The Left’s Abortion Radicalism in Action: Attacks on Pregnancy Resource Centers Across America

After the leaked draft of Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization opinion was published by Politico in early May, abortion has once again taken center stage in American politics, and the Left’s radical pro-abortion extremism shows no signs of abating. From state-level codification of the “right to abortion,” to taxpayer funding for abortion providers, to calls for federal legislation guaranteeing abortion up to the point of birth, to dialogue of keeping the baby “comfortable” while the mother and doctor determine if it is kept alive post-birth, the advocates on the Left have proven themselves to be extremists in the abortion debate.

Unfortunately, the Left’s abortion radicalism is not confined to the political sphere. Instead, their irresponsible and sensationalist rhetoric and political extremism have spurred real-life violence and vandalism against public officials, pregnancy resource centers, and churches across the country.

For example, Senator Chuck Schumer (D-NY) spoke at a pro-abortion rally in 2020 and threatened Supreme Court Justices by name: “I want to tell you, Gorsuch, I want to tell you, Kavanaugh, you have released the whirlwind, and you will pay the price. You won’t know what hit you if you go forward with these awful decisions.”

On May 9, Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot tweeted the following to her 278,000 Twitter followers: “To my friends in the LGBTQ+ community—the Supreme Court is coming for us next. This moment has to be a call to arms.”

Just last week, local police apprehended a man intent on killing Justice Brett Kavanaugh, motivated by the rhetoric of the Left regarding the looming Dobbs decision. Despite obvious and significant threats to the pro-life movement, given added weight by recent events, we have not seen any measures by the federal government to mitigate these violent threats. The Biden Administration’s focus has instead remained on their potential political opposition. When given the opportunity to condemn such actions, the Biden Administration stated they supported protests outside the personal homes of the Supreme Court Justices, clearly aimed to illegally intimidate the judges into bowing to external pressures.

This sentiment is widespread. When Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) was asked about the escalating attacks on pregnancy centers and churches across the country, she refused to condemn the violence. Just this week, the Washington Post ran an article titled “How aggressively should liberals attack the Supreme Court?” which highlighted suggestions to “attack the Court” and referred to it as “a kind of cancer on our democracy.”

Predictably, abortion radicalism coupled with this extremist rhetoric has led to real-world consequences, including a proliferation of violence against those who stand for life. It is imperative that free speech not be silenced and our judges are protected.

Below is a list of vandalism, violence, and threats of violence against public officials, pregnancy resource centers, and churches perpetrated by pro-abortion radicals since the Dobbs leak:

