Category Archives: Escorting

First Impressions ~ by Anonymous

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I felt pretty comfortable today and as I reflected back on what I heard and saw, the best comparison I can seem to come up with is used-car salesmen and/or pushy shop owners in the cruise ships foreign ports of call.

Car salesmen are trying to sell you an idea/product/service that you have no interest in. They are using repetitive streams of words to overwhelm your senses and put doubt in the choice that you have thought over, researched, and know is the correct one for you at this time. Be it something as simple as XM Radio, alloy wheels and road hazard coverage, or something as personal as the decision to end a pregnancy.

The pushy shop owners comparison is when upon finding out that you are not interested in what they are selling and pass it up, they then attempt to heap words of guilt, shame, regret, etc. on you in an effort to make a sale of something that you don’t want because the sale suits their need, cause, agenda.  Hoping that the stinging words will have an effect on your emotions and override the hard thought you have put into whatever choice you have decided upon. Again, be it Mexican coffee, trinkets, woven blankets or a reproductive decision.

I have had shop owners shout “CHEAP LADY” at me in ports of call as I walked past and would not cave into to going to look at or buy something in their shops.  I have also had used-car salesmen try and talk me out of a standard shift car telling me that they can be too tricky to drive in city traffic, or that as a woman I would be better off with full-coverage roadside protection for my safety.  “Silly them,” I think laughing inwardly. They don’t know me at all.  I don’t buy overpriced junk made in China at tourist traps and I can drive a variety of vehicles, including a stick-shift Dodge dually-diesel pickup,  through city traffic, I see myself having no problem with a 5-speed Honda sedan. My Dad taught me how to change a tire, so covered there too!

The thing that sticks out in my mind as being at the top of my list is, “You have not seen my life through my eyes. DO NOT try to put yourself in MY shoes. Your feet and your views are not a good fit.”    As I remember back when I had an abortion, I am glad the few protesters that I encountered only held up signs and prayed quietly and did not approach me.  If they had, I am sure that I would have been more upset and scared then I already was.  I would have loved to have had someone like the escorts I have met to hold my hand and walk me to the door.

I am glad to have met a like minded, strong group of people like those who come out to escort in Louisville.

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REMINDER: Our annual  fund drive Pledge-A-Picketer is NOW!

The Saturday before Mother’s Day is the biggest protester day of the year.  It also is the date  where we count protesters for donations to support the pro-choice effort and the escorts.  You can pledge a certain amount for each protester showing up that morning. If you prefer, you can also make a straight monetary donation.

Use this form to make your pledge:

 

 

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Really Listening

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Some mornings every client goes into the clinic without incident. Some mornings are more confrontational. When the antis are in full-throated pursuit of every client, we see more reactions from the clients and companions to their words.

“I’m an atheist. You’re wasting your breath.”

“You don’t understand. She will die if she doesn’t have this abortion. She has no choice.”

“You don’t know what you are talking about. She was raped.”

“I told you to leave me alone twice. Now I am getting mad. Get away from me.”

These are just a few of the things heard said to the antis this morning. Of course, none of the words said to the antis registered. Every single one of the antis responded by explaining how that wasn’t a reason to kill a baby, followed by “Come next door to A Woman’s Choice where we care about you.” They claim to care so much, but never listen to what anyone else is saying. Caring should have a certain amount of attention to the person you supposedly care for, shouldn’t it?

This morning I gave the Exhale phone number to two clients and RAINN information to another client. I was listening to what they were saying.

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REMINDER: Our annual  fund drive Pledge-A-Picketer is NOW!

The Saturday before Mother’s Day is the biggest protester day of the year.  It also is the date  where we count protesters for donations to support the pro-choice effort and the escorts.  You can pledge a certain amount for each protester showing up that morning. If you prefer, you can also make a straight monetary donation.

Use this form to make your pledge:

 

 

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Sidewalk Snippet ~ {4/15/13}

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The companion and client pulled to the curb in front of the clinic before 7a. We talked awhile about orange vests, protesters and parking options. They decided to remain parked where they were since it was close.

