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Reflections on Face the Truth

I mentioned a few weeks ago that among the hundreds of pro-lifers who participated in our Face the Truth Tour last month were dozens of teens, including members of three Chicago area pro-life clubs (Apostles for Life and Crusaders for Life, both based in Lombard, and the pro-life club at St. Ignatius College Prep in Chicago). One of the members of Crusaders for Life, Alexandra Cheatham, was one of those who participated. Her reflections are included below.

alexandra-cheatham

Reflections on Face the Truth

People these days are affected by pictures more then they are by words. Words go right through many people and the only way to reach them is by presenting them with something visual. Realizing this, many of my friends and I decided to participate in Pro-Life Action League’s annual Face the Truth Tour. After preparing to fight the good fight with our pro-life group, Crusaders for Life, we did feel as if we had fought a battle while being on the Tour. The Tour consists of holding up pictures of unborn, aborted children in cities and towns and getting sworn at. This was definitely an interesting and very exciting experience, as many of us had not participated in something like this before. Many of the people we encountered on the streets of Chicago did not like us being there. At all. People tried to drive us home by swearing at us and by giving us excuses such as, “You are too young to be doing such a thing,” or “Go home and play basketball.” Some of us were also told to “get the [heck] out of here,” “here” being public property. Besides being told to go home, we had a lot of people tell us, in so many words at least, about their encounters with abortion and pregnancy. One woman, holding a child’s hand, quickly walked past me shouting, “I was saved by my abortion.” She did not even look at me, but she knew I was there and had to make a statement, as if to convince herself that she had made the “right choice.” What guilt must lie on her conscience? At our last stop in the city, on LaSalle St. by Union Station, one irate woman came up to me and asked me if I had ever been pregnant. I told her that I had not been yet and in response, she told me that I should not be holding up “that sign” if I had never been through it. I did not say anything, but wondered what she had been through that moved her to say this. Getting such negative reactions from so many people was saddening. It made us realize that there are so many people in the world who have been affected physically, emotionally, and spiritually by abortion. Amidst all of the negative feedback, we did get some very positive reactions. One of the most positive reactions that I had personally was being given a pat on the back from a man who thanked me for what we were doing. He said that we are doing a great job and that we need to keep it up. He seemed very moved and also said that this is what our world needs. My sister had an encounter with a man who was misguided as to what abortion really is. As he walked up to her, he had a sad and shocked look on his face, asking her if the picture was real. She told him that it was a legit picture and he said, “But that’s not a clump of cells…” She responded by telling him that that was the reason we were there: to expose the truth about abortion. Many of the other positive reactions were people who would walk by with tears in their eyes. Some people said thank you or gave a thumbs up, while others just nodded a thanks and kept on walking. Each person gave us the reassurance that what we were doing was worthwhile. The Truth Tour was, all in all, a challenge. It humbled us, it disgusted us, it made us smile, it made us realize how much we, as youth, need to help to change our culture. We, who see what abortion really is, know what we need to do and continue doing to win this fight. There will be ups and downs, but with God on our side, we can do it. Do not give up; it is worth it.

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