ATTACKS ON THE PRO-LIFE MOVEMENT

• On May 2, St. Joseph’s Priory in Armada, Michigan, was defaced with vulgar and anti-Christian messages.
• On May 3, the Trotter House in Austin, Texas, was graffitied by pro-abortion activists.
• On May 3, the Sacred Heart of Mary Parish in Boulder, Colorado, had its doors and statues graffitied.
• On May 4, CareNet, a pregnancy center in Frederick, Maryland, was graffitied with “end forced motherhood” and “abortion is a right.”
• On May 5, Southeast Portland Pregnancy Resource Center in Portland, Oregon, was vandalized, graffitied, and its windows were broken.
• On May 7, the Loreto House, a pregnancy resource center in Denton, Texas, was vandalized with “forced birth is murder.”
• On May 7, First Care Women’s Health Pregnancy Resource Center in Manassas, Virginia, was graffitied with pro-abortion slogans such as “abortion is a right” and “liars.”
• On May 7, the headquarters of Concerned Women for American, a pro-life women’s group in Alexandria, Virginia, was urinated on by a radical pro-abortion activist, and the security system was destroyed. 
• On May 7, Alpha Pregnancy Center in Reisterstown, Maryland, was vandalized with “You’re anti-choice” and “if abortions aren’t safe, neither are you.”
• On May 8, BirthRight, a pregnancy center in Frederick, Maryland, was vandalized with “Defend Roe” and “F*** fake clinic.”
• On May 8, Oregon Right to Life in Keizer, Oregon, was firebombed with a Molotov cocktail.
• On May 8, the Woman to Woman Pregnancy Resource Center in Denton, Texas, was vandalized with pro-abortion graffiti in what police have labeled a hate crime.
• On May 8, Wisconsin Family Action in Madison, Wisconsin, was attacked with a Molotov cocktail, arson, and graffiti that read, “If abortions aren’t safe then you aren’t either.”
• On May 8, St. John XXIII parish in Fort Collins, Colorado, was graffitied with the words “my body my choice” and leftist anarchist symbols.
• On May 8, the St. Louis Catholic Church in Louisville, Kentucky, was graffitied with pro-abortion messages.
• On May 8, Notre Dame de Lourdes in Swarthmore, Pennsylvania, was graffitied with the phrase “you do not have the right to decide how others live.”
• On May 8, Holy Rosary Catholic Church in Houston, Texas, was vandalized with the phrase “pro-choice is pro-life” on the front door.
• On May 10, Gresham Pregnancy Resource Center in Gresham, Oregon, was damaged by an incendiary device that started a fire in the building.
• On May 11, the Church of the Ascension in Overland, Kansas, was vandalized, and a pro-life poster was defaced.
• On May 11, Family Life Services in Ypsilanti, Michigan, was graffitied with pro-abortion slogans.
• On May 16, His Nesting Place Home for Mothers & Children’s Sunday Service in Long Beach, California, was interrupted by a pro-abortion activist shouting and throwing objects.
• On May 19, Women’s Hope Medical Clinic in Auburn, Alabama, was damaged, and the cars of staff members were keyed.
• On May 23, Mt. Avery Missionary Baptist Church in Columbus, Mississippi, was spray-painted with pro-abortion phrases such as “Keep your laws off my body.”
• On May 27, Dove Medical Clinic in Eugene, Oregon, was vandalized with “NOT A CLINIC,” “FROM JANE,” and various anarchist symbols.
• On May 27, Next Step Pregnancy Services in Lynnwood, Washington, had its windows smashed and walls graffitied with threats such as “if abortion isn’t safe, you aren’t either.”
• On May 28, an archdiocese pregnancy health center in Hollywood, Florida, was defaced by Jane’s Revenge.
• On June 2, Agape Pregnancy Center in Des Moines, Iowa, was attacked by a pro-abortion rights group that broke several windows and graffitied “God loves abortions” and “fake clinic” on the walls.
• On June 2, the Community Pregnancy Center in Anchorage, Alaska, was vandalized with graffiti and had its front door broken.
• On June 3, Capitol Hill Pregnancy Center in Washington, D.C., was graffitied with the words “Jane says revenge.”
• On June 4, Care Net Pregnancy and Family Services of Puget Sound in Federal Way, Washington, was covered with posters saying the center promotes “forced birth” and instructing clients to go to Planned Parenthood instead.
• On June 7, CompassCare in Buffalo, New York, was firebombed and graffitied by the group Jane’s Revenge.
• On June 7, Mountain Area Pregnancy Services in Asheville, North Carolina, was vandalized with broken windows and graffiti of anarchist symbols and the message “no forced birth.”
• On June 7, Joel Osteen’s church in Houston, Texas, was disrupted by three women who stripped to their underwear and screamed in the middle of the service.
• On June 8, in Chevy Chase, Maryland, a 26-year-old man armed with a pistol, a knife, pepper spray, zip ties, a hammer, a screwdriver, a nail punch, a crowbar, a pistol light and duct tape, and various other items was arrested near the home of Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh. The suspect, a pro-abortion radical, said he traveled from California to kill Justice Kavanaugh because he was upset about the leaked Dobbs decision.
• On June 9, Options360 Women’s Clinic in Vancouver, Washington, was splashed with fake blood and graffitied with the words “Jane’s Revenge.”

Unfortunately, these attacks show no sign of abating. Instead of silence, President Biden and his administration should firmly rebuke these heinous acts. 

In a surprising but welcome move, the FBI recently announced that they are investigating the “series of attacks and threats targeting pregnancy resource centers and faith-based organizations across the country.”

The pro-life movement is grateful that prudent law enforcement has offered protection for the fundamental rights of free speech and free exercise of religion and maintains that violence is never the answer to political disagreement.

Five years after the attempted assassination of Congressman Steve Scalise (LA-01) and other congressional Republicans on a baseball field, we should work more than ever to tone down political rhetoric in the public square.

The evidence is clear: the true radicals in the abortion debate are the pro-abortion activists, and they must be confronted by the full force of the law to stop these attacks and protect our Nation’s most vulnerable.

AUTHOR BIOGRAPHY

Garrison Grisedale serves as a Policy Analyst for the America First Policy Institute. Previously, he served as the speechwriter for Housing and Urban Development Secretary Ben Carson during the Trump Administration and worked as a fly-fishing guide in Alaska’s Bristol Bay.

Kristen Ziccarelli serves as a Policy Analyst for the America First Policy Institute. Kristen grew up in Germany, Slovenia, Boston, Chicago, and Virginia, and she is currently completing a master’s program in international business.