When I moved to the clinic door after talking to them, D decided to stand one foot away from me and stare at me. She wasn’t talking to me and I wasn’t talking to her or looking at her. She continued to stare for about 5 minutes and only stopped when another escort came to join me. That pretty much set the tone for the day. The antis were aggressive and there were enough of them to swarm around each client entering the clinic.

We were able to escort this client and companion with minimum interference when the doors opened. The companion repeatedly told D and the other antis near the door to leave them alone, but of course this was ignored.

When most of the clients were in the clinic, the anti we call “Screaming Preacher” showed up to shout at the clinic windows. He always says the same things: you are sinning, you are murdering, let me adopt your baby, I want to pray with you. We call him Screaming Preacher because he is so loud he never needs amplification to be heard down the street. The clients can hear him while they are in the waiting room, but they cannot always hear his words. They just know someone is harassing them by screaming about his views on what it means to be a Christian..

The companion came out of the clinic after 8a and just stood by the door staring at him. She did say, “You need to be quiet,” and then moved towards their car. As I walked to the car with her she said, “I am trying to be polite about unsolicited opinions. They can hear him in the waiting room. These people (gesturing towards the antis) don’t need to be here. They aren’t helping. This decision is hard enough, we don’t need people giving their opinion of what is right.”

I let her know there was nothing personal in the antis’ words. “We hear the same thing said every day to every client. They don’t know you. I agree they shouldn’t be here, but we cannot prevent them from saying hurtful things. They will be gone soon. When we leave they only stay a few more minutes. We are leaving now and most of them should be gone right away.”

She just shook her head and said, “Thank you for being here. I just wish they weren’t here too.”

All I could do is agree.

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REMINDER: Our annual  fund drive Pledge-A-Picketer is NOW!

The Saturday before Mother’s Day is the biggest protester day of the year.  It also is the date  where we count protesters for donations to support the pro-choice effort and the escorts.  You can pledge a certain amount for each protester showing up that morning. If you prefer, you can also make a straight monetary donation.

Use this form to make your pledge:

 

 

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Shelter from the Rain

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Stormy and cold weather when you are escorting has good and bad points to it. The good points: there are fewer antis out; the antis that are out usually huddle near the clinic entrance instead of along the sidewalk; clients and companions arriving move quickly around any of the antis grouped together. The bad points: umbrellas in the hands of antis can be hazardous; escorts get wet and cold, depending on the weather; once in awhile  there are delays in opening the clinic doors. In my opinion for the most part, the good points actually outweigh the bad points. There are always exceptions, but the morning I am writing about had more good in the balance.

The morning was stormy with waves of rain coming at us in downpours. There were only a few antis out and they were standing under the overhang at the clinic entrance. Only a few were walking up and down the sidewalk with umbrellas. A little after 730a clients started lining up near the doors to wait for them to open. We all kept waiting. Because of the bad weather, the staff at the clinic were delayed getting to work. By the time the doors did open, all of the clients and their companions were under the overhang waiting.

This was an empowered group of clients and companions. They were talking among themselves and for the most part ignoring the antis. When we made announcements on why there was a delay in opening the doors, they understood and passed the information along to new clients and companions as they arrived. One escort said, “ It was really heart warming. New people would come, and they would welcome them into the fold.” The clients and companions were supporting each other and blocking the words of the antis, or speaking up to the antis to tell them to leave them all alone.

All of the antis were on the other side of the property line under the rest of the overhang. They had a captive audience who were ignoring them as a group.

 

The pillars mark the property line.

The pillars mark the property line.

The anti we call “Camera J” was holding his camcorder up trying to intimidate the clients and companions. One companion threatened to “..slap your camera out of your hand. You better not film me.” He backed away a little, but still kept holding his camcorder up. If he was recording, he got a lot of shots of the backs of people. D and AR were standing toe-to-toe with the escorts between the two pillars, saying the usual things they say to shame and harass clients.

