Help Us-Political Action Urgently Needed

Hello all First Way Supporters, 

Are you familiar with Senate Bill 490? 

 

If it passes, crisis pregnancy centers will have to publicly advertise and place notices in conspicuous places that we do not offer abortion or abortion referrals. This is even though we receive no government funding and do not deliberately deceive anyone. However, if we are required to provide that information, many women who might have considered alternatives to abortion will not have those alternatives presented to them.

Senate Bill 490...

• …  is an unconstitutional infringement upon free speech rights because it compels pregnancy centers to say words they would not otherwise say and regulates speech NOT conduct. 
• …  is overly broad and does not address any documented problem the state has a compelling interest in addressing.
• …  applies to all covered pregnancy centers regardless of any wrongdoing.
• …  violates due process principles because it does not adequately define the entities who are affected and it invites arbitrary and discriminatory enforcement.
• …  targets small community-based nonprofit organizations that do not receive any state or federal funds.
• …  is part of a national campaign that is based upon differences in ideology and uses unsubstantiated accusations.
• …  forces a business to list services they do not offer for the first time in Oregon history.
• …  requires “conspicuously placed” written notices that “a reasonable person is likely to read and understand”.  These terms are unconstitutionally vague.
• …  requires that a notice be placed on any website maintained by the entity providing the services for any purpose if the services are even incidentally mentioned.
• …  requires that medical professionals to be paid for their services and denies them the right to voluntarily provide services in their community.
• …  increases state costs for OHA rule promulgation, compliance investigation, and enforcement with no demonstration that it addresses any harm to Oregon citizens.

(information taken from  http://www.oregonpregnancycenters.org/oregonpregnancycenters.org/Home.html)

This information below comes from Debbie, Executive Director, Pregnancy Alternatives Center-

Here's what you can do:

SB490 has been scheduled for hearing Monday!

Yes this Monday @ 3pm.

Statewide conference call TOMORROW @9am

Call (605) 475-4700  Enter code: 847627#

Please DO THE FOLLOWING:

·       Get every person you can to be at the capital Monday @2:00 to be present at the 3:00 hearing. We need a mass showing. If you have to close, then do it. This showing if VERY IMPORTANT. We all understand it is not convenient. Oh well, convenience is not the issue. PLEASE hear us… YOU NEED TO BE THERE!
·       IMMEDIATELY, I MEAN IMMEDIATELY you need to contact all of your constituents and have them call their Senators and Representatives. We need a massive call campaign. Basically you need to say… Please do not support SB490. Every woman deserves the right to alternative services. Also call Senate President Peter Courtney. All the numbers are at www.oregonpregnancycenters.org.
·       Most importantly this is the time to get the prayer warriors activated.

Please be on the call tomorrow at 9:00 am.

Debbie

We've got something better than the culture of death.

This morning, I've been contemplating the pro-life movement in general. I've been thinking about what we're doing to promote a culture of life, not just globally, but locally.

I go to Facebook in the morning and see links to all the many pro-life websites I'm subscribed to. This morning in particular, it has made me almost want to cry. For one thing, there's the Gosnell trial going on right now. For those who don't know, if Dr. Gosnell had snipped the spinal chords of several late term abortions 30 seconds earlier, they would have been "abortions," and not considered murders. Dr. Gosnell is currently on trial for infanticide on a large scale, when he was just barely breaking the law. 

From that page, I click to find out that pro-choice people are upset about "puppy abortions," and spreading the sadness all over the web. Also, I click to links with quotes from abortionists about how they have to work to block out the baby in order to do the procedure.

Yes, it is grim. I won't pretend it's not. But, although we need to face the harshness of the reality of abortion, we also need to put forward the most positive and life affirming message we can. The tragedy and the horror are not going to move people who are loyal to the pro-choice idea. Many think even the grimmest pictures of aborted babies are just part of "scare tactics." It breaks my heart to tell them they're not tactics, just facts.

If public opinion is to be changed, most certainly our approach must be to put forth the message that we have something better than the culture of death.

We are NOT just "anti-abortion." We are PRO-LIFE. We believe in putting babies, children, families and communities first, ahead of more self-involved interests. We believe in women and we believe they can make it in the world as mothers. We affirm the strength and courage women need in order to bring their pre-born children into life in the world. We believe in doing all we can to help that happen.

Help us send those messages out to the world. Help create blogs and memes. Help 1st Way find inspirational stories. We can't do it alone. Our success depends on you. 

Post below or email me on FB to find out how you can help.

Announcements

Hi Everyone!

As some of you may have read in the last church bulletins, First Way is looking for any women interested in submitting an inspirational story to our new blog, "Talk to a Friend." These stories can be anonymous. It's not necessary to include a name unless you want. E-mail laura@carmelheart.com.

I've been discovering some really great resources on-line. There are many young ladies dedicated to helping other young women who have unplanned pregnancy learn to cope well with it and be successful.



Notable in my search today is:

Ashlee Bush- author and consultant
http://www.ashleebush.com/about/
(She has a great resource list on her website, too.)

