To the Editor:

Re “How Abortion Warps Our Politics” (Op-Ed, Feb. 6):

Gracy Olmstead is certainly right to argue that the issue of abortion should not be avoided by either party in the next election.

Donald Trump is not a notably religious president, and it is easy to believe that his embrace of the issue is rooted in political advantage. But for many, and not only Catholics, the issue has a distinctly religious dimension, one that should be recognized generally, and so made a part of the Democratic platform as well as the Republican.

That platform should acknowledge the many disadvantages under which women labor, in the workplace and elsewhere. It should also support those women, half of whom live in poverty, who have an abortion for financial reasons, and many of whom would prefer not to.

Gender issues are complex, which is why they are often simplified in political discourse. But this one must not be conceded to Republican virtue, and should be attended to by both parties.