The last client and companion to arrive were close to the property line. The companion had their arm around the client and they were both responding to AR’s words. They kept telling her to leave them alone and that she didn’t understand. Not phased a bit, AR kept on saying “Just come to A Women’s Choice and talk to us about your options. You don’t have to kill this baby.” Finally the client said, “My baby doesn’t have a heart and neither do you. Leave us alone.” At that point I said to AR, “She has asked you three times to leave her alone. Now it is harassment. You are harassing her and that is illegal.” The expected response was received. “I am not harassing her. She knows I just want to help.” The client said, “You are harassing me. Leave me alone.” Compassionate as always, AR responded, “Then you are truly alone,” but she did remain silent after that.

What was really great to watch was after this exchange the other clients and companions immediately moved to the client, who was now crying. They talked to her and brought the client and companion into the center of the waiting people to buffer them from any further encounters with “sidewalk counselors.”

The other amazing thing was the actions of the group also spread a blanket of silence over the other antis for the remainder of the time waited. Some of the antis, including Camera J, wandered to the overhang of the CPC to shelter from the  rain. AR stood alone where she was, but silently. The doors opened and everyone went in without further exchanges.

I agree with the other escort. The clients and companions made what could have been a difficult time standing in front of the doors one of mutual support and compassion.

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REMINDER: Our annual  fund drive Pledge-A-Picketer is NOW!

The Saturday before Mother’s Day is the biggest protester day of the year.  It also is the date  where we count protesters for donations to support the pro-choice effort and the escorts.  You can pledge a certain amount for each protester showing up that morning. If you prefer, you can also make a straight monetary donation.

Use this form to make your pledge:

 

 

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First Time Escort – by Chris

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The first thing I knew, going in, was that I couldn’t be “me”. I normally do not shy away from confrontation or controversy, but today wasn’t about me. I was there to try to make an awful situation somehow less awful for the women involved. It’s never fun to have to walk a gauntlet of people trying to intimidate you and bully you into their will, especially when they use photographs and blatant lies to accomplish their goal.

The urge is so strong to get right back in their faces, but we can’t.

I don’t know why these anti-abortionists are so strongly held in their deceit, but I have long noticed that the truth of abortion doesn’t sell the anti-abortion agenda, so they show pictures of 2-4 month old babies, smiling and dressed. This is not what is being aborted. Why lie? Because it serves their purpose.

It was an education for me.  As an atheist, I had thought of this as a conflict between atheists and Christians, but it wasn’t so much of an atheist/Christian fight, but a reasoning vs plea-to-emotion. Sure, they came armed with ‘facts’ that they might as well have made up on the drive there, such as stating that there is more evidence for the resurrection of Jesus Christ, than ANY other event in history. I’m sure there are some history students who will be shocked to learn this.

I did try to be civil, if asked a question, no matter how ignorant I thought it was. I saw a sign they had that commanded people to obey the gospel. I mentioned to one of the other escorts, that I wondered which gospel they were referencing because of the errors and contradictions in them. I was asked to name the errors, and I’ll admit they aren’t worth committing to memory, so I admitted that I did not have them on recall. His response was that because I didn’t know any, they didn’t exist. Well, I don’t know a single person in the country of Ethiopia, so I wondered aloud to my friend if that also meant Ethiopia didn’t exist.

They made the claims that there were millions of people waiting to adopt the babies that were being aborted, but last time I checked, orphanages weren’t drying up, or running empty on kids. The most obnoxious guy there seemed to love getting right in people’s faces, and when I saw some people volunteering that were less formidable, I stepped in front of him, and towered over him. I don’t think others were intimidated by him, but until me it might have been possible for him to make himself believe he was intimidating. I guess his neck hurt from having to look up at me, because he moved on.

In some ways, it is easy to dispel their arguments, especially when they start picking and choosing from the Bible. Again, I did have to remind myself that this was not the time for that kind of encounter.

This doesn’t phase me, the insults, the name calling, the propaganda, but again, I can’t be strong for these women, just hope to shield them as much as possible.

Will I do it again? Absolutely, if only because I can. I think about what it would be like if this was my daughter, and she had decided to have an abortion. I don’t know that I could refrain from responding to the things the protesters say when it was someone so important to me.

