By: Shara Guengerich, Students for Life’s 2012 Missionary for Life
There is a tendency for those involved in the pro-life movement to become so focused on the task at hand that it can be difficult to remember the bigger picture. I’ve done this myself at times, and while being focused can be an attribute, it can also be the downfall of both the individual pro-life advocate and the pro-life organization. It can lead to petty disputes about who is doing more or who is doing a better job, but beyond that, forgetting the larger picture can also lead to becoming blind to an advantage the pro-life movement has over Goliath organizations like Planned Parenthood: diversity.
Planned Parenthood is increasingly struggling to find people at the grassroots level to keep up support for the pro-abortion movement. Since their die-hard fans are aging, they must settle for clueless interns to do their bidding, who are certainly not as well versed as the PP, NARAL, and NOW advocates whose golden age was in the 60s. In contrast, the pro-life movement is seeing a growth in young people who are not only pro-life, but will put their time and effort into seeing an end to abortion. This is something I’ve observed in my personal life, in my time as a Students for Life club President, and during my time interning for SFLA. The diversity in ages in the pro-life movement is not only an advantage, it is an essential component of our path to victory.
The diversity advantage does not end there, however. We also have great diversity in national organizations, grassroots and regional organizations, and passionate individuals across the nation. The value in being able to specialize and to partner with each other makes us a stronger movement, a strength which Planned Parenthood does not possess. While they lose their support base, they must become increasingly reliant on the government for taxpayer support. What will you do, PP, if that support is suddenly taken away?
If abortion advocates continue to be a one trick pony, relying on the almighty dollar to keep them going, they are going to be in for a sad surprise when their money flow is cut off. They don’t have the mass support they once had, and the other side is becoming increasingly diversified. While they continue to run on fumes, the pro-life movement must continue to support diversity and growth within our movement, and remind ourselves that this is, indeed, a key advantage.
