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Showing posts with label March for Life. Show all posts
Showing posts with label March for Life. Show all posts
Friday, April 13, 2018
My Mom and Dad Forced an Abortion On Me to Protect Him, by Joyce Ann Born
I grew between West Virginia, Ohio and Oklahoma. The first I can remember my dad molesting me
is when I was four years old, living in Columbus, Ohio. It was Christmastime and my mom was with my
younger brother who was in the hospital with asthma. We almost lost him. I was home alone with my dad, on the basement
steps with my back turned, and my dad was touching me inappropriately. I didn’t like it, but I was afraid.
My dad was a mean drunk, like the devil was in him. On one occasion, my dad had me run up and
down a hill with a little puppy, then he took that puppy and hung him right in
front of me. On another occasion, he told
me he’d put a bunch of kittens in a bag and ran over them with his car.
Whenever my dad wanted to touch me, he was drinking whiskey
and I had a feeling of dread come over my shoulders. I never told anyone, but my mom eventually
knew what was happening and she didn’t stop it.
In fact, at times, she was in bed with us when he was abusing me. I remember it always hurt.
At the age of 11, I lost my virginity to my dad. Again, I was afraid and confused. I didn’t even understand what was
happening. My mom was in the room
sitting at a table. When he was done, he
walked over to my mom and chastised her, “You let someone else get her before
me.” Then he started to beat on her.
The abuse went on for years, about four or five times a
week. When he would rape me, I would
close my eyes, my body would go numb, and I would go somewhere else in my head.
I knew what he did to me was wrong and I
felt different from others. At a young
age, I just thought that this must be how daddies love their daughters. But around the age of 13, I realized that
this is not the way things are supposed to be.
I began looking at boys and realized that normal attraction is toward
people closer to your own age. I liked boys my own age, and my dad should have only been attracted to my mom.
From a young age, I had become a loner. I was a skinny little girl with long hair and sad eyes. Other children made fun of me and I didn’t want to talk in front of others because I was bullied a lot. I felt like my dad controlled me, and I felt
dirty.
In 1965, at the age of 14, I told my mom that I missed a
period, but she just told me that it was okay and that it would come back. But I missed it again and I knew that meant I
could be pregnant. That’s when my mom and
dad took me a strange house in New Rome, a suburb of Columbus, Ohio. I thought we were just visiting one of my dad’s
friends.
My mom told me everything would be okay. I could hear my dad talking to this strange man. Then my parents left me alone with him. I was afraid and starting crying. He took me down into his basement. I remember he had a cloth with a strange odor that he put over my mouth, and then the next thing I knew, I woke up at home bleeding profusely out of my privates. My mom had ice in bags that she was putting on me, with towels around me to soak up the blood. I was confused at first and didn’t know what happened to me. I didn’t know anything about abortions. My mom never said a word to me about what was done to me. Really, we never talked at all -- same thing with my dad. We didn’t talk.
My mom told me everything would be okay. I could hear my dad talking to this strange man. Then my parents left me alone with him. I was afraid and starting crying. He took me down into his basement. I remember he had a cloth with a strange odor that he put over my mouth, and then the next thing I knew, I woke up at home bleeding profusely out of my privates. My mom had ice in bags that she was putting on me, with towels around me to soak up the blood. I was confused at first and didn’t know what happened to me. I didn’t know anything about abortions. My mom never said a word to me about what was done to me. Really, we never talked at all -- same thing with my dad. We didn’t talk.
Within a week or two, he began raping me again, and it went
on for another two years until I left home at the age of 16. I met a man who was 21 years old who wanted
to marry me. My mom helped me to leave
so that my dad would finally have sex with her.
However, after I left home, my dad tried raping my 13 year
old sister, but she was able to fight him off with the help of my two younger
brothers and my mom, who ended up getting severely beaten by my dad. Then my sister told a neighbor lady. Knowing he would finally face arrest, he headed
up into the hollers of West Virginia and they couldn’t find him. My parents eventually divorced.
I felt terrible when I knew that they had fought so hard to
protect my sister, but had not protected me.
I talked to my brothers about it, and they just said, “We were kids when
this all started. What we were going to
do?”
Looking back, I realize now that my mom and dad had forced
an illegal abortion upon me in order to protect him. They didn’t want me to have a baby and have
the truth come out that he was the father. I feel like I missed out on a
blessing, even though this was my dad’s baby.
I grieve that I missed out on something.
I know I would have loved my baby.
It’s not the baby’s fault that my dad molested me.
My children are my life.
My son was born four days before my 17th birthday and from
the beginning, I loved him completely.
My children come first in my life. I am totally pro-life. I took my daughter to the March For Life in
Washington, D.C. when she was 14 years old.
Despite what I went through, I think I’d be pro-life regardless because
I love babies.
Abortion is the end of a life – someone who is part of
you. It’s much better to carry a child
and put him or her up for adoption.
Every child is a blessing from God.
My baby had a soul. I feel sad
and angry at what my mom and dad did to me – it wasn’t their right for me to be
raped and it wasn’t their right to take that baby away from me. One day, that baby will be in my arms.
It makes me upset when I hear people say that it’s necessary
to have abortion legal in cases of rape or incest, but you need to think about
what abortion does – it ends a life and it protects the perpetrator. Even if a mom was taking a girl for an abortion,
that could be like my mom who was just trying to protect my dad and herself,
because she’d been letting him molest me for all of these years.