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REMINDER: If you are interested in escorting, don’t forget the training on Saturday, April 13th at 9A.  Training is not required, but it’s helpful. Please see our Trainings for Escorts page or email us for additional information

*********************************************************

REMINDER: Our annual  fund drive Pledge-A-Picketer is NOW!

The Saturday before Mother’s Day is the biggest protester day of the year.  It also is the date  where we count protesters for donations to support the pro-choice effort and the escorts.  You can pledge a certain amount for each protester showing up that morning. If you prefer, you can also make a straight monetary donation.

Use this form to make your pledge:

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Sidewalk Snippet ~ {4/8/13}

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“Show some respect. There are 26 babies being murdered in there and you are laughing and dancing around.”

D sure knows how to bring a conversation to a standstill. All of the clients were in the clinic and we were waiting for late arrivals before leaving. Another escort and I were standing at the entrance to the clinic and talking about the weather, ballet, and what had happened in our lives during the time we had not seen each other. We were laughing as we traded stories and were enjoying each other’s company.

When D made her proclamation, we both turned to her and said her name. You know, in the way you say someone’s name when you can’t believe they just said something so off-subject and unaware.

It had been a day with a lot of antis and D always gets energized when she has an audience. Earlier she was stomping up the sidewalk beside another escort and telling them, “I am not a protester. You know I am out here to protect babies. You are an accomplice to murder.” The three other antis in the area were watching her performance and letting her know how they appreciated D’s words afterwards.

It seemed inevitable that she would try a repeat performance. Unfortunately for D, her witnesses did not see her encore performance. E was the only other anti present and he has heard it all before. She was left with no praise and only our backs to her face as we continued our conversation.

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REMINDER: If you are interested in escorting, don’t forget the training on Saturday, April 13th at 9A.  Training is not required, but it’s helpful. Please see our Trainings for Escorts page or email us for additional information

*********************************************************

REMINDER: Our annual  fund drive Pledge-A-Picketer is NOW!

The Saturday before Mother’s Day is the biggest protester day of the year.  It also is the date  where we count protesters for donations to support the pro-choice effort and the escorts.  You can pledge a certain amount for each protester showing up that morning. If you prefer, you can also make a straight monetary donation.

Use this form to make your pledge:

 

 

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An Anniversary

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It was Easter the first time I escorted at the clinic.  Easter in 2009.

I went with my daughter.  She was an escort long before that, starting maybe back in the late nineties?  Or it could have been 2000, or 2001.  A long time ago in any case.   Often, she and some other young escorts would drag themselves, still half-asleep ~ if they’d slept at all ~ out of my basement on the way to the clinic.

They would come back with stories.  I would be appalled and worried, feel angry and helpless.  You already know the stories ~ they were not very different from what you read here today.  Some of the protesters were even the same.  I “knew” Mary long before the first time I went to the clinic.

In fact, Mary asks me about my daughter occasionally.  She did it again recently.  She’ll say she hasn’t seen her lately, and look concerned.  ”How’s she doing?” she’ll say.  It makes me laugh now ~ she was hateful to my daughter in person, why would she be concerned about her now?

I suspect that she thinks something unpleasant has happened.   Maybe that’s just my own suspicious nature talking, but that’s how it feels.  It’s in her voice tone and the look in her eye.  I think she’s trying to see if there’s a wound she can rub salt in.

But that’s ok, cause there is no wound, my daughter is doing just fine, thank you very much, so it makes me laugh.  Of course I don’t answer;  I don’t talk to protesters.

By 2009, my daughter was an occasional escort, showing up for big days when she was around.  She had invited me before, but I’d always said no.  I’m not sure why I said yes this time.

But there we were, riding down together. I remember being surprised – 6:30 on a Saturday morning and there was a line of traffic turning right on Market Street.   That seemed surreal.

I remember being overwhelmed.  So many people, so much going on… like a carnival.  Like being in the middle of the midway.  Loud and colorful, lots of signs, people with bullhorns, so much going on…

Here’s a picture from that day:

dsc01053

You can’t see the preachers in this picture, they’re on the other side of where the camera was.  And you can’t see the truck with the billboard that takes up two or three parking places, or ~ well, you can’t see lots of other things.

