By Patrick Leahy, Director of Student LifeNet
During summer 2004, our Director, Patrick Leahy, visited several pro-life groups and individuals in Washington DC, USA. Here he offers an insight into the dynamism of the American student pro-life movement and suggests they are to explain for the pro-life movement’s recent success.
Last September, I was fortunate to be able to visit three key pro-life groups in Washington DC: National Right to Life Committee, the Family Research Council, and Feminists for Life. It is immediately clear to any visitor that these groups are very well organised, highly professional, and comparatively well funded. They are also fortunate to have an extremely large support base and a political system which permits them to express their concerns more easily. However, these factors have been present for some time, so why the recent huge success? Of course, pro-life politicians are to be thanked, but I found the real answer upon meeting pro-life students at George Washington University (GWU).
In the US, the student movement is extremely focused, action-orientated, and fearless. What’s more, there are millions of them. Granted, I was visiting the most active of students (Washington DC is inevitably a magnet for wannabe politicians). But all the indications are that there is a revolution happening amongst our generation across the pond – and it is rapidly infecting the ranks of the whole pro-life movement.
It is hard to describe without witnessing it for yourself, but the students I met at GWU were bursting with enthusiasm. They did not care less about who, or how powerful, the opposition were. They were prepared to stand up and fight regardless.
The day I first spoke to them was the same day a local abortion clinic had begun advertising in their student newspaper. Rather than taking this as a blow, enough money was raised for their own advertisement – placed next door to the abortion clinic advert the following week. Some of the student newspapers also went mysteriously missing! But that wasn’t enough for these dynamic individuals – the following weekend they carried out “sidewalk counselling” at the advertising clinic.
But this is just a rather small example of their real activities. A number of the group were attempting to control the Republican and Democratic student societies to ensure pro-life candidates became leaders. Not satisfied with trying to influence people through persuasion, they attempted to secure power too.
It is this action-orientated attitude, I believe, which has secured the American pro-life movement its victories. It is not pessimistic, anti-establishment, or prone to conspiracy-theories but highly confident, power-seeking, and fearless. And just wait until this generation of American students is 10 years older!
The UK pro-life movement desperately needs to capture the character of the GWU students. For too long we have been on the defensive allowing the other side to take the initiative. We need to be the ones anchoring the debate and setting the agenda. We must have a more positive attitude – it’s more fun that way anyway!
We must not allow other people to dampen our spirits either. Many students have often complained how others look down on them for being pro-life, or that they have had to keep quiet about their views for fear of social reprisals. But, the American students face far worse opposition than we do. There is no organised pro-choice activity in our universities. But in America, if you put a pro-life poster up on a campus wall it is guaranteed that it will be torn into shreds the next minute.
To illustrate the ferocity of the opposition, Suanne Edmiston (the chairwoman of the GWU pro-life students) was protesting against John Kerry’s abortion position at a small rally he was addressing (which itself is an indication of her dedication) but was violently dragged away by abortion supporters with her feet dragging along the floor. As the photo opposite shows, they were left in a rather unpleasant condition. Yet she fights on. (For more information on this story, go to:
http://www.lifenews.com/nat482.html)
It’s time to put an end to our pessimism and be more positive. Let’s not be afraid of courting controversy. Let us show the rest of the pro-life movement the way forward! If we can achieve this then we, like the GWU students, will be the generation which enshrines the right to life of all into law.