My mom and dad never apologized for everything they’d done
to me. I had gone nearly a dozen years
without seeing him, but when I found out he was dying of cancer, I went to see
him because I thought that no one should have to die alone. I told him, “Dad, I forgive you for what you
did to me. I forgive you, not for you,
but for myself.” He surely heard me, but
acted like he didn’t.
I still struggle. I
have nightmares to this day and I’m still in therapy. No one should ever have to go through what I
went through, and I just hope that my story will help someone with their life –
whether you have suffered abuse, whether you are a mom who is concerned about
her husband or boyfriend’s behavior, or whether you’ve suffered an
abortion. No one deserves to be
harmed. Everyone should be able to live
a peaceful life.
BIO: A post-abortive survivor of incest, Joyce Ann Born is now a mother of two and a
grandmother of six, residing in Ohio, and is now a pro-life blogger for Save The 1.
Thursday, January 11, 2018
I Was Conceived In Rape And My Life Is Not An Exception, by Heather Ann
“Your life should be an exception, you shouldn’t be born.”
Sounds harsh, right?
Can you imagine going up to another human being and telling them they don’t have the right to live? It’s unthinkable some people actually deem it acceptable to look into the eyes of another human being created in the image of God, and proclaim they shouldn’t have been born.
If you’re pro-life, you are probably nodding your head in agreement.
But what about protecting babies conceived in rape? Shouldn’t we advocate just as fiercely to protect their lives as well?
You see, I’m one of those babies who was conceived in rape. And only by the grace of God, I survived to tell my story.
My birth mother decided not to have an abortion, but she also chose not to keep me. In fact, when she brought me into this world, the hospital barely let her hold me, for fear she’d get attached.
I wasn’t even given a name.
So there I was, a nameless baby conceived in the most horrific of circumstances, without a home.
 |
| Heather Ann as a child. |
Thankfully, she placed me up for adoption, and at two months old I was adopted by two loving parents. Since it was a closed adoption, I was told I would never be able to meet my birth mother. But through volunteers we were able to put together the pieces, and when I was 19 years old, I met her.
She wasn’t surprised I found her. She mentioned if I was anything like her, she knew I’d find her one day. Looking back, I now see it was God’s hand who orchestrated the entire thing.
As I talked with her, she began to fill in the gaps. More importantly, she answered the question I’ve wondered my whole life, -- “Why was I not wanted, why was I given up?”
But nothing could have prepared me for her answer.
When my birth mother was 19 years old, she was drugged and raped.
As I heard her tell the story, it felt as though I were choking on glass, I felt dazed, and my heart rate increased as I listened to how I was brought into this world.
I was the daughter of a rapist.
She went on to mention how she was young, and knew she couldn’t care for me. She wanted me to have the best home possible with two parents, so she placed me up for adoption to give me a chance to thrive and succeed in life, which I have.
I am thankful she did, but the inherent shame I felt concerning how I was conceived deepened, and stayed with me for many years.
At the time, I wasn’t yet saved, sure I knew Jesus, but I didn’t really know Him. Using the gap as a stronghold, the enemy exploited my pain and shame to torment me.
But 10 years later, I accepted Jesus Christ as my Lord and Savior, and my life forever changed. The Lord picked up the shattered pieces of my past, and made beauty from ashes.
I understand now, my birth mother placed me up for adoption because she loved me, and wanted the best, not because I was an unwanted baby. And today I know, I am a daughter of the King, and my identity is in Christ.
I’m thankful God spared my life, and now I want to do my part to advocate for other babies who don’t yet have a voice to fight for themselves.
 |
| Heather Ann at the 2017 March For Life in Washington D.C. |
But you see, if it were up to most politicians, I wouldn’t be born. I would be deemed an exception, and sentenced to die, simply because of the way I was conceived.
So pro-lifers, I want to leave you with a challenge. Babies are dying, by no fault of their own. Sitting on the sidelines is easy. It’s comfortable. It won’t cause much disruption. But we aren’t called to live comfortable lives. We are called to speak up for the voiceless, the downcast, the orphans.
If not us, who?
Marching for life is a wonderful thing. It’s great to show up and network with pro-lifers across the country.
But it’s not enough.
 |
| Pictured from left to right: Yohanka Reyes, mother from rape and Executive Director of Mary's Pregnancy Resource Center, Heather Ann, child from rape and pro-life writer, and Rebecca Kiessling, child from rape and Save The 1 Founder and President. |
Once you leave the streets of D.C. or wherever you march for life, I pray you take that same passion you have for protecting babies and channel your energy towards ensuring your elected officials will pass pro-life legislation, without the rape exception.
And to those of you involved in politics, who have the power to do good, do it. Don’t compromise. Don’t sell out. Don’t support legislation that has the rape exception.
Babies conceived in rape are still babies.
It’s time to wake up. We can’t go on killing innocent babies, nor deeming certain lives more valuable than others.
So pro-lifers, if you are really pro-life, be all in. Get off the fence. Stop compromising on life. Be unequivocally pro-life, without compromise, and without exception.
As Matthew 25:40 states “The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for Me.”
Sunday, November 19, 2017
Pro-Life Peru is Morally Superior, by Rebecca Kiessling
It is a great honor to have been invited to speak at Peru’s
first international pro-life conference.
