Local pro-life leader Brian Gibson, the Executive Director of Pro-Life Action Ministries, was assaulted Friday morning at the Planned Parenthood abortion facility in St. Paul, Minnesota while providing information about abortion alternatives to women.
Gibson was physically assaulted after defending a female sidewalk counselor from a verbal attack by the father of a baby scheduled for an abortion that day. The man was waiting outside the abortion clinic while his partner was inside getting an abortion. As he waited, a sidewalk counselor named Ann approached him with some pro-life literature.
That’s when the assault began, Gibson explained in an email to LifeNews. The man has been charged with 5th degree assault.
As Gibson relates:
A very tall man came out of Planned Parenthood to smoke while his girlfriend/wife remained inside for the abortion appointment. Ann, who was with me at the time, called out to him, offering literature and other information for him.
He walked over toward Ann and began to verbally assault her with high doses of profanity. I was standing on the other side of the driveway apron and called out to him in defense of Ann. I made a gentle, yet firm request that he stop talking to her that way. It was at this point he came toward me, now lashing out his verbal assault at me. I stood calmly as he leaned down into my face screaming his anger at me.
I told him it was wrong to speak as he did to Ann. It was at this point he punched me in the chest with an open hand. I made sure I kept from making any moves that could be construed as aggressive as he continued to barrage me verbally. He went so far as to tell me to get out of his face and that he had anger management issues. I could tell that fairly easily. Then he hit me again in the same manner. This time I told him the police would be called.
He walked away from me and down the front sidewalk. When he did start walking back up the long driveway to reenter Planned Parenthood, I told him that he needed to open his heart to God and that God could deliver him from his anger. I made sure he was a good 30 feet away from me before telling him that.
It took the police a little time to get there, having a busy morning with calls. The officers were very professional and between the witnesses outside and Planned Parenthood’s “security” cameras, they charged the man with 5th degree assault. The fact that Planned Parenthood personnel, who regularly monitor us via their security cameras, made no appearance while this happened did not escape my attention.
God’s grace was all over me during this. Not only did I not react to be swatted at, I was surprisingly calm throughout the entire incident. I had just finished praying with Fr. Grabner and a couple others when this happened.
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It has been an extreme rarity to have any such incident happen to anyone who prays or sidewalk counsels at an abortion facility in Minnesota. And this was the first time an angry father has physically assaulted me in all my years of being out there. It would not have happened this time had I not come to the defense of another sidewalk counselor who most likely wouldn’t have been physically assaulted.
Please pray for all sidewalk counselors who work to intervene to save the lives of our precious unborn brothers and sisters and who minister to those seeking abortions.
Gibso’s group has saved 88 babies this year from abortions and 2897 since 1981.
