When will “Pro-Life” Activists Start Protecting Lives?

Sorted under anti-choice extremism on January 28, 2009

Reproductive health clinics help women as well as men in a myriad of different ways. They provide breast and cervical cancer screenings, annual pap exams, birth control and emergency contraception services, pregnancy tests, prenatal care and free sexually transmitted disease and infection testing and treatment. These clinics save lives and without them, low income women and men especially would have nowhere to turn for health care.

However, during any given day across the country, these clinics become victims of hate and violent crimes by those claiming to be “pro-life.” But if these groups of people are pro-life, when will they actually start protecting lives?

Just a few days ago, we celebrated the 36th anniversary of Roe v. Wade and on that day alone, anti-abortion extremists called for a “return to the streets” in the wake of their massive losses during the 2008 election.

The Feminist Majority Foundation provided legal and security assistance and worked with federal and local law enforcement to respond to extremist activities at three different clinics.

In Lincoln, Nebraska a suspicious fire caused extensive smoke damage at the only abortion clinic in the state. The clinic’s physician and his family have been the target of threats and the victims of a previous arson by these anti-abortion extremists.

In Birmingham, Alabama at the New Woman, All Women’s Health Clinic (the site of the 1998 fatal bombing by a follower of the Army of God) a local anti-abortion extremist with long-standing ties to Operation Rescue/Save America and to the violent Army of God network has intensified their activities outside of the clinic.

In Charlotte, North Carolina Operation Rescue/Save America is leading a campaign against the Family Reproductive Health Clinic. Followers of this group have been frequently disrupting clinic operations with bullhorns as well as physically blocking access to the clinic.

It is abundantly obvious who is really “pro-life” of the two different groups. The clinics who work diligently to provide women and men with health care they potentially could not receive anywhere else and save lives of the people who are in need of their care and the groups of extremists who are bombing and setting fire to clinics intently focused on causing harm and death to the people who work in these clinics as well as to the patients who are inside of these clinics when these extremists decide to bomb and set fire to the clinic.

If you are really working towards acceptance of your message of life, it is perhaps important to demonstrate that you are really pro-life. Do you support war and the killing of innocent American soldiers as well as Iraqi and Afghan civilians? Then you can’t preach about how pro-life you are. Do you support the bombing and arson of reproductive health care clinics? Then you are obviously and purposely aiming to cause harm to someone’s life so you cannot preach about how pro-life you are. This is an argument that is widely brought up by pro-choice activists in this country, but the purpose of this article is to send the clear message that if you are pro-life, you should start protecting the lives of everyone, everywhere and not simply when it is convenient for you because that is called being a hypocrite.



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  • rachell32skeith
    health is wealth.. love yourself
  • wartrolwarning
    Wow! Cool article. I am Christian myself and what I find makes me really mad is that a lot of organizations that bomb abortion clinics etc...are Christian groups, albeit extreme ones, but I just kind understand why you would do that when you are standing for a pro-life stance, no to mention representing a message of Grace.

    Thanks
  • Very few people who claim "pro-life" are really such. They are "pro-babies". I remember when I was in high school, I asked in class, "Why are a lot of people who are pro-life also for the death penalty?" To me, it doesn't make any sense. I'm not going to judge anyone's opinion, as long as it's consistent.

    During the election season, I was going around saying "Democrats want to kill babies, while Republicans want the babies to grow up, so they can kill them then". Why is the idea of not killing at all such a radical idea? Especially when there are so many people going around claiming "pro-life".

    Maybe I'm just opinionated because I live in the bible belt.
  • kcjones
    Very well written. Couldn't have said it better.
  • It's a question of semantics. The way I see it, the phrase "Pro-Life" has simply been abused here. Basically most people are pro life, some are just pro choice, while others treat life as the highest value and won't even hear about choice.
    This is where religion meets modern life. Both cannot be right.
    What makes me sick is that those claiming to be "Pro-life" focus on a minor social issue like abortion while people are dying from hunger, diseases, and poverty (yes, death by poverty). Until they are morally ok themselves they have no right to tell others what they can and cannot do, no matter how hard they want to.
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