I’m
an attorney, wife, mother of 5, international pro-life speaker and
writer, and the President of Save The 1 - a global pro-life organization with a
network of over 525 who were conceived
in rape (like me) and mothers who became pregnant by rape who are either
raising their children, birthmothers, or post-abortive and regret aborting. Additionally, we have hundreds of parents in
our network who were told to abort due to a challenging pre-natal diagnosis, or
those whose parents were told to abort them.
We value our lives and the lives of our children. We urge the people of Peru to continue
protecting human life without exception.
I’m sure you’ve heard abortion advocates say that it’s
barbaric to force a rape victim to carry “a rapist’s child.” First of all, I am not the child of a rapist –
I am the child of a rape victim. My
mother and I object to me being characterized otherwise. The rapist has no claim to me! Tell those who say such things, do not insult
me or my mother in this way.
Secondly, it is simply barbaric to punish an innocent child
for someone else's crime. Justice
dictates that in a civilized society, we punish rapists, not babies. Those who
would kill innocent children are the ones who are barbaric!
I did not deserve the death penalty for the crime of my
biological father. My own birthmother
had tried to kill me at two illegal abortions, and was pro-choice when we met
29 years ago, but today, we are thankful we were both protected by law from the
horror of abortion, just as the women and children of Peru are protected today.
She said back then, the only option she
was given was to abort me. She said that
there were no pro-life pregnancy resource centers at the time, and no one gave
her any other help or hope.
Peru has legislators who have placed gun sights on children
like me. To them I say, take them
off! Remove me from your scope. I am not your game to be hunted and
killed. I am a person and deserve life
every bit as much as you. This targeting
of life is dehumanizing and demoralizing, not just for those yet unborn, but
for every person living who was conceived in violence. The sting of your hatred is palpable and
life-long.
Legalizing abortion for rape or other exceptions sends a
message to our people group that our lives
are worth less than anyone
else’s. Imagine hearing of some nation
introducing an abortion ban with an exception in cases of babies conceived in
Jewish homes, Catholic families, or from Latino moms. 
The message which would be sent is that these
people are not worthy of living and did not deserve to be protected like
everyone else. There would be an
international outcry if the legalization of such prejudice were even proposed
because everyone would understand the discriminatory implications and
intentions. Yet, it is the same for us,
and we ache from such malice and the reckless disregard for our lives. Rape survivor mothers grieve how their
children are systematically targeted and devalued. They suffer more because they are not
believed they were raped since they did not abort and because they actually
love their children.
We appreciate concern for rape victims, but they are four
times more likely to die within the next year after an abortion, as opposed to
giving birth. In Dr. David Reardon’s
book, Victims and Victors: Speaking Out About Their Pregnancies, Abortions and
Children Resulting From Sexual Assault, he cites the research done on the
subject. After an abortion, rape victims
have a higher rate of being murdered, committing suicide, drug overdose, etc.. Rapists, child molesters and sex traffickers
love abortion, which destroys the evidence and enables them to continue
perpetrating. Oftentimes, a girl’s own
mother has been either trafficking her or leaving her unprotected.
It is always the baby who is the hero of the story, by
exposing the rape, delivering her out of the abusive situation, protecting her
and bringing her healing. So if you care
about rape victims, you must protect her from the rapist and from the abortion,
and not the baby! The baby is not the scary
enemy. It’s just absurd to suggest that
any woman should have to be afraid of a baby.
In regards to a pre-natal diagnosis of “incompatible with
life” – it is impossible for the baby to be such when that unborn child is
still living. As long as there is a
heartbeat, there is life and there is hope. Physicians who peddle abortion are
truly the ones with fatal heart defects, often failing to treat the children of
parents who refused to abort. A eugenics
mentality becomes pervasive when you allow abortion for any reason.
I see the language of the global abortion lobby and how they
try to demean pro-life nations like Peru by characterizing them as antiquated
and “third-world,” as if killing the most vulnerable is somehow “progressive.” The truth is, Peru is a morally superior
nation because they’ve established the most important characteristics of a
culture – one where people are loved, protected, and accepted. Child sacrifice is what’s antiquated. Peruvians, please do not commence a culture
of death and discrimination.
We started a Spanish language division of Save The 1 -- Salvar El 1 -- a few
years ago because we saw how Latin America is being targeted by the abortion
forces. They are using the rape issue to
try to legalize abortion – on demand for any reason through all nine months of
pregnancy at taxpayer expense, just like they did in the United States. We know how critical our stories are for
impacting the culture because it is stories which pierce the heart in ways in
which arguments cannot.
In the United States landmark Supreme Court decision of Roe
vs Wade which legalized abortion across the U.S., the pregnant woman Norma McCorvey
– called Jane Roe, was told by her attorneys to lie that she was
gang-raped. They said this would make
her case stronger. Many years later, she
sought to have her own case overturned, feeling the weight of over one million
abortions per year on her shoulders.
Nearly 60 million children have been killed in the womb based upon a lie
of rape. The abortion advocates know
this and that’s why they exploit the violation of women to open the door for
killing any and all unborn children.
As I speak globally, I tell people about the good people of
Peru and how they fight like their own lives depend on it – how a year and a
half ago, Peruvians successfully defeated the efforts to legalize abortion in
cases of rape, and how one month later, they had 700,000 pro-life people attend
their March for Life in Lima! It took
the U.S. 40 years of legalized abortion to finally have 700,000 attend our
March for Life.
