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By Bonnie Finnerty, Education Director

A day after his fourth birthday, a team of educational experts told us our youngest child was severely autistic. During the hours-long assessment in which he was whisked away from us and surrounded by unfamiliar adults, the team concluded that he couldn’t talk.  In reality, he wouldn’t talk, an attached toddler hampered by anxiety that was amplified by the circumstances.

As my husband and I listened to their diagnosis, we experienced both surprise and heartbreak. We suspected he might be somewhere on the spectrum. But severely, profoundly autistic?  I had taught such students in a fully inclusive classroom, some who were completely non-verbal and facing challenges that I didn’t see my son having.

When I voiced doubt about the results, I was told by the Ph.D. leading the team that I was simply in denial. She recommended a restrictive diet and possible placement in a school for children with autism.

Fourteen years later, after a mix of public, Catholic, and homeschool education, some speech and occupational therapy, dozens of amazing teachers and encouraging mentors, we have reached a milestone.

This week our son walked across the stage to receive his diploma. He graduated. From a traditional Catholic high school. With few accommodations.  His strong grades excused him from all finals. He has a job and a driver’s license. He is a happy, gentle soul. In the fall he will be off to college, having been accepted at all three schools to which he applied.

So how did that team of experts get it so wrong?

There is no doubt our son is on the spectrum. He faced many sensory and developmental challenges growing up. Haircuts, barking dogs, and circle time at preschool launched him into meltdowns. Later, he struggled with public speaking, time management, and trying anything new, whether food, activity, or even shoes. By middle school, his anxiety was so great, we resorted to homeschooling for two years, one of the best decisions we ever made.

So yes, he has autism. But he also had far greater potential to overcome and to thrive than the “experts” predicted. Their methodology was flawed, resulting in an incorrect conclusion.

We are learning that some tests commonly used during pregnancy are also flawed. The New York Times  reported earlier this year that analysis of certain prenatal blood tests showed incorrect positive results about 85 percent of the time.  Tragically, some couples given these diagnoses choose to abort their child. Many of them may have aborted perfectly healthy children. But even if not perfectly healthy, did their children not deserve even a chance at life?

I cringe to think of the day when the medical experts begin testing in utero for autism. How accurate will that test be? Will children thought to be on the spectrum be targeted for death as children with Down syndrome are today? How many more beautiful lives will be stolen from our world?

Whenever a diagnosis of any sort is given, we must remember that each and every person deserves the chance to live, grow, and love to the extent that they are capable.  We shouldn’t place qualifications or limits on any one’s life because of perceived obstacles.

Sometimes “experts” just get it wrong. Despite great gains made in medicine and education, predicting the future for any one individual is an inexact science. As much as we think we know, there are no crystal balls revealing what awaits any human life. There is no way to measure perseverance.  There is no test for human resiliency. No statistic on the power of love.

As for our family, much of the expert guidance we received throughout our son’s childhood was helpful. But we were always a bit guarded because of the initial diagnosis he was given. No one knows or loves your child as you do, so it’s important to trust your own instincts.

In watching our son proudly walk across the stage at graduation, I realized that his journey was actually comprised of millions of baby steps made possible by the encouragement and support of so many people in his life. Sometimes it was two steps forward, one step back, but he kept on.  And in doing so, he showed us all that he was much more capable than that first team of experts had thought.  

by Bonnie Finnerty, Education Director

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A few days ago my 23 year old niece did something extraordinary.  She had a baby. A precious 10 pound baby girl.

Whereas in the past, giving birth seemed like a natural, common, and somewhat ordinary progression of life (yet still inherently miraculous), today having a child, or even more so children, is nothing short of extraordinary.

With today’s couples delaying marriage and often trading in bibs for leashes, the birthrate in the United States has hit its lowest rate ever. Some attribute this to the pandemic, but the fact is that the birthrate has been dropping steadily for several years.

The case against children has been simmering under the cultural surface for decades as the abortion industry has cast children as the enemy to be eradicated. Children limit our freedom. Children require sacrifice. Children are expensive.

The messaging has been subtle and steady. Now, however, it’s screaming at us from billboards: “Stop Having Children!”

As reported by Life News, that’s the very visible billboard campaign launched in Portland, Oregon by a pro-abortion group subscribing to anti-natalism, a “philosophical and ethical stance against human reproduction…to radically reduce suffering and environmental destruction in the world.” 

This is Margaret Sanger 2.0. Like the founder of Planned Parenthood, this small but vocal group of extremists believes the way to eliminate suffering is to eliminate the sufferer.

If we stop having kids, we’ll stop bringing people into a world that has problems.  And, as a happy side effect, there will be more resources for those of us granted the privilege of birth.

Cancel culture canceling life itself.

But there are problems with this sterile, short-sighted wokism.