Here is the post rosary prayer circle from that year:

dsc01063

You can even see Donna, lined up near the building.

I knew that day that I wanted to escort.  I was not an outspoken feminist then, nor an outspoken advocate for reproductive justice.  I was a feminist, and an advocate, but not nearly as outspoken.  Back then, I was concerned about how people I knew might react to me escorting at the clinic.  Back then, I didn’t always have a good argument to make, or a support system to encourage me.

But I knew that morning that I wanted to escort, and I’ve been there most Saturdays since then.   The decision to go with my daughter that morning has changed my life, enriched it and helped me grow in so many ways.  The community of escorts is ~ collectively and often individually ~ wise and funny and thought-provoking and interesting, and I’m grateful that my life took this turn.

This year, on my four year anniversary, we had so many new folks and occasional escorts that it was amazingly lovely.   It seemed ~ to this jaded old-hand ~  like a fairly mild Saturday.  There was one protester who was unusually aggressive, but it didn’t seem “bad” to me ~ whatever that means, right?  But that’s because I forget how overwhelming it really is.

Here’s the sidewalk:

IMG_2267And here’s the post rosary prayer circle.

IMG_2278

So “bad” is just a word, and “mild” doesn’t mean a thing.

But I’ve never regretted getting involved.  If you’ve ever considered coming down, you’re invited.

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REMINDER: If you are interested in escorting, don’t forget the training on Saturday, April 13th at 9A.  Training is not required, but it’s helpful. Please see our Trainings for Escorts page or email us for additional information

*********************************************************

REMINDER: Our annual  fund drive Pledge-A-Picketer is NOW!

The Saturday before Mother’s Day is the biggest protester day of the year.  It also is the date  where we count protesters for donations to support the pro-choice effort and the escorts.  You can pledge a certain amount for each protester showing up that morning. If you prefer, you can also make a straight monetary donation.

Use this form to make your pledge:

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First Time Escort – by Tom

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My wife has been a clinic escort for over a year. She has helped with new escort training several times, and she discusses with me her experiences as a clinic escort, telling me how various “regulars” among the anti-abortion crowd act and react and how escorts, clients, and client companions manage themselves in what can be a tense environment.

In our discussions, I find that my first reactions to envisioned scenarios are sometimes good, and sometimes not so effective, in light of the primary mission in the Points of Unity the escorts agree to follow: It’s not about escalating. It’s not even about me, or any escort or anti-abortion protester. It’s about providing the space for clients to follow their decision through, with the underlying assumption being that clients have considered their options well enough to make their own decision. The hows and whys of their decision, just like the decision itself, is their own business, to be shared only with people they trust.

Of course, this also means that to focus on the clients, there is no time or space to judge the protesters. They have their own reasons for being there, most often based in their religious belief systems. That I do not share the specifics of their belief hierarchy is irrelevant. They are still people. As discussed later this morning, if calamity were to strike, I would do what I could to help them.

But I digress. Often. You’ve been warned.

I know myself well enough to realize that I would have to be VERY careful if I were to volunteer on the sidewalk. I am too ready to escalate in general. Even so, I have wanted to be there, to see first-hand the intensity, the individuals I hear of by nickname and actions only, and to help.

So, this morning, I went. It’s Easter weekend, a time crucial to the central belief of many Christians, so it was expected that there would be extra and extra-loud anti-abortionists on hand. As it turns out, the call went out via many electronic avenues, and we had students from the University of Louisville Medical School, other college students, and many other folks come out to wear orange vests. I don’t know how many orange vests were in use—one count was in the upper forties, and more people came afterward. I’ve seen posts claiming that sixty or more escorts were on hand—a reality commented upon by a couple of the anti-abortionists, who may or may not have cared that I heard them claiming to each other that our huge turnout was an indication of our concern over the power of their message. Delusions abound.