Everyone I tell is amazed that Peru not only had that many
people, but that they cared enough to show up to take a stand for the child
conceived in rape. Do you know how many
people attended the March for Life in the U.S. when they began legalizing
abortion in cases of rape across the southern states in the late 1960’s? None!
There was no March for Life because scarcely anyone cared! It wasn’t until abortion became legal for any
reason that a March was organized. Not
so in Peru. The people of Peru are very
wise to be so vigilant now.
When I was asked to speak in Peru at the first ever
international pro-life conference, I jumped at the opportunity to meet people
who are truly my heroes and to be a source of information and encouragement. Peru demonstrates to the world how to value
all life. They are the pro-life role
models throughout the globe!
Recently, the advocates for abortion have again introduced a
bill in Peru’s legislature to legalize abortion in cases of rape. The forces of death and destruction are not going
away. I urge the good people of Peru, do
not relent! Please, don’t let your
nation turn into a killing field like the U.S., like Canada, like so much of
Europe and Asia. Don’t spill the blood
of innocent Peruvian children on your land.
Continue protection without exception, from the moment of conception.
BIO: Rebecca Kiessling is the founder and President of Save The 1. She's a wife, mother, attorney,
Monday, May 16, 2016
He Killed My Family in the Safest Place, Just Like Abortionists Do, by Dyanne Gonzales
It's been nearly 5 years since my older brother Lloyd, my sister-in-law Dixie, and my 22 year old nephew, Steven, were brutally murdered in their home in El Rancho, New Mexico, at night, on Father's Day 2011. Lloyd and Dixie had been married since they were teenagers, with two grown daughters who are married with their own families, and then Steven, who was adopted by Lloyd and Dixie as an infant. He'd been placed in their home under foster care as a "shaken baby," so he had special needs his entire life. In fact, the doctors had told them that Steven would never walk or talk, but my brother and sister adopted Steven knowing he would be dependent upon them his entire life. That's the kind of loving people they were. Steven learned to walk, though slowly with a limp because his right side had limited mobility, and he even graduated from high school. But he learned to ride his 4-wheeler with great precision, despite his disabilities.They were extremely active and well-respected in their community, with a reputation for their generosity. Lloyd was a custom tile setter, having been a craftsman his whole life. Much of his custom work was done in Sante Fe on million dollar homes. He loved to fish and they were very much an outdoorsmen-type family. Dixie volunteered at a nursing home, and was a relentless advocate for their son Steven. Both Lloyd and Dixie were extremely organized -- something we shared in common.
The night they were killed, my brother must have heard an intruder, got up without dressing so he could see what was happening, stepped outside, and was attacked and killed with a pickaxe. He had defensive wounds on the back of his arms, having tried to protect himself. It's extremely difficult for me to even visualize the horror he endured.
The murderer then entered their home through the back door which was left open when my brother went out, then proceeded to go into the master bedroom where my sister-in-law was still sleeping. He killed her with the same pickaxe directly to the head. She was found with her head still laying on her pillow.
We assume that my nephew must have heard something. The murderer attacked and killed Steven with the same weapon in the kitchen as Steven must have been making his way to his parents' bedroom.
I remember answering the phone on Father's Day to the news that Dixie, Lloyd and Steven had been killed, and my first thoughts came out of my mouth, "Was it a car accident?" But instead I was told this horrifying story of how they were killed. At the time, we didn't know who the perpetrator was. The only way I could cope with this tragedy and process it was to forgive the person or persons who had killed them.
Through this forgiveness, I felt peace and I felt like God showed me how this violation -- being killed in what should be the safety of your home, in the warmth and comfort of your bed, resting peacefully in the middle of the night -- is just like the violation of unborn children being violently killed in the warmth and comfort of the womb, where they should be the most secure, and protected.
As in all other homicide cases, the police were called and the investigation began. Sadly, when children are aborted, the police won't take such a call and wouldn't even consider investigating the untimely death.
Most people don't think about justice until something happens to them or their loved ones, and most pro-life people, even Christians, don't get involved in the pro-life movement until something happens to them or they witness something which compels them. People's default setting is to not get involved. I was one of those, and I had to change my own default setting.
The only girl of 10 children, I grew up in Church. In fact, I was a preacher's kid, but I don't ever recall the topic of abortion coming up. When I was 16, still quite naive, I got pregnant out of a relationship with a 23 year old man, Abortion was never raised by anyone -- just not even something that would have popped in any of our minds. You get pregnant and you take responsibility. I married the 23 year old one month after I turned 17 -- 5 months before my son was born.
In the three years I was married to him, I was abused in every sense of the word. Even though he repeatedly raped me, I've never looked at my son and saw him as a horrible reminder of my abuser. Three years later, I learned that he'd never divorced his first wife, so I filed for an annulment. I was awarded full custody, and the abuser shirked all responsibility, though he would periodically threaten to steal my son and hide away in the deepest parts of Mexico. Raising my son on my own without any child support or governmental assistance made me stronger and built my character, and I have absolutely no regrets giving birth to my son. If I could do it, then anyone can.
