by Joshua Carlson:
Pro-abortion advocates often accuse pro-lifers of not caring about the mother once the baby is born. While the reasoning behind this argument varies, abortion advocates usually use it as a means to discredit the pro-life movement by insinuating that they are heartless towards a woman’s struggles and merely wish to take control of her body.
Fortunately for both women and their children, this argument is “pure slander.” The facts show that many pro-lifers not only care about the baby, but also the mother. One would not need to go further than a quick Google search on the various crisis pregnancy centers (hereafter “CPCs”) around the country to show this.
Crisis pregnancy centers have a great track record for providing support and care for women after the child is born. For example, in the Midwest there are several crisis pregnancy centers that provide care beyond just carrying the pregnancy to term. A CPC in Southwestern Minnesota offers the “Earn While You Learn” program which helps parents learn parenting skills with the incentive of earning supplies from diapers to baby furnishings. Likewise, another CPC in Minnesota offers services that also include professional referrals for financial, housing, and medical needs. Similarly, a CPC in Wisconsin provides services ranging from counseling to housing.
These Midwest examples are not outliers. In California, Alpha Pregnancy Health Center provides, among other things, parenting classes and baby supplies for those who take those classes. Among one of the more unique methods of support for mothers is provided by the Mennonites, people who tend to be very pro-life. The organization, New Horizon ministries in Colorado, provides full time care for incarcerated mothers’ children as well as direct support to the family.
On a larger (national) scale, Birthright is a CPC organization that has offices all over the United States as well as in Canada and Africa, totaling over three hundred locations. Birthright provides material support to these women, including things like maternity and baby clothes along with referrals for financial and employment resources. It was founded in 1968 by Louise Summerhill, a mother of seven children who “felt something should be done to help women through unplanned pregnancies.” Understanding that women who had children out of wedlock faced stigmatism, Louise Summerhill made sure that Birthright would be a welcoming environment for these women. Birthright’s charter reflected this very concern.
A skeptical reader might argue, despite the provided examples, that there are still many pro-lifers who do not care about women in a crisis. While it is fair to criticize those who passionately oppose abortion and yet will not lift a finger to help (i.e. hypocrites), the examples listed in the above paragraphs show that there are organizations who represent a vast number of pro-life women and men willing to reach out to mothers with crisis pregnancies and beyond.
That being said, this is no excuse for a pro-lifer to be a hypocrite or anything of the like. Undoubtedly, hypocrisy is the fast-track way to drive a person who is in need away from real help. As Paul wrote in a letter to the Church in Corinth, even if one “can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge…but do[es] not have love, [one is] nothing.” In sum, people want and need to see people live out what they claim to believe.
Pro-life supporters understand this need. As mentioned earlier, Birthright’s founder recognized this need to treat women with compassion and understanding. Even if other CPCs do not explicitly address this concern in their charters, the fact that they are helping women with supplies and care suggests that this is a “no-brainer” to them.
In conclusion, there are many pro-life people and organizations that care about not only the unborn child, but also care for the mother and the father, contrary to the claims made by pro-abortionists that say otherwise. Many pro-lifers are putting their time, talent, and treasure to implement pro-life values beyond the womb. This is not just a nice, coherent theory for pro-lifers to talk about in the comfort of their homes: this is the reality that they live.
Josh Carlson is a lawyer in Minnesota. He graduated from the University of St. Thomas School of Law in 2013 and has a B.A. in Business and Political Science from Bethel University.
If this is the case then how come the bulk of anti-abotion money, influence and, for lack of a better term, rhetoric is not directed at all in the service of these groups? Could it be that the bulk of the pro-life movement, where it matters the most (i.e. the funders and political directors), would rather marginalize and ignore these groups that do the real work in preventing abortions? If that’s the case, then that means the hypocrites (as you call them) basically are running the operation.
In order to best evaluate this theory, it would be helpful to see the sources you refer to. 🙂