The SPUC conference ended today with a talk by Dr James Sherley entitled: From abortion to human embryonic stem cell research: a vacation of reason. Dr Sherley is a senior scientist and leader of the human adult stem cell research laboratory in the Programs in Cancer and Regenerative Biology, at the Boston Biomedical Research Institute.
One of the central points of his talk is that life is 'one continuum' from conception to natural death and that it is only through a 'vacation of reason' that unborn human life is not protected in either the US or the UK. He clarified what pro-lifers have been saying for years, that embryo research will never produce the cures promised in the media, unlike adult stem cell research which is already producing results.
He spoke about irrational legal positions taken in the past that have dehumanised certain sections of the population, such as black slaves in America. Unlike a slave, he said, an embryo in a dish cannot run away, a foetus being aborted cannot protest and the unborn have fewer advocates than other persecuted members of the human family. Dr Sherley concluded by challenging the audience to educate the public about the humanity of the unborn, an irrefutable fact backed up by science.