With all that extra staffing, we had the luxury of posting several volunteers across the entryway to the clinic. We were a moveable wall—tasked with keeping antis from blocking access to the clinic building, moving out of the way when clients and client companions arrived.

It was pretty easy duty, really. Stand there and let the preachers preach, let the antis spew their religious silliness. At times, move aside to allow passage by clients, client companions, and an occasional escort.

Yes, I was more than once reminded of scenes in movies in which drill instructors yell at recruits during boot camp, with the recruits required to stand at attention and all but ignore the verbal abuse. Some of the antis even tried to shame us, speaking derisively of our humanness, calling us names, telling us that their god was going to punish us for our wicked evil abetting of the abortion mill. And then in the next breath telling us that if we confess to their god, and ask forgiveness, we could enter heaven after all. Such hypocrisy. Such ludicrousness.

A couple years ago, I read the book, The God Virus: How Religion Infects Our Lives and Culture, by Darrel W. Ray. The base premise of the book is that an apt metaphor for religion is found in the study of virology. Others have used the expression “thought virus” to describe other applications of the analogy, and I find the expression apt. The idea is that once a thought virus gets into one’s head, it’s exceedingly difficult for a thought counter to the original to take root. It’s hard for someone indoctrinated in religion to see an atheistic viewpoint as even being an acceptable alternative to belief in his or her god. Scripture makes use of this, even without formally recognizing it, when it has passages that demonize those of us who don’t believe.

Of course, it could be viewed in reverse: Those of us who have been “inoculated” against the virus don’t get absorbed into it. Speaking from personal experience, I simply find the reliance on the religious person’s god to be speaking of some imaginary friend, like Santa Claus or the tooth fairy. It’s hard for me to imagine believing in what seems horrendously illogical to me. The hubris in saying that no matter what our sins, the Christian God will forgive if we but ask is astonishing to me. That some sidewalk preacher dares to condemn me to his version of hell, not having any idea who I am or what I do is an insult. It’s meant to bother me.

But, because I have the secret weapon of knowledge of the concept of thought viruses, I am able to let his vitriol go on by me. I am able to focus on keeping my place, keeping my awareness on my surroundings so that I can alert my colleagues that clients are coming our way and that we need to be ready to make room for them to pass into the building.

A couple hours after things settled down, after the group breakfast, after some errand-running with another escort to collect her bicycle, and after starting to type out my thoughts, I realized that the antis were giving me a lot of power over themselves. Because I was able to let their words go by me without effect, they got angrier and more strident in their word choices.By giving me this power, they in effect empowered me to be a better volunteer, and do a better job for the clients and their companions.

I say this because one in particular spent some time in front of a group of us, deriding us, mocking us, telling us we must have been “real men” to stand up to a woman haranguing clients in front of an “abortion mill.” He went on and on, talking about how he imagined us being really proud that we were abetting the killing of babies and all the guilt-trip words he added to that. We mostly ignored him, until he called us weasels. One of our group piped up with “Can I be an otter instead?” which prompted me to chime in with “I’ll be a ferret! People treat pet ferrets quite well!” The guy walked away, disgusted that he couldn’t upset us. He came back a couple times, trying again to shame us, without success. He gave us the power to disgust him with our indifference to his snide remarks. Again and again.

Other of their ilk preached for a bit at us, or more accurately, at each other for my amusement, then moved on to preach at other vaguely-human forms wearing orange vests or clients or anyone who would listen.

A snippet, because I enjoyed seeing it happen: At one point, a fellow escort was standing beside me, and one of the more vocal preachers was haranguing people who had walked into the building. Because the preacher’s words were having less than the desired effect, he focused his attention on my fellow escort, who was at times smirking at the lunacy of the vitriol. “You mock me! You dare to mock me as I speak the word of God! You dare to mock me!” the preacher shouted.

The escort’s response? Indifference, in the main. An occasional chuckle. He removed his glasses to clean the spittle from them, put there by the preacher as he shouted his anger at having a less-than-desired effect on the escort’s mien. My fellow escort and I chuckled to each other soon after the preacher’s departure.