The drooling babies, demanding toddlers, and difficult teens of today eventually become what you and I are now- the older and wiser caretakers, the persistent problem-solvers, the productive contributors to society.

Babies become people. And people are our greatest natural resource, fueling the world with their ingenuity, hard work, and good deeds. People discover, invent, cure, produce, and achieve. We imagine, overcome, inspire, seek a greater good, and above all, we love.

Canceling children today cancels tomorrow’s generations, and that severely limits our potential as a society.

Just ask China.

After years of brutally enforcing a one-child policy, they are now scrambling to reverse their humanity deficit as reported in Forbes magazine. Couples are now “permitted” to have up to three children in China to replenish their population.

Billionaire Elon Musk has issued his own warning about global population decimation, stating, “Please look at the numbers – if people don’t have more children, civilization is going to crumble, mark my words.”

But the problem of canceling kids is bigger than labor shortages or economic impact. We don’t just have children to supply tomorrow’s workforce.  Rather, children are the fullest expression of human love.

And when we have them, through the demands made and sacrifices offered, we learn to love in a way we hadn’t before. We become more “other-oriented” which is not only beneficial to the family unit but good for society in general. Raising children, the citizens of tomorrow, is a chance to
leave a legacy, our fingerprint on the future.

But children are not just our tomorrow, they are also our today.  They surprise and delight, help us to stay grounded, and become lifelong friends, perhaps even our own caretakers.  They give us more, much more, than they demand.  It’s not something we can quantify or even adequately articulate. If you know, you know.

What we need in our country is not anti-children billboards scaring young people away from parenthood, but a return to the very ordinary idea that having a family is a beautiful, worthwhile, and in its own way, extraordinary vocation.

As GK Chesteron said, “The most extraordinary thing in the world is an ordinary man and an ordinary woman and their ordinary children.”

Let’s make America extraordinarily ordinary again by welcoming children into a country that we can make better together.

by Bonnie Finnerty, Education Director

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They say good things come in threes. Three times recently I have been awe-struck by the passion and conviction of pro-life teenagers.

First was the young woman who knocked on my door one Saturday. She was canvassing for the Susan B. Anthony List, making sure Pennsylvania residents understood where political candidates stood on life issues. I let her do her thing before telling her that I too work in the pro-life movement. Despite a windy, brisk afternoon, we ended up having a prolonged conversation about abortion and how to effectively share the truth.  I was practically moved to tears by her dedication to knock on doors, risking rejection and challenges as she moved from house to house, neighborhood to neighborhood.

While she occasionally found an ally like me, sometimes she really had to work hard to open eyes to the reality of abortion.  She told me of an instance just that day where she and her partner talked with a decidedly pro-choice woman for an hour. By the end, that woman expressed doubt in her original position, pledging to do more research!

As if trekking through unfamiliar neighborhoods on a cold winter weekend wasn’t enough, I then learned that this young woman actually traveled over an hour and a half to do this boots-on-the-ground educational outreach and that she was a still a senior in high school!

A few days later I received a plea for help from a colleague.  Her friend’s daughter, an eighth grader in public school, was experiencing much push back from her peers about her pro-life convictions.  She planned to write a paper about abortion and its devastating effects on women and society, but she needed to talk through common mantras she was hearing from her classmates, such as “My body, my choice” and “It’s not a baby yet.” How can she respond?  Where can she find good resources? 

This young lady and I were able to talk by phone for almost an hour. She was a mature middle schooler, impressing me with her wisdom and fortitude.  At a time in her life when peer pressure is reportedly the greatest, she was not backing down from her deeply held belief that life is sacred and worth protecting.  She was willing to endure unkind remarks from classmates. She just needed more “ammunition” to fight the good fight…facts and figures, science and stories to show them that abortion is not empowering or compassionate or justified.  In a follow-up email, I “armed” her with several good resources-books, videos, articles, websites- that she can use as she grows in her pro-life advocacy. I am in awe of her courage and have no doubt that she will be planting seeds in the hearts of many of her peers today and in the years to come.

And then, even more teen voices for life inundated me! This week marked the deadline for our annual pro-life essay contest for grades 7-12.  I have hundreds of essays sitting on my desk, sorted into our two judging categories. While some teachers incorporate the contest into their classroom assignments, other essays are submitted by individual students. We’ve received essays from public, private, Catholic, Christian, vocational, and homeschool students. One young lady, a public school student, wrote and emailed her essay after going to an educational talk offered by a local pregnancy center. She was so moved by what she learned, she entered our contest that night.

Some students emailed their essays which I in turn acknowledged, thanking the student for being a voice for life. Several students replied and thanked us for sponsoring the contest.  One young lady wrote, “You don’t have to thank me for submitting an essay…I thank you for giving me an opportunity to be able to share my opinion about abortion! The topic is very important to me and I want to help any way I can, and this contest gave me the chance to get my voice out, so I’d write this essay any day if it meant helping the women of our state!!”

