These people aren’t used to being confronted. They prey on the weak and they pounce on the wounded.
~Aaron Gouveia, writing about pro-life protesters at a Brookline, MA abortion mill, where he took his wife to have his 16-week-old daughter killed, as quoted by The Good Men Project, October 23
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Jill Stanek is a nurse turned speaker, columnist and blogger, a national figure in the effort to protect both preborn and postborn innocent human life.
As one of “those people,” I am really sorry for this man’s loss and hope that he and his family find healing.
But as for preying on the “weak” and “vulnerable” — don’t the unborn fit this description?
I feel sorry for this family…..But I don’t understand why they didn’t go to a hospital?….That’s suspicious.
Also, in most abortions, though, aren’t women “empowered” and not “weak and vulnerable”? Hm.
I’ve never been to any of these clinics and I’ve never seen an abortion protest. But I would like to know, is there a protocol of some sort on how to get these women’s attention without yelling and making them feel ashamed? There are probably “protests” that are quiet and involves prayer and are quite effective too..
So my question really is… the signs outside, the yelling, is it for the pregnant women or the workers at the mill? Is there a possible way to effectively reach both parties without one of them feeling ashamed and the other(worker) more irritated. Is there a way to show them truth without making prolifers look like they are judging them?
Is it possible, for those who protest often to forget that sometimes, its a fresh face coming their way? Its not always the “irritated” worker, but a woman who might have already decided to kill her child but only needs an understanding soul to reach out? I do believe not all them have have their minds made up. Some walk in confused and scared. Some of them think (due to a diagnosis) its their only way.
Please dont get me wrong, I am not harping on prolifers. I do believe in the fight you are fighting. I just wish there were better ways to fight.
I agree Mary Lee, why go to a mill? Mills are for elective abortions, for women who don’t want it on their regular medical records.
But, someone with prenatal knowledge jump in here: would you know at 16 weeks or less that the child had ‘mermaid syndrome’, had no kidneys, and no bladder?
Does that mean that healthy aborted 16 week old pre-born babies had functioning kidneys and bladders? This man is blaming the pro-lifers for his families unfortunate circumstance and deadly decision. No matter what his or her condition or prognosis, the baby was still alive and an abortion kills the child in an untimely fashion. Pro-lifers are trying to save people’s lives and I can read from his article that he was so angry about the prognosis and his discomfort with his decision that he concludes that it is the fault of those people who value life that his ‘the worst day of his life’ was made even more unpleasant. You know who had a worst day? The baby. And all the other healthier babies aborted at the mill.
To be honest, I’m leery of protesters, too. Not because I’m not pro-life (I am through and through)….but it seems…..counterproductive in a lot of ways. But there are some here who really see that there have been changes made through these protests, so I’m not sure….
Jm, some organizations have rules, such as 40 Days for Life. There is no yelling or stepping in front of people. Most sidewalk counselors would agree that raised voices and insults wouldn’t help and would only hurt the situation.
Thanks Ninek! I appreciate the response. I have read a lot that “40 days for life” is quite effective.
“To be honest, I’m leery of protesters, too.”
Protestors save lives. My church had a marhc to local abortion mill down the street, it was very peaceful, all we did was pray and we were called awful names by people driving by. I doubt your pro-life.
Jasper, you always come here to attack me. I am as pro-life as you can get. The rights of the unborn are a great concern for me, and abortion is the worst crime humanity will ever see. Don’t criticize ME because I’m not completely sold on certain tactics. You cannot expect everyone to believe and live exactly as you do in every single aspect. Abortion is awful; it is not a right. I vote pro-life. What do you want from me? I think you should get off your high horse. I am questioning the TACTIC, not the people. I did not say they WEREN’T peaceful, or they were wrong. I just wonder if there’s a better way. My goodness. It is exactly THAT KIND of self-righteousness that hurts the pro-life movement. We aren’t going to change hearts if we criticize our own.
I have attended many prayer vigils and 40 Days events. I have never witnessed any yelling and screaming in anyone’s face.
Sidewalk counselors do try to get close enough to a woman to hand out information on fetal development or tell her she can get a free ultrasound down the street at the PRC. They aren’t there to scream at women. Those that do I would distance myself from in an instant. Not helping.
As for “making” women feel ashamed. I don’t buy it. Nobody “makes” a woman feel ashamed. There is shame in aborting your child. There is. Where’s the empowerment? Where is the abortion pride?
Sorry. Feeling snarky.
Carla, I agree with you–and I do think we need people in the trenches, so to speak. I don’t think I would be very good at it. Perhaps we need different tactics…IN ADDITION to protests, not instead of. I know a lot of good is done. I also know how pro-aborts respond to even peaceful protests.
And yes, there is shame in aborting your child, absolutely. Nobody is “empowered” when they destroy the body and life of another person. How pro-aborts can think that is beyond me.
MaryLee,
I know you to be adamantly prolife and extremely articulate at that!!
There have been times when I have seen prolifers at their worst. Yelling, screaming, fingers in someone’s face. Total ugliness and so not what I want to be a part of. It goes nowhere. I have been at the receiving end of some pretty vile stuff but I choose not to respond. There is no point. I heart peaceful protests.