Also, do not forget about the book-signing 

for Terry Ianora, our 1st Way Director!  

We are praying for a large turnout, so bring your friends!

All proceeds from each book sale go to 1st Way. Everything- aside from manufacturing cost of the book.- ALL for 1st Way.

Join us at The Mustard Seed, 227 W 10th Ave, Eugene, OR 97401,  (541) 683-0733

(Ever curious about how the pro-life movement got started and the awesome women who got together to make that happen? This book tells the exciting story.)

Saturday, March 16, 2013 1:00-3:00

Come out, lend support, have fun!

Until we really honor women, there will be no Happy Women's Day.

On this day, we celebrate women and all they give to our families, communities and the wider society. It is time to end violence against pregnant women. 

We live in a culture that tells women

• Be liberated! No double standard! Sex is for fun, just wait two weeks into a dating relationship.
• Use birth control. Eat organic food to keep your body pure and natural, but then  fill your body with potentially harmful chemicals and hormones.
• If you make a mistake and forget the pill or condom, it's okay. There's no baby inside your womb yet. It's just tissue or a cluster of cells at this point. Just get it taken out.
• If you don't abort, your future will be ruined. No more opportunity. You will sit at home eating greasy chips and watching soap operas, bemoaning the failure of your life as you live on welfare.
• There goes your career! There goes your chance of a higher education! No man will want to marry you now. You're just done.

 So, into the Planed Parenthood clinic you walk.

 "Wow, we understand," they say. "You're a liberated woman. We will help you."

"I don't feel so liberated right now. I just feel miserable," you answer, and isn't there a baby in there, somehow? What happens in an abortion?"

"Don't worry. The doctor will just 'gently remove the contents of your uterus.' " (from actual Planned Parenthood literature and their website)

"But, it's still human, right? That's kind of like a sacred thing, right?"

"Oh, don't listen to that stuff from people out to take away your right to do what you want with your body," they say.

Most common line heard on the way to the abortion room-

"Will my baby feel pain?"

To which is answered, "There is no baby, just cells."

Still, you wonder, trying to comfort yourself with the thought of cells being removed. Surely, that's all it is. And then, it is over. Time to get out there and be that strong woman, let them hear you roar. You are liberated!

Wouldn't you REALLY rather hear this?

Woman, you are precious to society. You are worth being cherished, nurtured and loved by one man who is committed to you for life. You will have great sex when you want to and when you don't want to have children, you are strong enough to abstain from sex. You're not powerless.  You're worth deep, enduring love. Children will enrich your life, not take from it. You're smart and skilled and able to provide for your family. You can work if you want and receive an education and still be a great mom. I love you and I want this for you. You are amazing. You give life.

Why does no one hear this anymore? We are a jaded, sad society, lying to ourselves about our freedoms. 

Until we really honor women, there will be no Happy Women's Day.

The Psychology of Abortion Vulnerable Women

We've been getting excited about the new, "Talk to a Friend Outreach." In preparation, I have been studying an article about research regarding the psychology of abortion-minded and abortion vulnerable women. It turns out that these mindsets are very much tied in to self image.

Shame about pregnancy is a strong motivator for abortion, regardless of whether a woman has religious beliefs. Although she is ashamed that her friends will judge her for what they see may be putting her career in jeopardy, almost no women have shame about having a child "out-of-wedlock anymore. Because women may be afraid of being judged by religious people, they may avoid talking to them, however. 

First Way's success is due in part to our non-religious approach to women. We do not bring religion up. We do not mention it at all, unless she does. We give her "just the facts." Since Planned Parenthood does not give her the facts, the facts alone can be persuasive. For example, a procedure involving dismembering the baby limb by limb and sucking the parts into a tube is referred to by PP only as, "gently removing the contents of the uterus." 

With organizations such as Feminists for Life, Atheists for Life and Buddhists for Life gaining more prominence, fewer people are seeing the pro-life position as a "religious thing." This helps us help the women we serve. 

Women who have a self-identity as maternal and who see being a woman as connected with motherhood are more likely to be "abortion vulnerable" than "abortion minded." These women are the ones most likely to be propelled into abortion due to a sense of shame. So, these women should be handled with lots of compassion and TLC, while helping her feel good about herself as a woman and about her ability to make choices for the sake of herself and the child.

Many women do not identify with motherhood and they primarily see their pregnancy as a threat to their career success. In these cases, few things are more powerful than showing them examples of women who are successful (or even more successful) following delivery, and who are proud of the achievement of balancing both. Also, the stories of women who "never really thought of themselves as mothers" are bound to have a greater impact.

The new "Talk to a Friend Outreach" is meant to convey these positive, empowering and inspirational messages to women, to reach them in the way psychological research most strongly indicates will lead to success. 

We appreciate your help and support. Please let us know if you or someone you know has an inspirational story to share, or if you would like to work as a peer counselor with us. Thanks!

Research Summary- Vitae Foundation

Newest 2013 Research- Vitae Foundation

Talk to a Friend Blog