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REMINDER: If you are interested in escorting, don’t forget the training on Saturday, April 13th at 9A.  Training is not required, but it’s helpful. Please see our Trainings for Escorts page or email us for additional information

*********************************************************

REMINDER: Our annual  fund drive Pledge-A-Picketer is NOW!

The Saturday before Mother’s Day is the biggest protester day of the year.  It also is the date  where we count protesters for donations to support the pro-choice effort and the escorts.  You can pledge a certain amount for each protester showing up that morning. If you prefer, you can also make a straight monetary donation.

Use this form to make your pledge:

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Big Lies

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“It was horrible,” said the client to their companion after leaving A Woman’s Choice (AWC). Then the client started crying.

The most common lie told on the sidewalk is meant to lure clients into the CPC next door. “Sidewalk counselors” promise a free ultrasound and tell the clients they will have to pay $275 more to get the ultrasound with their appointment at the abortion clinic. Clients believe them because they do not want to spend any more money than necessary and besides, why would someone lie about this?

We have written about this many times. It is still a lie. The ultrasound required before an abortion is included in the fees the client is quoted for their surgery. INCLUDED = No extra funds required. Any ultrasound performed by AWC will not be accepted by EMW Women’s Surgical Center (EMW). The client will still need an ultrasound performed by the staff of EMW. It is a deception meant to get the clients to go into the CPC. Once inside they are delayed, shamed and attempts are made to change their decision to abort.

The antis tell escorts they aren’t lying. After all, they do give the clients a free ultrasound. They argue that the fee is separately stated on the price list they have gotten from EMW, so it must be an additional charge. Explaining to them that if someone walks into EMW and requests an ultrasound, but doesn’t need or want an abortion is the reason for the separate listing falls on deaf ears. I have to assume they have never read price lists from any other medical clinic.

The second most common lie is the constant refrain of an increased risk of breast cancer because of abortion. As explained to me by an anti, the cancer link is because of, “stimulation of the milk glands and then not nursing that causes cancer.” Seriously?

Dr. Jen Gunter wrote an article on this ever-present and disproved statement earlier this month.

  • In 2004 the Collaborative Group on Hormonal Factors in Breast Cancer evaluated the worldwide epidemiological evidence on the possible relation between breast cancer and previous spontaneous and induced abortion ad found no link. The results, drawn from 53 studies, were published in the Lancet.

  • A new study confirms this data, that there is no link between abortion and breast cancer. The data come from a study of over 25,000 Danish women from the DIet, Cancer, and Health study. The women completed questionnaires and then were followed for an average of 12 years. This kind of study is probably the best way to look at two common and emotional charged occurrences, like abortion and breast cancer, because there is no recall bias. When something bad happens it is human nature to look back and try to assign causality, but collecting the data prospectively removes this element. The study was also well-powered to detect even a small increase, so another plus.

Dr. Gunter goes on to quote the National Cancer Institute’s study in 2003 disproving any connection between miscarriage, abortion and breast cancer.  

But the antis do not believe the National Cancer Institute’s studies. In fact they do not believe any of the studies disproving any causative link between abortion and breast cancer. It doesn’t fit their narrative used in attempts to scare and harass clients into not having an abortion.

Please read Dr. Gunter’s whole article, but I have to agree with her conclusion:

  • The studies that “found” an association between breast cancer and abortion were flawed and have since been disproven by the National Cancer Institute, the published Lancet review, a myriad of other studies, and the latest study that I referenced above. Using discredited/flawed data to make your case is like saying in 2013 that we know the earth is flat because someone proved it to be so in 1321 and to ignore everything  published on astronomy, physics, and space exploration since.

  • It’s a shame that we need more studies to prove what we already know. But until state governments and organizations like the American Association of Pro-life OB/GYNs believe that science is a more important guiding principle than religious belief, we have no other option. To say there is causative link between abortion and breast cancer isn’t just stretching the truth, it’s a lie.

There are more big lies that are told every day to clients arriving at the clinic, but these are the two that I find personally most disturbing. The first is the lie to coerce clients into an anti-abortion clinic for an hour or more of shaming and harassing. The second is the lie to scare clients with the word “cancer.”