Even though I had my own pro-life testimony without realizing it, I wasn't aware enough of the topic of abortion to be involved, until my own family's tragedy and the connection God showed me to the plight of aborted babies. Ever since then, I activated my default setting to pro-life involvement, and have not been silent. There's no abortion clinic in my small town, but I've spoken in my church, I've protested elsewhere outside of abortion clinics, I've gone to the state Capitol for activism, I've been the editor on numerous pro-life Facebook pages, including Save The 1, and I've marched at the March For Life in Washington, D.C. with my Save The 1 peers. I may not have become pregnant by rape, but I know what it's like to have been raped by my child's biological father, and I relate to them on a deep level.
Even though I got involved in the pro-life movement five years ago, I was one of those people who said, "except in cases of rape." I bought into the rhetoric without really thinking about it because that's what I was hearing from others. At some point, I was introduced to Rebecca Kiessling's story, began following her on Facebook, and realized how wrong I was to believe that a child conceived in rape was any less valuable than the way I might have been conceived. And then I went to hear her speak, we spent time together, and began to discuss the no compromise strategy. Again, I could not believe I had been so quick to discriminate and devalue a life conceived in rape by buying into the notion that their lives were politically expendable.
On February 13, 2015, there was a break in my family's "cold case," and an arrest was made. He was 16 years old at the time he murdered my family -- someone known to the family, but not related. Nicholas Ortiz killed for money, just like an abortionist does. With two others, he was planning to rob the family while sleeping. The only thing that changed for me once the arrest was made, was that I now had a name to place to my forgiveness of this person.
Tomorrow morning, May 17, 2016, the murder trial begins, and I know I'll have to process the forgiveness much more specifically as I hear details of the gruesome crimes. I know this will be a difficult trial for me and my family members as we sit in the courtroom throughout the entire proceedings, and I do ask for prayers over the next two weeks. Pray for all of the families involved, and pray for justice to be served. Forgiveness is a choice. I still choose to forgive so that I do not become bitter, resentful and full of hate. I choose forgiveness for myself. That does not mean that I do not want justice to be served to the fullest extent of the law. I want the perpetrator convicted and held accountable. But I do forgive.
Some of my family members may not understand how I can choose to forgive, just like most of our
We are called to forgive -- no exceptions, and we are called to love and to protect -- no exceptions, just as God forgives us and loves us without exception, and without compromise. The last 5 years of my life have been by far my most difficult. But let me tell you this -- God has also been the most faithful to me in those 5 years!
UPDATE: Today is my brother's birthday and yesterday, December 9, 2016, we received a gift -- Nicholas Ortiz was convicted of murdering all three of my family members. He will serve a minimum of 99 years in prison. This was the second murder trial. The first was in June, but the jury was hung 8-4 in favor of a murder conviction. The relief which has been lifted is beyond words. Justice has been served and the world is a safer place with Nicholas Ortiz behind bars.
BIO: Dyanne Gonzales is a wife, mother, and Editor for many pro-life Facebook pages, including A Voice For Unborn Babies, Salvar El 1, and for Save The 1. She's also a blogger for Save The 1, as well as a Board Member.
Here's the audio of Dyanne sharing this testimonial with a cab driver after the March For Life 2014.
Thursday, February 26, 2015
Will My Silence Save Babies? ~By Mary Rathke
With the recent debate in the New Mexico HB 390 Late-term Abortion Ban a fellow conceived in rape woman I know, was asked to be silent. She was told that her silence would save 95% of the babies that are killed in late term abortions. These politicians must assume that a woman who is desperate enough to receive a late term abortion will not lie about being raped to receive a way out of her current situation. Will my silence about being conceived in rape and being worthy of life really save 95% or will the “wink, wink-just say you were raped” approach of the abortion backers make that number 90%, 80% or even 50%? We don’t really know do we? Except we do know Norma McCorvey admitted she lied about being raped and that was why she needed an abortion. Many feel this was “an important point in the fact pattern of the Roe v. Wade case.”
Pictured here, I spoke out at a press conference in Lansing, MI December 2013 and the bill in question was passed without a rape exception. Once we who were conceived in rape spoke out, those asking for the exception immediately stopped insisting there should be an exception. Why? Because they couldn’t say our lives didn’t matter!
Save the 1, a pro-life speaker group of the “exceptions and hard cases” have been told by pro-life strategists not to keep silent but rather to speak out. If we speak out every time a pro-life bill has a rape exception, the pro-life community will finally understand that pro-life bills should not have exceptions put in them, in the first place. Even if the bill is killed initially, because in the long run the realization will come that the bills need to be presented without exceptions. I wish everyone would understand that we don’t need exceptions to pass pro-life bills, Michigan never has. When we as a pro-life community say, “Some life is not valuable,” we value none.
There are many parallel example we can look at, what if the South agreed to no more slavery except for the men over 6 foot tall. “Tall men would be too hard to control if not enslaved, don’t worry we’ll free 95% of the slaves who are under six feet.” Could you imagine if we, as an America people, found that acceptable? Some of our greatest basketball and football players, are very tall African-American men. Can you imagine living in a society where they were still kept as slaves in the South? Of course not, that is ludicrous! But at the time of the Civil War the thought of slavery being overturned was ludicrous to many people, however the abolitionist fought on. They educated the masses, they showed pictures of the brutality of slavery and eventually garnered enough support to overturn laws.
