Well, *that* was awkward.
I left home this morning to drop Maya at her school/daycare, and brought along a van load of toys/baby gear to donate to a local organization, the Family Strengths Network. They have a lending library, and I’d much rather give my items locally. (Besides, even if I went to Santa Fe, the Goodwill doesn’t take toys…WTF?) The gal at FSN happily accepted the toys, but suggested that I might want to take the baby gear (jumper, boppy pillow, bouncy seat) to Hope Pregnancy Center. She gave me directions, and I headed down the road. (Los Alamos is a small town. Everything is usually on Trinity, Central, or Diamond. That’s it.)
As I pulled out, it hit me: Hope Pregnancy Center. Uh-oh. I pulled up, and discovered that the center didn’t open for another half-hour, and annoyingly, their literature was in the (locked) office instead of in the building lobby. Ah, but a woman working there, saw me and rushed to the door to greet me anyway. After trying to pick up the basic literature (and saying “no thanks” to the parenting class info), I explained that no, I wasn’t “in trouble” (so she could put her worried and concerned expression away). I simply had some donation items, but I wanted to understand who they were before I decided whether to give. She tried to have me sit to visit, and I explained that I had my baby in my van, so I didn’t have time.
Yup, it’s a crisis pregnancy center. To their credit, there were no gory pictures or overtly-religious items all around. No, they don’t refer for abortions or birth control (BIG red flag to me — I can understand if they don’t refer for abortions, but birth control? Um, what?). And, no, she insisted, they weren’t judgmental toward people at all — if someone did have an abortion, they offered counseling afterward because “statistics show that abortion causes emotional trauma.”
Me: “Actually, no. Statistics don’t show that.”
Her: (Continue insistently, not cluing in that maybe I’m not the right person to give this speech to).
Me: (twice, before she stopped talking) “Um, I really think I need to leave now.”
Guess I need to keep hunting around. I think it’s wonderful that places exist that will help girls/women with unplanned pregnancies. But, if that place is going to work from a basis of misinformation (despite what their web site says), they’re not getting my donation.
Anyone need a jumper, bouncy seat, and a boppy pillow?
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Oh so apparently narrowmindedness is a “family strength”? I don’t get to upset about people disliking abortion. I don’t think anyone really LIKES the idea of abortions. What upsets me is that some people are unwilling to take measures to prevent abortions. That and the fact that many people refer to themselves as “pro-life” when the only lives they are interested in protecting are fetal lives.
For what it’s worth, FSN isn’t affiliated with the Hope Pregnancy Center; she merely suggested that they might need baby stuff. And, if they were interested in preventing unwanted pregnancies (and therefore abortions) as well as helping women cope, I might have considered giving them my goodies. But when the same people who lurrve them some itty-bitty-babies (that’s not a blastocyst! it’s a life!) also want to go to war, keep the death penalty, and cease supporting kids *after* they’re born…yeah, that’s just wrong.
Hi
Please don’t think I’m “preaching” to you, and it sounds like you won’t be swayed in your opinions, but just something to think about: So when exactly does life start? Is the “fetal tissue” alive the day before the mother gives birth? What about the day before that? And the day before that? And a week or 2 before that? …
Hi, Kelly, and welcome to the conversation!
That’s actually a pretty simple question to answer: is the baby viable outside the mother’s womb? Then it’s truly life. Regardless, this is not a pro-abortion (or even pro-choice, for that matter) concern. This is about reality, empirical evidence, and facts. If HPC gave support to mothers in crisis while providing accurate information, I would have no problem. If they’re not willing to talk about birth control (a major root cause of the problem) and they will lie about what abortion entails, I will not support them. That’s it.
As for my stance, check the post immediately following this one in which I cite the Jounal of the American Medical Association. From there, you can link to my story about my experience with choice (spoiler: I happened to choose to have a child). Likewise, you can use the search box for “Blogging for Choice.”
Again, thanks for dropping by — ask any question you like. I’m in favor of all thoughts being allowed here, as long as a) no one is nasty and b) people are willing to look at evidence.
Cheers!