Pro-Abortion Vandalism Spreads as Pro-Life Groups Office Hit

National   |   Steven Ertelt   |   May 18, 2011   |   4:36PM   |   Wichita, KS

The recent spate of pro-abortion vandalism that has seen several displays of crosses vandalized that had been set up to memorialize unborn children killed in abortions is continuing. Now, a national pro-life group has been hit.

A billboard-sized banner on the front of Operation Rescue’s national; headquarters in Wichita, Kansas, has been vandalized on the day after Gov. Sam Brownback signed into law sweeping clinic regulations supported by Operation Rescue and other pro-life groups became law and that could close two of the three remaining abortion centers in the state. The banner directed women to a pregnancy help center next door that offers free, practical help to pregnant women.

“Whenever there is significant progress on one of our projects, or when we are under attack by pro-abortion supporters in the news, we have incidents of vandalism, in spite of all our security precautions,” said Operation Rescue President Troy Newman.

“But in this case, the vandals are taking it out on pregnant women. Now that Wichita is abortion free, women need the services of our friends next door more than ever. We want to help direct women to those life-saving services,” said Newman. “It is a sorry state of affairs when pro-abortion people want to deny women access to free pregnancy tests, ultrasounds, and other practical assistance.”

This is the third time the banner has been vandalized, and now it must be replaced, Newman said.

Operation Rescue’s offices are in a former abortion clinic that the group bought and closed in 2006. The building, which was left in dangerously poor condition by the abortion clinic, underwent a complete renovation and is now a place where OR works to stop abortion nationwide.

Operation Rescue is using the front of the building along busy Central Avenue to advertise free pregnancy testing and other services at A Better Choice, a pregnancy help center directly next door to Operation Rescue’s office.

Immediately after it went up in September, 2010, the banner began to work, and traffic into the pro-life center increased nearly ten percent. Within the first two days, four women made decisions to keep their babies after seeing the banner and seeking help at A Better Choice. Dozens of women have received needed assistance over the past few months as a result of the advertising.

Operation Rescue is seeking donations to replace the banner.

“Our budget is tight in this struggling economy, but this banner has been so effective at saving lives, it would be wrong not to replace it,” said Newman. “We have faith that our dedicated supporters will come through, and that we can raise the replacement costs very soon.”

Last week, the University of Buffalo Students for Life (UBSFL) group was hit by vandalism again as pro-abortion vandals viciously attacked one of the group’s first events, their Cemetery of the Innocents Display featuring crosses meant to memorialize the 53 million unborn children who have been killed in abortions.

The vandalism at the college campus follows an incident that saw a group of pro-abortion activists vandalize and desecrate a Christian pro-life display students at Clarion University put up at their Pennsylvania campus.

In their attack, pro-abortion students vandalized the Clarion University Students for Life display by turning the crosses upside-down to form satanic symbols, and they dripped fake blood over many of the crosses the took up from the ground and placed in a pile. The abortion advocate then wrote the word “Pro-Choice” in the “blood” on the sidewalk in front of the sign the pro-life students put in front of their display to explain its meaning.

Also in May, students at Valley Lutheran High School spent Monday morning placing a set of 1,000 white crosses into the ground that were torn up that night and subject to spray paint from abortion advocates who plastered anti-Christian messages on them. The next day, the students worked to set the crosses up again and clean up following the vandalism.