While I am supposed to be the educator, I think these amazing teens are teaching me and all of us “seasoned” pro-lifers a valuable lesson: don’t ever let our pro-life flame grow dim…stay strong and bright, and when it’s darkest, courageously spread the light of life!

By Bonnie Finnerty, Education Director

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In 2020, over 16,000 women in Pennsylvania were given pills to abort their preborn children. For the first time, non-surgical abortions comprised 51% of abortions, the majority. While the 2020 PA Department of Health Abortion Statistic Report  lists these abortions as “medical” they are also known as chemical abortions.

Chemical abortion involves two medications: mifeprex (mifepristone) which blocks progesterone, cutting off nourishment, and misoprostel, which causes contractions, expelling the preborn child from the uterus.

The Food and Drug Administration does not recommend chemical abortion beyond the 10^th week of pregnancy, stating on their website that a woman should not take Mifeprex if it has been more than 70 days since the first day of her last menstrual period.

Despite abortion industry claims, chemical abortions are not safe, having a complication rate that is four times that of first trimester surgical abortions.

In fact the FDA website acknowledges there were reports of 26 deaths of women associated with mifepristone since the product was approved in September 2000.

In addition, more than 4000 adverse events have been associated with chemical abortion, but the actual number is likely much higher as mandatory reporting of adverse effects was suspended in 2016.

While chemical abortion by its very nature is dangerous and traumatic when given within recommended FDA guidelines, it is even more so when done outside of them.

That is why the 2020 PA Department of Health Abortion Statistic Report is so alarming. It shows that a total of 175 abortions were done after 10 weeks gestation in 2020. 

Most shocking is that 26 chemical abortions occurred at 18-20 weeks gestation and 25 at 21-23 gestation.  Not only are babies at these stages fully formed, much larger, and pain-capable, but many are viable. 

Premature babies as young as 21 weeks are being treated and saved in neonatal units across our country. But according to this report, others are being killed by chemical abortions, most likely in someone’s bathroom.

The abortion pill was not designed for later abortions, which is why the FDA has not extended its use past 10 weeks.

With chemical abortion it is more likely that a woman will experience complications the further along she is in her pregnancy. These complications can include incomplete abortion, retained products of conception, excessive bleeding, and infection. The abortion pill failure rate also increases over time.

Another disturbing statistic from the Pennsylvania report shows a 344% increase in sharp curettage abortions in just one year, a procedure that is often used for incomplete abortions.

So while the report claims that there were fewer complications from abortion than in the previous year, the dramatic rise in the sharp curettage procedure, in which the uterus is scraped, may reflect a higher rate of failed chemical abortions.

So we must ask who is prescribing chemical abortions beyond their recommended time frame and why are they putting women’s health in jeopardy? Are women warned of the risks? Are they warned of the psychological impact of delivering not just “pregnancy tissue” but a fully formed lifeless baby?

We can and must do better.  This is not health care. Or empowerment.  Or reproductive justice. It is a betrayal of vulnerable women.

Every abortion steals an innocent human life. And every chemical abortion risks great harm to the mother, especially those done beyond the recommended guidelines.

It shouldn’t be happening in Pennsylvania or anywhere.

by Bonnie Finnerty, Education Director

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February, designated as Black History Month, is a time to note and celebrate the many achievements of African Americans.  While a multitude of inspiring stories are recounted this month, there are countless others whose stories remain unspoken. That’s because so many Black voices have been silenced.  Their potential left unrealized. Their contributions rejected. They are Black children who were aborted.

And there are many. Abortion disproportionately affects the Black community.  While African Americans account for 12% of the population in Pennsylvania, in 2020 Black women accounted for 44% of the abortions in the state.  

That trend extends nationwide. Across the country, on average Black women are 4 to 5 times more likely to abort than white women. Tragically, it is estimated that the majority of pregnancies (52%) in the Black community end in abortion. More Black children are being killed in the womb than brought into the world. (see Blackgenocide.org)

This racial disparity stems from the very founding of the abortion industry, dating back to a movement that originated in eugenics. Planned Parenthood was recently forced to distance itself from its founder, Margaret Sanger, who referred to the Black community and other minorities as “human weeds,” warning that “We do not want word to go out that we want to exterminate the Negro population….”

But that was exactly the underlying agenda of the American Birth Control League, the precursor to Planned Parenthood. Today, the vast majority (79%) of Planned Parenthood surgical abortion facilities are deliberately planted within walking distance of minority neighborhoods.

In a faint effort to be politically correct, Planned Parenthood took Margaret Sanger’s name off a building in New York. Yet, every single day they continue to target for extermination the very people she saw as less desirable.  