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REMINDER: If you are interested in escorting, don’t forget the training on Saturday, April 13th at 9A.  Training is not required, but it’s helpful. Please see our Trainings for Escorts page or email us for additional information

 

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REMINDER: Our annual  fund drive Pledge-A-Picketer is NOW!

The Saturday before Mother’s Day is the biggest protester day of the year.  It also is the date  where we count protesters for donations to support the pro-choice effort and the escorts.  You can pledge a certain amount for each protester showing up that morning. If you prefer, you can also make a straight monetary donation.

Use this form to make your pledge:

 

 

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Little Lies

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I want to start by stating the obvious: there are wide divisions between antis and escorts in our beliefs. Escorts believe in a person’s choice for abortion. Antis believe no one should choose abortion ever. Escorts believe in not making judgments about people they meet at the clinic. Antis judge everyone on the sidewalk. Escorts believe in telling the truth to clients and companions. Antis lie about almost everything in order to coerce clients into their CPC.

This story may seem frivolous or petty. I admit I think it is on one level. It does point out the wide gulf between  the escorts and antis on even small, everyday situations.

There were only two escorts to begin this day and about 9 protesters. When we got out of our cars as the first clients arrived, the other escort started to the $3 lot and I talked to a client at the curb. While walking to a second car pulling to the curb, I saw a glove on the sidewalk. Not knowing who of the many people on the sidewalk it belonged to, I carefully draped it on the rim of a wrought iron cage for a trash receptacle near where I found it; about 30 feet from the clinic door. It was in plain sight there and would not get dirty. I saw D stand directly in front of the cage for the trash receptacle for a full minute, looking down at the spot where I had placed the glove, before moving to one of the cars I had just spoken to.

The first clients had been approached and more escorts showed up when the first escort told me they had lost their glove. Delighted I had found it, I told her what I had done with it. When we checked, the glove was gone. It wasn’t in the trash. It was just gone.

I told the escort I had seen D look at the glove and suggested maybe she picked it up. The escort asked D if she found a glove. The answer was, “No, I didn’t see a glove.” About 5 minutes later, the glove turned up. It was draped on top of the fire hydrant directly in front of the clinic doors.

I cannot prove D placed it there since I didn’t see her do it, but proximity to both sites the glove was draped seem to circumstantially indicate she saw it, picked it up, and then placed it somewhere else we were sure to see.

Lying seems to be so automatic with D that even a simple non-confrontational question is met with a lie, even when the truth would not cause any controversy. “Yes, I saw a glove on the trash container,” or “Yes, I found a glove. Is this yours?” No real need to get in a long discussion with an escort, but her first response was to just lie.

I thought of all the times when we have found things dropped by antis on the sidewalk and made an effort to return it to them. We have even given D hand warmers she has dropped.

What motivates someone to tell lies about little things? Is it justified because we are “evil deathscorts”? Is there any way we could believe D on any comment she makes? I confess, if she told me the sky was blue, I would look up to verify it.

Escorts are not saints. We come from diverse backgrounds and have diverse personalities. What we do have in common is that we are people trying to do the best we can to make a space for clients to go to the doctor. We have our Points of Unity to guide us and try to follow them. One of the points is about being honest and transparent.

I wonder if we could get the antis to agree on Points of Unity for their sidewalk protests. Honesty, transparency, de-escalating? Yes, I know I am dreaming.

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You too can be an escort!!

Come to the training Saturday, April 13!!

9 a.m. ~ breakfast and good times.

Training is not required, but it’s helpful. Please see our Trainings for Escorts page or email us for additional information.

*********************************************************

REMINDER: Our annual  fund drive Pledge-A-Picketer is NOW!

The Saturday before Mother’s Day is the biggest protester day of the year.  It also is the date  where we count protesters for donations to support the pro-choice effort and the escorts.  You can pledge a certain amount for each protester showing up that morning. If you prefer, you can also make a straight monetary donation.

Use this form to make your pledge:

 

 

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