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News and commentary from the Pro-Life Action League
News and commentary from the Pro-Life Action League
Face the Truth Tour in Palatine, IL [Photo by Sam Scheidler]
The last two days of the Pro-Life Action League’s summer “Face the Truth” Tour visited six sites in the northern suburbs of Chicago under hot summer sun and wilting humidity.
Wednesday the Tour stopped in Deerfield, Northbrook and Glenview, and Thursday’s sites were in the northwest suburbs of Lake Zurich, Palatine and Arlington Heights.
Highlights included:
Friday will find the Tour on the south side of Chicago followed by the final day in Aurora and Naperville, Illinois. Check the itinerary for details and maps.
Note: Visitor comments do not necessarily reflect the views of the Pro-Life Action League.
We welcome a free and open exchange of ideas on the Pro-Life Hotline, from all points of view, but we request that you restrict your remarks to the topic(s) presented in the entry above.
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I am wondering exactly where your images came from. I see that you have a letter from a Dr. Anthony Levatino stating (word for word) “It is my professional opinion that the photos depict human embryos and fetuses and that these human embryos and fetuses are accurately captioned as to gestational age.” The letter does not however, state anything about these images being actual aborted fetuses.
Are your signs in your “Face the Truth” tour, in fact a lie?
Posted July 16, 2010 at 2:26 pm
I saw these on Wednesday…was prepared by an official-looking “Warning” sign. I am thankful that I had to turn off of Waukegan Road in Glenview before my 7-year-old could see these. This is NOT the way to instruct people, this is NOT the way to change hearts and minds. This sort of thing plays into the hands of those who want to paint the pro-life movement as a bunch of kooks. I am saying this as someone who is pro-life!!! Thank God you all left before I had to drive past that way a bit later. You fail to understand that your pictures could frighten children riding by in cars–you fail to recall that images can damage a young mind. You also exploit the dead children pictured for your own purposes. There are better ways!
Posted July 20, 2010 at 11:59 am
Joan — These images are legitimate. Most of the pictures were taken by pro-life people who dug these precious babies’ remains out of the dumpsters of abortion clinics to show the public the truth.
If you’re doubtful and one doctor’s word isn’t enough, I’d encourage you to seek out a doctor who has performed as many abortions as Dr. Levatino and ask them if they think they are accurate.
Out of curiosity, what about the pictures do you think appears inaccurate?
Yours sincerely,
Matt
Posted July 21, 2010 at 9:43 am
Tracy — I must beg to differ with you on the effect these signs have on children. Granted, they are disturbing, and I don’t want children to have to see them, but I think you overestimate the effect they have on most children.
My own children, 3 1/2 and 2, have seen the pictures and reacted just fine when it was explained to them in terms they could understand. My oldest, Ambrose, first saw them when he was about 2 1/2. He looked at the 1st Trimester Abortion poster and said to my wife, “Baby, broken!” My wife told him that’s right, people are hurting babies and we’re showing people about it so we can stop them. He accepted her answer and has not been adversely affected at all.
In my experience, that’s the reality for most children. If parents are calm and explain the situation in simple terms, children accept it and move on, usually with a sense of justice and a desire to do something about the issue. If parents yell and scream about the pictures or frantically try to cover their children’s eyes, children understandably get scared.
For more on this topic, I’d refer you to the Common Objections section of our “Face the Truth” page.
Yours Sincerely,
Matt
Posted July 21, 2010 at 9:48 am
Matt,
I am quite surprised to be having this conversation with you…in the comments section. Anyway, perhaps introducing these photographs (which yes, and with profound sadness, they are real pictures) to your preschoolers is to my mind another indication of the coarsening of the culture. I do not let my son see violent things…not movies, not TV shows…I hide the Tribune and SunTimes if there are images of violence. We are unusual…we protect our son when most parents do not censor their child’s media use. Of course a little child would say “baby broken”…it is how someone at that cognitive stage would attempt to make sense of something incomprehensible. However, you chose to introduce and explain these images in the privacy of your own home…your children were not accosted with them on the side of the road. Children innately understand when something is mean and awful. You don’t have to show them horrible images. You can’t un-ring a bell, so to speak. Your parenting style is obviously not mine. I am very concerned about how the evil one uses imagery in our culture to drag down souls.
I have read that someone was either contemplating or had actually developed an advertising campaign that focused on the toy that would not be played with, the little dress that would not be worn, the birthday candle that would not be blown out…. If the target of your campaign is women who are pregnant, I think providing support for the woman would be more effective.
My problem with your methods is that they seek to force me, and others like me, to address adult issues with my child at a time and in a manner not of my choosing. At least now I know if I see that warning sign, I’ll flip a U-turn pronto.
Posted July 24, 2010 at 12:37 pm
P.S.–although the link to “Common objections” in your response did not work, I did manage to find the information the group has about “What if your child sees…” the pictures. I am not the sort of person that would shout obscenities or pull over and have an argument in the presence of my children; and I really think you miss the mark by this blanket characterization. But to say: “But we ask all parents who raise this objection to honestly assess whether they have confronted the feelings of guilt, shame and anger the pictures may have raised in their own hearts” is quite off-putting. I have no personal shame nor anger about abortion, other than it is yet another indication of the presence of evil in our world. We’ll have to agree to disagree about tactics. I find the most effective tactic against evil is to pray…for me specifically the rosary.
Posted July 24, 2010 at 12:48 pm
[...] remarks and the Daily Herald articles were a shock, since the July Lake Zurich site had gone extremely smoothly. It seemed like Finlon was out to discredit the League and keep us from returning to the [...]
Posted September 16, 2010 at 4:53 pm