Joining in the Crisis Pregnancy Center Symposium
by the IVRF Membership/Education Team
Go here to see videos of the speakers!
People kept coming into the fellowship hall, some clearly finding friends and others standing around, coffee cups in hand waiting for introductions. The tone of the voices in the room were overall hopeful, at times anxious or angry, but all willing and eager to speak to others. We were gathering after being called and organized by several different groups, starting with Chapel Hill NOW, and the local chapter of the League of Women Voters. The other partners in the room included Pro-Choice NC, Planned Parenthood of the South Atlantic, Carolina Abortion Fund, Triangle DSA, and of course ourselves at Interfaith Voices for Reproductive Freedom.
We were there to learn and share and strategize as a community about crisis pregnancy centers (CPCs), also known as unregulated pregnancy centers, pregnancy support centers, or fake clinics. The range of people in the room was exciting, healthcare workers, lawyers, politicians, educators, social workers, community organizers, and more, each bringing their own knowledge base and skills to the table.
Professor Amy Bryant and Pro-Choice NC director Tara Romano gave the overview, sharing the unethical and unsafe issues with CPCs. By now many of us are becoming aware that the primary goal of CPCs, above supporting wanting pregnancies is to catch pregnant people seeking abortions and to stop them from getting one. They do this by using misinformation and manipulation, with no regard for the negative health outcomes or long term ramifications this could have for a person seeking an abortion. We also began to see how very much CPCs function as a political organizing and funding arm for the religious right, with very explicit goals to move towards a society which severely restricts the roles and power of women.
Despite the grimness of the topic, there was a sense of possibility and hope, a feeling of connectedness with justice workers of the past, and a readiness to engage in the air. When Emma Horst-Martz began to talk about the role of Planned Parenthood and ways to support both Planned Parenthood and abortion care seekers, we were ready to hear it. The Q&A times and panel were lively, with many sharing not only their questions, but also the work and opportunities they themselves were taking part in related to reproductive health. It was so very clear how much heart was present, how much we shared the same concerns, and how much active work we were already engaging in. Not merely to be performative and reduce our own anxieties but to actually make a difference in North Carolina.
As people of faith it truly felt as though we were working towards a shared vision of a beloved kindom, where people help others in their moments of need, treat each other with love, align ourselves with the least of these, and try to help everyone live abundant lives.
Please e-mail janstevens17@hotmail.com if you’d like to join us at Community UU this Sunday
2/15 at 3pm, for a special screening of Preconceived!
Keep an eye on our calendar, we’d love you to join our March CPC picket with Triangle DSA!
Interfaith Voices for Reproductive Freedom (IVRF) 