Illogically, abortion supporters allege that any law restricting abortion is racist, harming people of color. But what could hurt the Black community more than killing the next generation?  Depopulating them?  Wounding the women who bear life and alienating the men who are supposed to protect and provide for children? Weakening their families?

America’s Black community would be 36% larger today if not for abortion. There would be 20 million more beautiful Black faces dotting our cultural landscape, enriching our schools, our communities, our workplaces, our families. There would be so much more Black History to celebrate.    

Legalized abortion has not eradicated poverty, racial disparity, or domestic abuse. It has simply eradicated children who committed no offense. While the abortion of any child of any race is tragic, the decimation of Black children at the current rate is alarming in its demographic impact.

Abortion is the number one cause of death for Blacks. Some estimate that if this trend continues for the next 30 years, Black voting power, Black families, and Black people will be nearly extinct, realizing the vision of Sanger and other eugenicists. (See maafa21.org)

But it doesn’t have to be this way. Rather than promote abortion, we could address the root causes of why abortion is sought.  We could empower young women with the resources needed to bring life into the world, and support them in ways that will lift them out of their difficult circumstances.

That is what hundreds of maternity homes and pregnancy resource centers across our country do every day.  Just imagine if we amplify that effort, giving it much more attention and funding, rerouting taxpayer money that is handed to the abortion industry and using it instead to actually give life and hope.

True racial justice means ending the Black Genocide. Only then can future generations celebrate a more robust and beautiful Black History, one that welcomed the promise and potential that every single life holds.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE             CONTACT:  MARIA GALLAGHER, PPLF
January 4, 2022  717-541-0034

Pennsylvania Abortion Totals Increase;
Pandemic Partly Responsible for the Rise

HARRISBURG, Pa. – The number of abortions in Pennsylvania increased in 2020 by 3.5% according to the Pennsylvania Pro-Life Federation, the Keystone State affiliate of National Right to Life.

Statistics released by the Pennsylvania Department of Health show 1,105 more abortions occurred in 2020 compared to 2019. In all, 32,123 abortions took place in 2020—a year when the COVID-19 pandemic swept through the Commonwealth.

In a year when the Wolf Administration refused to allow Pennsylvanians to undergo elective surgeries, abortion operations were permitted to perform abortions unabated.  

“The increase in abortions in Pennsylvania is truly alarming,” said Maria Gallagher, legislative director of the Pennsylvania Pro-Life Federation. “When many other businesses were forced to shut their doors, the abortion industry, led by abortion giant Planned Parenthood, continued to operate.

“Every abortion represents the tragic loss of an innocent human life. In addition, mothers are left to grieve children who are lost to abortion. It is a family tragedy of epic proportions,” Gallagher added. 

In Pennsylvania, abortion totals would be much higher were it not for the many pregnancy resource centers which provide free counseling and material assistance for pregnant women facing challenging circumstances. Pennsylvania’s state-assisted Pregnancy and Parenting Support Program offers true alternatives and options to women in their time of need. 

“No pregnant woman in Pennsylvania should feel as if she is alone. Pregnancy help centers stand ready to offer no-cost assistance and the emotional support every pregnant woman deserves,” Gallagher added. 

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The Pennsylvania Pro-Life Federation is a grassroots right-to-life organization with members statewide.  As the state affiliate of National Right to Life, PPLF is committed to promoting the dignity and value of human life from conception to natural death and to restoring legal protection for preborn children.

by Bonnie Finnerty, Education Director

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The two red lines sent her into a state of panic.

A call to Planned Parenthood confirmed she need not come in for an examination.  A tele-med appointment would now suffice. And it would cost less.

Within an hour, the prescription was ready. Two little pills would be her “lifeline.”

No one will ever know. This is safe.  This is easy. They told me so. This will give me my future back.

She wanted to believe all that. Hours later, reality proved otherwise.

Tears rained down her face while she tried to muffle cries and endure excruciating cramps.

Blood. Everywhere. Severely weakened, all she could do was lay on the cold floor for hours.

Hemorrhaging and pain would last for weeks. The trauma forever.

No one told her.

No one told her that women have died from these pills. That thousands have serious complications.

No one warned that the “tissue” she passed would have a little nose and perfectly formed upper lip.

No one explained she’d deliver a tiny baby, her baby into a toilet, an image she would never be able to unsee.

She was further along than suspected.  But a doctor never examined her. Instead, a stranger prescribed an abortion via computer.

She never felt more alone. Scared. Wounded.

This is mail-order abortion. This is what the FDA, the agency that is supposed to safeguard our health, is now allowing. 

This is what the abortion industry is selling. “Tele-health” that kills preborn babies and seriously puts women’s physical and emotional health at risk.

Back alley abortion has come into the home.

We mustn’t let it.  We must warn all the young women susceptible to the lies and deceptions of the abortion industry. We must assure them of our help and support.

We must protect them and their precious children, even when our government will not.