"Solidarity with women" is the effort of Priests for Life to respond to the
call that the Holy Father makes when he writes in Crossing the Threshold of
Hope, "Therefore, in firmly rejecting 'pro choice' it is necessary to become
courageously 'pro woman,' promoting a choice that is truly in favor of women…The
only honest stance…is that of radical solidarity with the woman" (p.206-207).
Likewise, in Evangelium Vitae 99, the Holy Father calls for a "new
feminism" whose purpose is "to acknowledge and affirm the true genius of
women in every aspect of the life of society, and overcome all discrimination,
violence and exploitation."
This is a task for everyone, women and men alike. The basis of our solidarity
with women, as well as with unborn children, is our common humanity, not our
gender.
Through its "Solidarity with Women" effort, Priests for Life has faithfully
reflected this call of the Holy Father, and this inherent demand of being
pro-life. In thousands of parishes around the nation over the past decade, the
priests of our organization have preached, and have trained countless other
priests to preach the following theme: To be pro-life is to be pro-woman. We
do not say, "Love the baby and forget about the mother." Rather, we say, "Why
can't we love them both?" We can and we must. To harm one is to harm the other;
to love and serve one is to love and serve the other. The destinies of mother
and child are inextricably bound to one another.
Through its "Solidarity with Women" effort, Priests for Life has revealed,
through TV and radio shows and in full-page ads in papers such as USA Today, how
women are deceived, exploited, and killed by the abortion industry. Our
Defending Life program continues to be the platform for countless women to
speak to hundreds of millions of people worldwide about the pain that comes
after abortion, and about the healing the Church offers.
Through its "Solidarity with Women" effort, Priests for Life has spent
millions of dollars promoting awareness of pregnancy assistance centers and
post-abortion healing programs, and has directly assisted these centers to
become better known in their communities. For years, we have called upon pastors
to place as a permanent item on their parish bulletin cover the phone numbers
for local alternatives to abortion.
Through its "Solidarity with Women" effort, Priests for Life has brought to
the attention of countless people in the general public that abortion harms
women. Through our suggestion, the "Life Chain" began using the sign, "Abortion
Hurts Women," and we have likewise trained activists who pray at abortion mills
to read aloud the names of women killed by abortion, and call upon the abortion
industry to express some regret for the loss of those lives. We have also
assisted many women to sue the abortion industry for physical and emotional
damages, and have helped attorneys find specialized training in abortion
malpractice litigation.
Through appearances on college campuses, pro-life conventions, and television
programs like Hannity and Colmes and The O'Reilly Factor, Priests
for Life has spread the pro-woman message and argued that if feminism rightly
rejects the exploitation of women by men, it should likewise reject the
exploitation of children by women. Priests for Life has educated clergy and
laity alike that those who founded the "women's rights movement" in this nation
were pro-life.
Through our website, we maintain the largest collection of post-abortion
testimonies on the internet (www.priestsforlife.org/postabortion), and assist
numerous post-abortion ministries to develop healing programs.
One of our latest efforts is to co-sponsor the "Silent No More Awareness
Campaign" (www.SilentNoMoreAwareness.org). Throughout the country, women who
have found healing after their abortion are speaking out, revealing abortion for
the harmful, empty promise that it is. In June of this year, we brought such
women before a special gathering of members of the US House of Representatives
in Washington. We will continue to give them opportunities to speak out from
coast to coast.
Our efforts in "Solidarity with Women" have only just begun. "Pro-woman" is
not simply a project, strategy, or package for the pro-life message. Rather,
it is that message. Whenever someone speaks up for the equal dignity of the
unborn child, that person is advancing the status of women. Whenever someone
reveals the horror of abortion, that person is counteracting the exploitation of
women, so many of whom are deceived into thinking that abortion is no horror at
all. Whenever the pro-life message is advanced, women are ennobled. For that we
will continue to work, and in that we rejoice!
