Planned Parenthood of Houston Responds to 40 Days for Life

As I posted last week, the 40 Days for Life campaign begins today focusing on peaceful prayer for the unborn and an end to abortion. My experience with the pro-life movement is of loving acceptance and guidance. The women I worked with at a Crisis Pregnancy Center were some of the gentlest souls you will ever find. They volunteered every week, not only to help stop abortion, but also to give assistance to women in real crisis.

Being pregnant is supposed to be a joyous occasion, but the women who came to see us needed financial, practical and spiritual help. We offered them someone to talk to, answer their questions and give loving guidance, not render judgment on their possible decision. Volunteering with these counselors and meeting these women in crisis was truly a life changing experience for me. The most important thing we could convey to them was that they were not alone, help was available, and that God loves them.

Knowing the people who give their time, energy and compassion to help others in need, it pains me greatly to see Planned Parenthood of Houston portray them as dangerous individuals with bad intentions. In fact, they have labeled this campaign "40 Days of Harassment". In their Q&A section, Planned Parenthood advises their clients to stay away from the protesters at all times for their client's protection and safety. Their statements suggest a woman should be fearful of people who are sitting and standing on the public sidewalk praying and offering literature on assistance.

The "answers" from Planned Parenthood state that the protesters don't believe in "birth control, sex education, or a woman's right to information about all of her information when she is pregnant." I find that sentence quite at odds with my experiences considering I learned more about birth control, sex education and pregnancy "options" while in training to be a pregnancy counselor. A Crisis Pregnancy Center will share any and all knowledge they have with their client, and even perform a free ultrasound of the baby for the mother to view. They would rather a woman be armed with all the facts about her "options" before she makes any life-altering decisions, unlike Planned Parenthood who appears to want to control the information their potential clients receive before making their choice.

As the 40 Days for Life Campaign begins, I ask you to please join me and thousands of others in a prayer vigil for the next 40 days. Not only to ask for an end to abortion and mercy for the unborn, but also to pray for those who need our loving guidance and acceptance while dealing with a personal crisis.