Is holding graphic abortion signs in the 90 degree heat a “lazy” thing to do? [Photo by Sam Scheidler]
Having been part of the Pro-Life Action League’s Face the Truth Tours for the past 8 years, I’ve grown accustomed to being on the receiving end of nasty comments.
Given the ever controversial nature of showing graphic pictures of aborted babies out on the street, this is surely to be expected, and it doesn’t really bother me.
Over the years, we’ve also heard most every objection that could possibly be made, which is why we created a page in the Face the Truth section of our site that addresses the most common ones.
But just last week, in a discussion on the Pro-Life Action League’s Facebook page, we heard a new one: namely, that the tactic of showing graphic abortion pictures is “a lazy way of getting attention.”
On behalf of our volunteers (who comprise the vast majority of the participants at any given Face the Truth Tour site), we feel compelled to respond to this charge.
If Not Us, Who?
Before doing that, though, it’s worth backing up a few steps and explaining why — years ago — pro-life activists decided to start showing graphic abortion pictures in public in the first place.
It’s a very simple explanation: The media absolutely refused to show them.
So rather than wait around for Somebody Else to show pictures of aborted babies, pro-lifers across the country decided to do an end-run around the media and started doing it themselves. In the years since, those who do have endured insults, threats, assaults, and the like, but have also educated countless numbers of people who had never previously realized how horrific abortion really is. And God only knows how many lives have been saved and how many hearts have changed as a result.
Not surprisingly, the people who volunteer their own time to engage in this form of pro-life activism tend to be industrious, courageous, bold, and not easily cowed.
Here, for example, are a few snapshots of some of the volunteers who took part in our Face the Truth Tour last week:
- Bill, who lives in Racine, Wisconsin (some 80 miles away), who came nearly every day, just as he has for the past 10 years
- Elizabeth, the 14-year old girl who stood amidst three pro-choice counter demonstrators in downtown Chicago and so effectively refuted their arguments them that one of them said she wanted to “shove her into the street”
- Annette, a senior citizen, and Jamie, a 14-year old guy, who were undeterred even after being assaulted outside the Art Institute of Chicago
- Barbara, Theresa, and Leo, all of whom require the assistance of a wheelchair, but resolved to take part in the Tour nonetheless
- Allan, a World War II veteran who walks with a cane, and his wife Anne took part in the Tour the day of her 85th birthday — together, they held a sign in the 90 degree heat
- Longtime activists Dan and Alan, who rely on public transportation, and as a result had to get up as early as 3:30am to take public transportation so they could get to the first site on time
I suppose there are a lot of words that could describe the actions of volunteers like these, but “lazy” is quite obviously not one of them.
