AP Photo/Andrew Harnik
- A man confronted Canada's PM Justin Trudeau about abortion rights in a viral clip.
- Trudeau tells the man he must "do a little more thinking, and a little more praying."
- Trudeau has pledged to defend abortion rights, which have been rolled back in the US.
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's exchange with a man opposed to abortion rights during a university visit has gone viral.
The clip was filmed and posted on Reddit by user @NoahFromCanada during a visit by Trudeau to the University of Manitoba in Winnipeg last week.
In the clip, a young man tells Trudeau he's a supporter of the right-wing Canadian People's Party because "they're mostly Christian and I'm against the vaccine mandate", and tells Trudeau he also opposes abortion rights.
"Do you think women should have the right to choose what happens to their own bodies?" Trudeau asks him.
"Personally, no," the man responded before Trudeau asks "do you think you should be able to choose what happens to a woman's body?"
"I think if they're sleeping around they shouldn't be allowed to abort the baby, personally," he responds, prompting Trudeau to respond incredulously "wow. Wow."
The two continue the debate before Trudeau asks: "So, a woman who is raped should be able to get an abortion?"
"That's where it gets complicated," the man responds.
"No, it doesn't get complicated. It's a yes or no," Trudeau says. "It's an all-too-common example. Women get raped all the time and it's something we have to take seriously … Should a woman who was raped be able to get an abortion?"
"Uh, I'm split on it, 50-50," the man responds, saying he can't come to a definitive answer.
"Well, it sounds like you need to do a little more thinking … and a little more praying," Trudeau says, and pats the man on the shoulder before heading off.
Trudeau and the governing Liberal Party have pledged to defend abortion rights in Canada, even as they are rolled back across the border in the US following last year's landmark ruling by the Supreme Court to overturn Roe v. Wade.
In the wake of the ruling, the Canadian government pledged $2.5 million to expand access to abortion services, CBC reported.