A TikToker calling herself "theprettiestpos666" caused an uproar after uploading a video following Charlie Kirk's assassination. She jokingly said, "The wizard's death was his own fault. He should have worn a bulletproof neck brace or something. It was God's will!" Facing public condemnation, she uploaded another video claiming she had had abortions since her teens and was proud to be a white bastard, believing that money would flow to her as long as she lived. The video went viral on social media, sparking outrage and shock.
While such scenes may seem grotesque at first glance, they truly reveal the deep fissures dividing American politics. While one side mourns the death of a human being, the other sneers at abortion and invokes divine intervention. A life is thoroughly politicized, reduced to a tool for ideological exploitation. And the debate over abortion rights in American society will not cease.
Trump sparks backlash after overturning Roe v. Wade abortion rights law
The significant turning point in abortion rights in the United States didn't begin with Charlie Kirk's death or a TikTok parody video. Instead, it began with the Supreme Court's sweeping reversal of Roe v. Wade in 2022. This significant shift stemmed from Trump's first nomination of conservative judges, Neil Gorsuch, Brett Kavanaugh, and Amy Coney Barrett, during his first term as US President. This radical shift completely reshaped the Supreme Court's political ideology. Trump, openly stating his goal of appointing "pro-life" judges, has proven successful in shaping a Supreme Court that overturned nearly half a century of protections for women's abortion rights. (Reuters: June 25, 2022)
Roe v. Wade: A milestone in abortion rights for American women
To understand the origins of this conflict, we must first understand the historical significance of Roe v. Wade. In 1973, the US Supreme Court upheld a woman's constitutional right to choose an abortion early in pregnancy. The Court held that the constitutional right to privacy encompasses a woman's right to make her own decisions about her own body, limiting states' ability to overreach in abortion procedures. Roe v. Wade, which allowed American women to exercise their reproductive choices under legal protection, has become a key reference point for the global abortion rights movement and a symbol of women's progress.
However, this ruling has been controversial since its inception. Conservatives criticize it as depriving the fetus of its right to life and view abortion as morally wrong. Democrats, on the other hand, emphasize women's bodily autonomy and equal human rights, arguing that the law should not interfere with individual reproductive choices. This tug-of-war between the two sides, ostensibly over differing legal and moral standards, has made the pro-abortion debate one of the most charged issues in American society.
In 2022, Roe v. Wade was overturned by the Supreme Court, returning abortion rights to the states. This reversal marked the end of fundamental national protections for women since 1973. State-by-state policies directly impacted women's reproductive freedom and highlighted the power dynamics between politics, the judiciary, and society.
Charlie Kirk's Death and the Abortion Controversy
Charlie Kirk was a leading figure in conservative opinion, a longtime opponent of abortion who emphasized the sanctity of the fetus from conception. His death stands in stark contrast to the callous response from some online communities. This contrast reveals that the abortion issue is no longer simply a legal question; it is a comprehensive confrontation over the meaning of life, sexual autonomy, religious belief, and political identity.
Against this backdrop, Trump's promises and appointments during his first campaign for the US presidency in 2016 take on even greater significance. He repeatedly stated his pro-life stance and pledged to nominate pro-life justices to the Supreme Court. This proved to be the case, as evidenced by his nominations of Neil Gorsuch, Brett Kavanaugh, and Amy Coney Barrett, all three of whom ultimately voted to overturn Roe v. Wade in 2022. These appointments shifted the Supreme Court's ideology and dealt a significant blow to abortion rights in the United States.
Who decides who should die?
The abortion issue, originally a discussion about how to strike a balance between respecting women's bodily autonomy and protecting the value of life, even involving eugenics, has devolved into a dispute over "who should live and who should die." With TikTok becoming a platform for celebrating death and the judiciary a battleground for reconstructing rights, the space for social discussion seems to be gradually disappearing.
I recall my time as a university student in the United States. My English teacher once asked students to write essays supporting or opposing abortion. The result was a commotion, with pro-choice students receiving high marks and anti-abortion students receiving low marks. Later, when questioned by students, the teacher admitted to supporting abortion. The anti-abortion students protested violently, shouting "Long live God, pro-life" and even standing up and leaving the classroom. This experience remains a vivid memory.
In fact, because abortion has been legal in Taiwan for a long time, when I mentioned to my American classmates that Taiwanese women can have abortions on their own, they felt very incredible. Even though abortion is allowed in New York State, many women support it, but there are still many Christian believers who insist that women cannot have abortions. Since the abortion bill was overturned by Trump, many underage girls have risked crossing state lines to have abortions after becoming pregnant (Associated Press reported on October 24, 2024). This topic can be written in a separate article, but it can be seen how much damage the overturn of the abortion bill has caused to American society. Not only were "pro-life anti-abortion activists" who supported Trump shot and killed, but many girls and adult women no longer have the "right to choose" to have children, which is equivalent to reversing the feminist movement in the United States.
Charlie Kirk's death reminds us that debate must return to a fundamental ethical basis: respect for every life while maintaining a sense of propriety for free speech. Only on this basis can society hope to transcend confrontation and regain the space for understanding and dialogue.
This article , "Looking at the abortion controversy in the United States from the perspective of Charlie Kirk's death and TikToker's celebration," originally appeared on ABMedia ABMedia .
