Vandals burglarized and virtually destroyed a pregnancy center in the South Bronx, just days after Mayor Michael Bloomberg signed a city council bill into law that targets such centers with heavy restrictions.
Chris Slattery, founder and president of Expectant Mother Care-EMC FrontLine Pregnancy Centers emailed LifeNews.com about the incident.
“Our main office in the South Bronx was burglarized again. This is the second time this has happened in the past 12 months,” he said. “They broke into our facility through the second story window, stole over $5,000 worth of equipment, and virtually destroyed the office.”
Pictures Slattery sent show property and possessions at the center strewn about the office and the vandals ripped up wooden planks from the floor and tossed them around the center.
“The rampage of these heartless criminals shattered windows, stole all of our audio visual equipment, destroyed displays and supplies, tore up the ceiling, doors, and floor,” he said. “They even broke into our supply closet and stole our Pampers.”
“The staff in our Bronx office is heartbroken, but they have all pulled together to put together the pieces and try to reopen the office,” Slattery continued. “Each day we are closed puts innocent babies in the wombs of their mothers at risk. We desperately need your help.”
Slattery said the small but vibrant pro-life community in New York City has responded to the call for prayers and financial support while pregnancy centers have battled the city to help women as best they can without having to turn people away by posting signs discouraging them from seeking help.
“The last five months, we have been fighting for our very lives here in New York City. The bill signed by Mayor Bloomberg last week threatens to put our 12 pregnancy care centers out of business for good,” Slattery said. “New York is the abortion capital of America, and they are threatening to shut down our centers which have helped save over 40,000 babies during the past 26 years.”
“We have hired Jay Sekulow and the American Center for Law and Justice. They are one of the best public interest law firms in the world, and we know the Hand of God will move through their efforts to save our centers. We will have a major announcement tomorrow about our fight to save the life centers in New York,” he continued.
EMC has served over 110,000 clients since 1985, with over 40,000 women deciding to keep their baby as opposed to having an abortion.