One vigil I attended last year had 2,000 prolifers at it. We sang and prayed and walked a full city block. The PP crowd? Yelling and chanting and waving signs with hangers on them and laughing hysterically whenever someone honked at them. What a contrast!
I can’t help but feel for the 64% of women that are being forced to abort and won’t look anyone else in the eye when they get to the clinic. There are those that come LOOKING for anyone that might offer ANYTHING other than the abortion they had scheduled. That was me. The “protesters” weren’t there that day.
Proaborts can’t have it both ways. Abortion either empowers or it doesn’t. It kills a child and wounds a woman or it doesn’t. Abortion helps and heals or it doesn’t.
We already know the truth from the lies.
Thank you for your beautiful post, Carla.
:)
Fight on, MaryLee!
Mary Lee, sorry about that. I know you’re pro-life.
Perhaps we need different tactics…IN ADDITION to protests, not instead of.
We have additional tactics, and they’re being attacked on every front, MaryLee. We are trying to change the laws on the political front. We are trying to help women through CPCs (which of course are being attacked right now like never before). We blog. We pray and protest in front of clinics. We vote. We write letters to the editor. We stage educational and informative (and sometimes graphic) displays on college campuses and sidewalks elsewhere. We lobby for greater maternity benefits and help for pregnant college students and educational grants for unwed mothers and daycare at work, and, and, and….
And still, they abort. We are on every front. There is always more we CAN do, but I personally don’t think eliminating a prayerful presence at the site of slaughter is going to help anyone.
I don’t think I would be very good at it.
Don’t feel bad. I tried sidewalk counseling too, and I wasn’t good at it. I’m too much of a crybaby. That’s the last thing someone in a crisis pregnancy needs, to see someone standing there bawling.
I tend to cry when I’m upset. I’m sure some of you remember that toddler in England, Jamie Bulgar, who was tortured and killed by two young boys. My son was about the same age at the time and I cried about a week about that. Cried about those two little boys drowned by their mother in South Carolina. Around here some monster sawed a dog in half and left the pieces on the owner’s lawn. Cried about that, too. The list goes on and on.
But anyway, we all have different gifts. I’m just not the confrontational type.
We need more strategy to make tactics more effective. Going to a mill this week to pray? That’s tactic. Planning on more public awareness activities for the next two years? That’s strategy.
When there is a sidewalk counselor at a PP near me there is usually someone with them who only prays. A warrior, if you will who spends the time praying for those going in and coming out.
That might be something you could do, Phillymiss.
Jamie Bulgar. I remember reading an article about the horrifying torture he endured at the hands of those 10 year olds. I sat shaking and crying and was sickened the rest of the day by it. I so get what you are saying.
Wedge, as condescending as Jasper can be, your post is really off. Funny how you pro-aborts always say “zygote” when, in fact, the babies aborted are farther along. Also, you guys do that thing where you use language to dehumanize the unborn in order to justify their killing.
The Bible also doesn’t say “thou shalt not rape,” so should we be able to do that too?
“They prey on the weak and they pounce on the wounded.”
These words spoken by a father who had his handicapped child slaughtered (Was he really speaking of himself and his wife?) Then whined at the women who begged for his child’s life that it was the worst day of his and his wife’s lives. Surreal.
ninek said: But, someone with prenatal knowledge jump in here: would you know at 16 weeks or less that the child had ‘mermaid syndrome’, had no kidneys, and no bladder?
Yes – the end of 8 weeks gestational age is completion of the embryonic stage of development (all major organs are in place), and most likely time period when an initial ultrasound would be performed. Even a limited ultrasound would have revealed abnormalities.
I’m a little surprised at the admission of 16 weeks – because you’re looking at the onset of bone calcification around 15 weeks. Any procedure after that time is more risky to the woman than one performed prior.
The most common time period is weeks 10-14 for aspiration abortions because the abortionist needs to assemble all fetal tissue. There is enough complete definition of body parts to examine at that time to determine if all pieces were removed.
Most Ob/Gyns perform early diagnostics to ensure a healthy pregnancy, so this timing is surprising to me.
I am only suggesting, perhaps a large screen tv on a cart showing preborn baby pictures at different gestational ages and pro-life music while the bottom title says “Baby Pictures they will never show you” or “How old is your baby today?” or “Mommy, Please Stop”. Pray and let the video make the point. We are wired to watch monitors, these girls will look out of habit unless the Murder guards or their boyfriends don’t let them have the chance to make an informed choice.
I feel sorry for the family in the article, but there are many families of children who died as babies who could tell them that every moment they had with their child was precious, and worth it all. These parents will grieve a dead child either way, but now, they caused it. No, I am not being insensitive, I am being honest. What if the husband had said to his wife, ”Honey lets just love her until God takes her”.
What if…… These questions will never be answered through abortion.
mama3,
I agree with your post! Well said.
I have watched dear friends do exactly what you have described. Loved them for the hour or so they lived. They did nothing to intentionally cause the death of their child and they live with peace that they loved those babies in the moments they had them.