What about today? Should we educate the masses, show them pictures of those conceived in rape and shout from the roof tops their life matters? Unless we can pass a bill that has no exceptions in it, unless we can tell everyone every life matters, unless we can create a ban that does not allow any “wink, wink-lying” we will not have a real opportunity to overturn Roe v Wade. What the masses need to understand is, if a woman has the option of saying she had been raped, she will use that option in a desperate time. She will then live with the guilt of abortion for the rest of her life. The abortion will not end the memories of a rape it will only end a life, how can we live with that?
Can you look at my picture and say my life does not matter?
As an adopted daughter whose birth mother had been raped, Mary Rathke shares that even after a horrible encounter of rape, one can choose life and joy. Mary's story includes her birth mother's experience, how her adopted mother's tragic past was restored through adoption and the tough decisions she faced when her oldest son was born at 1lb 8oz. Mary is a wife, and mother of four children. She is a licensed minster and speaks monthly at the Good Samaritan Rescue Mission Chapel. She is a Savethe1 Director of the Board and the President of HELPeople, INC. She has been a part of the International March for Life Leadership conference in Rome, Italy and is endorsed by Dr James Dobson.
Sunday, January 25, 2015
I Have a Fire in My Belly After The March For Life by Patti Smith
Now I'm home from the
LCMS conference and the 2015 March for Life. My heart and mind is just
overflowing -- what I heard and learned, and the people I spoke with, the
worship services, the fire in my belly rekindled for Life and most of all for
service to the Lord.
I was very humbled and
kind of blown away when a Pastor from Montana and his teen daughter pulled me aside
and asked me for 5 minutes of my time. He said he heard me speak about
rape and incest exceptions during the Q and A time with Carol Tobias from National
Right to Life Conference - NRLC, and he was very challenged and impressed.
He asked me how we can bridge the divide and the conflict within the pro-life
movement. How can we create an atmosphere of mutual cooperation with such
differing views of HOW to be an advocate both in our own lives, in our
communities, churches and in our government? That was a huge question,
and having no real answer at the time, I asked HIM what his thoughts
were. I want to hear from other people because, honestly, I felt I really
am not the one to give these answers!
He was insightful and
very informative, suggesting books and other works for me to read. His daughter
who was maybe 20, was so knowledgeable about government, history of abortion,
and legislation, and like so many millennials, has grasped and embraced on to
this present Social Injustice - the right to life for all with a zeal which
inspires me. And I saw that same zeal and conviction in the youth with
whom I spoke and heard from at the convention. Hope arises!!!
So -- what do I do with
all this? What is my action plan moving forward? I've been up all
night (jet lag and Charlie horse in my leg,) my mind filled with thoughts like:
how ARE we going to reverse Roe v. Wade? How ARE we going to present
legislation that is 100% pro-life with no exceptions? And how on earth
will that ever get passed? Then I thought, what do I know about how our
government works? What do I really know about abortion? What do I
know about who the movers and shakers are and HOW do they do what they do?
Beyond my known calling
for pro-life work as an adoptee conceived in rape and as a Lutheran, what is MY
role in all of this? What is MY "assignment from God," as it
were? How does my voice, my life and my convictions fit within this massive
puzzle of being an advocate for life?
I always tend to see the
Big Picture, and then I get overwhelmed. I fail to stop and roll it back a bit
and look at the details and breaking issues down to "doable" chunks
of time and effort. I think, I'm just one person, what can I possibly
do? I'm not a lawyer, I'm not a
politician, I have not even gone to college. I am one person, with a heart that
is bursting with zeal for my country, for freedom and for protecting and
honoring that very basic freedom -- the right to life for all -- with no
exceptions.
After spending the night
thinking, taking notes on my thoughts, one thing is clear: I need to get
that "education." In order to be a responsible advocate for
life, to speak to life issues, to educate others, I must educate myself --
learn the basics, learn more. What is abortion, how is abortion
performed, what are the "complications" of abortion? I bought the book
"Complications" at the conference. I need to learn about
bioethics, about how our government works, about what rights we have and what
rights are incrementally being taken away,and about how to be an advocate. I
need to learn from those who have gone before me, and to learn from those movers
and shakers we have in the pro-life arena right now. I need to learn who
my legislators are and what their stand on life issues are. I need to learn
from history, from heroes of the faith, and from those who have declared war on
humanity. I need to learn from current events to those from antiquity,
and how to gather support from constituents and lawmakers. I need to learn how
to communicate in rational, convincing ways. I need to learn how to bridge the
divide opening doors for dialogue and exchange of ideas, respecting other
views, while not being shaken in my own moral stand. Then when I am myself
educated, then I can best educate others. I can go and be a stronger voice.
I have not completed my
training with Lutherans For Life -- but will commit to doing that, which is one
of my first steps in my learning commitment.
It has become clear to
me that having a life team at my own church may not become a reality -- agreeing
with my pastor that we already have "life teams.” He says every ministry
IS a life team, and that is true. I want to support in every way the
"life teams" which exist in my church -- the quilting crafters who make
projects that support the crisis pregnancy shelter and center which our church
supports, our youth group who does many of the outreach projects that I read
about in the LFL materials detailing life group activities, our grief group
which reaches out to those struggling with loss, our community life group which
runs the food pantry for the homeless – etc, etc.. They are all essentially life groups.
So perhaps forming a Lutherans for Life Chapter in Southern California --
Orange County would be prudent.
