The value of pro-life pregnancy centers and Planned Parenthood

In the United States, the pro-life community tends to shout down abortion clinic Planned Parenthood, while the pro-choice community tends to shout down pro-life pregnancy centers. Personally, I see both pro-life pregnancy centers and Planned Parenthood as offering value to society, and I hope both the pro-life and pro-choice communities come to acknowledge this.

First, pregnancy is one of the most important events, if not the most important event, a woman will ever experience in her life. It is important that she is aware of services available to help her so she can determine if she wants to move forward with pregnancy.

Of course there are women who will opt for abortion no matter what, and Planned Parenthood has been the go-to clinic for decades for women who want abortion. The nice thing about Planned Parenthood is that it offers a clean environment and consistency to ensure that women receive adequate care.

However, the name “Planned Parenthood” is misleading, considering the clinic does not offer service in helping women “plan” for parenthood, but rather offers services primarily geared towards abortion. There are plenty of young pregnant women who are scared and confused about having a child, and simply need help in learning what options are available to them to care for their child, which extends beyond abortion. The decision of having an abortion can have a negative impact on the woman, such as depression and even suicide, especially if she later learns there were services that could have helped her through pregnancy and to care for the child, which Planned Parenthood failed to acknowledge. Also, Planned Parenthood does not provide ultrasounds for free – ultrasounds are offered at a fee of $150.

This is where pro-life pregnancy centers step in. These centers provide a more optimistic outlook on pregnancy compared to Planned Parenthood, though they do not offer abortion procedure. They offer baby items, courses and other resources to young pregnant women to help them feel comfortable in becoming a mother, as well as insight on adoption if the woman is interested. Ultrasounds are also offered for free. This extra help and insight can help the woman decide in following through with the pregnancy. A study released in 2018 noted services that pregnancy centers have provided to Americans all over the United States.

The downside of pro-life pregnancy centers is that they are often deceptive in making themselves appear to be abortion clinics, and can use fear tactics and faulty information that make women prolong their decision with the pregnancy, as shown in this video. Using fear to convince women to become mothers is wrong and should stop.

I have actually been to a pro-life pregnancy center that I found through an online search, though it was only to take a free pregnancy test that ended up being negative. I walked through the center and was surprised to see it offered free courses to pregnant women, as well as a program where women can receive free baby items. I wondered why I had never heard of a pregnancy center before? All I was aware of up to that point was Planned Parenthood, which I knew was primarily for abortion, not for planning a family. As a person who has never been around babies and knows nothing about pregnancy, I actually felt a sense of relief that there was a clinic to help with the pregnancy process.

Ultimately I see pro-life pregnancy centers as offering much needed help in communities considering they provide so many resources to help young families. I would like the centers to clean up their fear mongering, treat women with respect and let them know that they are not alone in caring for their child.

On a final note, I will share this song titled “Who’s the Victim” that was released in 1989 by the band The Lead. This song has left a lasting impression on me, and shows that aborting a baby is not as simple as what the pro-choice community makes it seem. Abortion can have lasting impact. It is critical that we discuss the impact of decisions that we make.