SELLER
Simon & Schuster Digital Sales LLC
SIZE
3
MB

Customer Reviews

ornwen ,

New way of thinking about abortion

Instead of acting as if morality plays no role in abortion decisions, Dr. Parker argues that women ending their pregnancies are making a moral decision to choose themselves and that those who can help them should. It’s an interesting argument.
Dr. Parker also deeply describes in the road that led him to his life of advocacy and abortion care. It’s a beautiful story of a person committed to service.

Drdale ,

I never knew

There are many facts and opinions on abortion brought out in this book. The metamorphosis of a person was an exceptional addition. I know that I won't view abortion in the same light as before, and I applaud Dr Parker for his insight and his candor. I also thank him for dealing with medical and scientific facts, rather than emotional rhetoric that is used by too many people. And finally I was intrigued at how a Christian could not only justify but also explain the justification for abortion.
The tying in to the civil rights movement was also a plus for me, in that I lived through that time in our country and remember many of the events Dr Parker alluded to. A book that makes you think is a good book. A book that makes you feel while thinking, is a great book.
I imagine this review may be fairly confusing to someone who has not yet read the book. All I can say is, read it. You may come away with a different viewpoint.

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