But first things first.
I'm getting my own house in order -- preparing the way of the Lord by educating
myself, listening and learning from others, reading, studying, grounding myself
in God's word which is a lamp unto my path and praying more than I have ever
prayed before. I am continuing to sidewalk counsel at Planned Parenthood for
that is one place where I learn life lessons on advocacy the most. I
partner with other organizations, always learning, always listening, always
asking questions -- opening my mind to new ways of being that voice for life
and freedom, and surrendering my life, my talents, my resources and my
convictions to the Lord of Life - through with His strength, I can do all
things.
Please pray for me as I
resume this journey, one step at a time, with renewed conviction and this Holy
Fire in my belly to go forth and be the light and voice for the "least of
these." I don't know what God has in store for the rest of my life,
but I know that if I stay in His light and in his precepts, and guided by the
Holy Spirit, God can use me in amazing ways for His kingdom of life and to His
glory.
So -- on to step one.
Learn. Complete my LFL training. Learn more. And pray without ceasing. God
is going to do amazing things because He is an amazing GOD!!!
Stay tuned -- Patti's on
fire.
BIO: Patti Smith is an adoptee who was conceived in rape, and a worship leader for a Lutheran church in Huntington Beach, California. She's active with Lutherans For Life, a sidewalk counselor, as well as a pro-life speaker and blogger for Save The 1.
Sunday, January 18, 2015
Let's Have a Conversation ~By Darlene Pawlik
I really hate politics. The whole idea of manipulating people to achieve a goal is nauseating to me. Playing people like chess, politicians use misinformation and disinformation far too often.
Lest you think Pro-Life advocates are pure and undiluted, let’s look at HR36.
Congress put forth a bill in 2013 called the Pain Capable Unborn Child Protection Act (PCUCPA). The Act proposed to ban abortion after 20 weeks gestation because a substantial body of scientific evidence found children of this age have increased sensitivity to pain. At the 11th hour, Eric Cantor put in an exception for rape and incest. He spoke on center stage at the March For Life in Washington DC, shortly thereafter. Is this an example of the kind of politics of access we find among those calling themselves ProLife?
The bill had no chance of passing and even if by some circumstance it did, the President promised to veto it. So, what was the message? The message is that the major Pro-Life groups are in favor of abortion for rape or incest conceived babies. Is there a question here?
In 2015, the PCUCPA was reintroduced with the exceptions intact. Instead of using it as a conversation starter, major Pro-Life groups immediately sent out emails to their constituents, with not a word of the flaws, that this is a chance to save babies from abortion. The flaws: rape conceived babies feel pain too, it sets guidelines for approved killing of children in the womb prior to 20 weeks, it has provisions for the dismemberment and disposal of children, if carrying them to term might cause the mother harm.
Any real doctor could deliver a baby in the latter circumstance and if the baby were too young and died as a result, there has been no intentional murder. This is not the language of the bill in question. These major groups surely have lawyers. Even if we were to believe that no legal person read the bill for them, I cannot get past the clear ethical violations to our Pro-Life Principles.
I am of average intelligence. The glaring flaws of this piece of eckhumm, legislation were immediately apparent to me. And what of those emails sent by the major Pro-Life groups? What was their purpose? In every case, there was an appeal to help fund the fight to get more legislation like this passed. I really find it astonishing that this is the kind of legislation we would want passed, if we are working day after day to stop the horror of abortion in our country.
Disillusioned? Me too. This bill will not save one baby. However, when I sent a note to request that ProLife organizations demand the exceptions be removed, I got a mindless response stating and I quote, “This will save 18,000 babies.” Really? That’s quite a claim. Was this misinformation or disinformation and if we believe that it could possibly be true, on what basis?
This is purely political manipulation. The hundreds of thousands of people who will be in DC for the March for Life believe in their leaders. They flock to initiatives and conferences and send their hard-earned money to work toward an America that doesn’t promote government-sanctioned and government-funded genocide. The Pro-Life organizations do a lot of good work toward building a culture that respects life, unless like me, that little person was conceived by rape.
Let’s think about that for a moment. Biologically speaking, if we simply ignore the mode of conception, prenatal development doesn’t differ depending on how that baby was initially formed. My biological father is a monster, but should I deserve the death penalty for his crime?
We are talking about 20 weeks in this discussion. There have been many stories of babies not much older, being born and going home to a happy life. Are we really suggesting that at the point of development when science has determined a child can feel the most excruciating pain it should be ok to kill them at all? This is the discussion we should be having. This is what the major Pro-Life groups should keep in front of the American people.
What if the abortion vendors promised to anesthetize the babies before hacking their arms and legs off and crushing their sculls? That would solve the dilemma of aborting pain capable children. No. We are not Pro-Life because we don’t want people to experience pain. We are Pro-Life because we believe people are of inestimable value; created in the image of God.
This discussion could be just as powerful to raise funds and way more powerful to influence the culture to respect life, if it were consistent. How logical is it to say that some crisis pregnancies involve a baby worth saving and some do not? It completely undermines the whole point. If we believe that children are created in the image of God, then how can we postulate the concept that there would be exceptions?
Let’s continue the conversation. Some may say I have no right to say a woman who has conceived a child by rape should carry to term. I have been a nurse for more than 25 years. So, I understand that the complications of abortion vs term pregnancy are grave. I have five children. I had no easy pregnancies. My first child was conceived as a result of human sex trafficking in my teens. I know how horrible rape is. I know what it is like to be in a crisis pregnancy and I know that you can go through to the other side with honor and dignity.
