Humans are indebted to criticize the very acts they partake in — celebrities do it, politicians do it, even you and I do it. While sometimes this cognitive dissonance is committed unconsciously, other times we do it to preserve a particular image of ourselves, or in layman’s terms, cushion our own ego.
Truth be told, no one likes a hypocrite, but this norm is only something that becomes harmful when politicized.
Recently, GOP Georgia Senate candidate and former NFL player Herschel Walker made it known he is running on an anti-abortion platform. Georgia has been a conservative leaning state according to elections from the past decade, so while this take isn’t exactly new, it appears that it is coming from the wrong running mate.
Throughout his campaign trail, Walker has made it known he is against abortion and retains a very strict, no exceptions stance. This means that even in the case of rape, incest, and threat to the mother’s life, he still does not support the procedure. In a recorded discussion following one of his campaign events, Walker went as far as comparing the act of receiving an abortion to committing murder.
While his stance seems to come from a place of misunderstanding, especially considering that as a man, Walker will never get to experience the intensive nine-month process that it takes to produce a sentient human being, his position is also widely controversial. This is not only because supporting a near-total ban on abortion is a clear attack on women’s bodily autonomy and constitutional rights, but also due to allegations that claim Walker paid for an abortion in the past.
Walker has remained a contentious figure in the public eye for preaching family values, despite the fact that he does not practice this same doctrine at home. In particular, he has a past of citing absent Black fathers who “abandon their children ” as one reason for problems within the Black community of the U.S., rather than the issue of systemic racism.
This year, his son, right-wing social media star Christian Walker, has spoken out openly and criticized his father on Twitter for being somewhat of a “deadbeat” himself.
“You’re not a ‘family man’ when you left us to bang a bunch of women, threatened to kill us, and had us move over six times in six months running from your violence,” Christian said in a Tweet.
Walker also disclosed to The New York Times that he has three other children, a 10-year-old, a 14-year-old, and an adult daughter. His level of involvement is unknown, except for that of his 10-year-old son, as a legal suit gave the child’s mother custody and affirmed that Walker would have to pay child support. Family situations do vary, so whether or not Walker is involved is not a criticism of his parenting, but his own hypocrisy.
In light of his recent scandal pertaining to his involvement in funding an abortion for a former girlfriend in 2009, many are again calling out his hypocrisy. Indeed, the man who has a zero-tolerance policy for abortion reportedly encouraged and paid for one a few years ago.
While Walker’s campaign manager denies these allegations, his former partner, who has chosen to remain anonymous, has provided local news outlets with evidence that would indicate these claims are true. The unnamed woman provided receipts from the abortion clinic that show a bill of $575, and a subsequent “Get Well Soon” card that contained a bank deposit check for $700, both signed by Walker.
According to her claim, Walker told her it would be better to end the pregnancy because the “timing” was not right. When asked why she came forward to share her story, the woman said it was because she, like many, could not handle the hypocrisy anymore.
Walker’s façade is my primary issue. You cannot actively tell your potential voters that abortion is an “off-limits” and immoral procedure for them, but then turn a blind eye when it suits your convenience.
Apparently, Walker only believes in the “life begins at conception” argument when it does not directly impact him. If at one point in his life he was able to realize that he was not financially or emotionally prepared to take on the responsibility of being a parent, I wonder why he cannot be as understanding or compassionate with his audiences.
His website describes him as “pro-life” and “pro-family,” which I find ironic considering his values make him very anti-woman and anti-choice.
To be “pro-family” is to also be pro-human. By backing legislation initiated by Texas Gov. Greg Abbott that outlaws abortion, Walker and all of his supporters, insinuate that above all, they are merely just “pro-birth.”
As of the Georgia Senate debate on Friday, Walker has seemed to back-peddle his stance on the total abortion ban claim he once stood behind. “As I said, that is a lie,” Walker said. “I said, that’s a lie, on abortion. I’m a Christian, I believe in life. I’ll be a senator that protects life. That was a lie, I’m not backing down.” This contradictory response came after the moderator asked Walker to respond to his most recent controversy. Regardless of this “new view” it is still painfully apparent Walker lacks consistency in much of his values.
With the primaries coming up, it is critical that we elect candidates that actually practice what they preach if we ever hope to become a more progressive society. When we build the foundation of our political system on the basis of hypocrisy, we are inherently setting ourselves up for collective failure.