Differences of opinion abound on innumerable subjects, but when it comes to life and death, shouldn’t all ProLife advocates be trying to protect all lives? There are so many ways to advance the cause of life. How would you do it?
Thursday, June 5, 2014
Hard Cases Unite to Make a Difference! by Rebecca Kiessling
How would like to be labeled
“a hard case?” What if your class
of people were systematically targeted for extinction within legislation? What if political candidates felt quite
comfortable with stating their position that you and your kind aren’t worth
protecting and better off dead? What if
your child was regularly stigmatized by our society? That’s exactly what it’s like for those of us
who were conceived in rape, mothers from rape, and those given a poor in utero
diagnosis. But being branded as a “hard
case” becomes easier when we all begin to unite behind our unique kinship. And that’s what Save The 1 has been doing – drawing together
perhaps the most stigmatized and marginalized members of today’s society.
May 2014 was a very big month for Save The 1. On Saturday, May 3rd, Mary Rathke
and I both spoke at the 1st
Annual International Pro-Life Leaders Conference in Rome, Italy – sponsored
by Lifesitenews -- sharing our stories of having been conceived in rape. Mary was a double-exception because her
birthmother was raped after having been diagnosed as schizophrenic. Pro-Life leaders from around the world
received our message well – vowing to fight abortion without exception and
without compromise.
One woman – a nurse –
came up to us and showed us a photo of a baby who was conceived in rape. She explained that the pro-life activists at
the hospital have been familiar with my story since it’s been translated into
Italian, among many other languages. So
any time they have a patient who is pregnant by rape, they share my story on my
website with the pregnant rape victim.
This nurse credited my story has having saved the baby in the
photo. What a wonderful example for
every person with a difficult history to see how stepping out and sharing your
story can make a difference across the ocean, for someone else who doesn’t even
speak your language!
Upon returning from Rome, Mary Rathke spoke at Branch County
Right to Life’s benefit dinner where she met a grandmother who shared that her
grandchild was conceived in rape. This
grandmother was heartened to know that there are others who are paving the way
for her grandchild to be loved and accepted in our society. Several legislators and even judges shared
with Mary how her story helps them to be able to articulate a defense of all human
life.
On May 10th, I spoke at a Mother’s Day brunch at
Gateway Assembly in Imlay City, MI.
After the brunch, a 16 year old girl named Sarah came up to me to share
her own difficult story. She was
conceived when her birthmother was sexually trafficked by her own parents. Not only was she conceived during
unconsensual prostitution, but her birthmother had become a drug addict. Sarah is now writing out her story and is our
newest member of Save The 1! The next day
at the church, another family approached me whose young adoptive daughter was
also conceived in rape. They too were
thankful for a support system for their daughter and their family.
A week later, on Saturday, May 17th, Save The 1
had its 3rd Pro-Life Speaker Training Conference, at the legislative
offices of Right to Life of Michigan in Lansing, MI. We had five adoptees who were all conceived
in rape present – me, Mary Rathke, Travon Clifton, Sarah (these four are all
from Michigan), and Darlene Pawlik from New Hampshire. We also had one mother who had become
pregnant from rape – Karyn Liechty, one post-abortive mother from rape whose
abortion was forced upon her - Sheryl Williams, as well as Brad and Jesi Smith
whose daughter Faith has Trisome 18. In
the morning, everyone had a chance to practice responding to impromptu
questions often asked by reporters and during Q & A on college campuses,
and in the afternoon, each member gave an 8-minute prepared speech. We were blessed to have some family and
friends there in support, as well as three of our friends from Right to Life of
Michigan who helped with our critique – President Barb Listing, Ed Rivet and
Genevieve Marnon. As an additional
treat, filmmaker Jim Hanon (End of the Spear) and his team were present filming and we look forward to seeing the
pieces he is putting together for Right to Life of Michigan in conjunction with
Save The 1 members!
After a wonderful day of camaraderie, we had our first
official Board Meeting, having just filed our 501c3 application! Thank you to the Thomas More Society for
generously sponsoring our filing and to Sally Wagenmaker for your wisdom and
representation. I’m proud to announce
our stellar Board – Darlene Pawlik, Mary Rathke, Jim Sable (conceived in rape adoptee
from IL,) Nick D’Angelo (conceived in rape from NY,) Brad Smith, Dyanne
Gonzales from NM, and me – thank you all for your confidence in electing me as
President of Save The 1. I’m eager to
see what God is going to achieve through us all!
Our next Save The 1 speaker training conference is Saturday,
September 20th in Akron, OH at the offices of Right to Life of North
East Ohio, and our 5th Save The 1 speaker training will be held at the offices of Georgia Right
to Life in Atlanta on Friday, October 10th. In 2015, we hope to have more conferences
around the country, including in the Los Angeles area.
If you fall into one of the categories of “the hard cases” –
those whom Jesus would call “the least of these,” we would love to connect with
you! You are not alone. Connect with us on our Save The 1 Facebook page,
and e-mail me. We have a Save The 1 activism
e-mail group, and there is also an e-mail support group for those who are
struggling and/or who want to help others to know their incredible dignity and
worth.
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