“No abortion. No exceptions.”  It’s a common statement among pro-lifers. At face value, it makes sense. Or does it?

Exceptions to what, exactly?  When people say the word “abortion,” not everyone means the same thing. Before Roe v. Wade, abortion meant any termination of pregnancy accompanied by or resulting in the death of the embryo or fetus, which would include miscarriage and stillbirth.

Since Roe, the term “abortion” has come to be understood by most people as induced abortions only, thus excluding miscarriage and stillbirth. There is no distinction between procedures performed to save a woman’s life and those done only for convenience. All are abortions.

Many pro-lifers, however, insist that an abortion necessary to save a woman’s life is not an abortion. Perhaps it makes them feel more bold. Regardless of why it is said, saying “no exceptions” is confusing and disingenuous. We must be clear about what we mean, and it’s important that we use correct definitions.  Otherwise, we will be misunderstood, at great cost to our own credibility and our cause.

The general public understands that the treatment of an ectopic pregnancy is, by definition, an abortion. Whatever other words you might assign to it, that procedure is the immediate cause of the child’s death.  Therefore, the procedure necessary to save the mother’s life is an abortion.

When many states drafted laws restricting abortion in the wake of Dobbs, the focus became what, if any, exceptions would be allowed.  These debates quickly devolved into false accusations that pro-lifers wanted to ban medical care for miscarriages and let women die from ectopic pregnancies.  Nothing could be further from the truth, but we saw many pro-lifers talking past our opponents because they were unwilling to use the correct definition of abortion, and therefore clouding the definition of exception.

Our new sign quotes almost verbatim from Tennessee House Bill 883, which states that abortion is not criminal if the termination of pregnancy “was necessary to prevent the death of the pregnant woman or to prevent serious risk of substantial and irreversible impairment of a major bodily function.”  TN HB883 goes on to explain that threats of suicide or self-harm or any reason relating to mental health do not qualify.

So, how would this policy be applied?  Here are three commonly raised scenarios:

• If the complication arises early in pregnancy (e.g. an ectopic pregnancy), unfortunately, nothing can be done to save the child’s life. If no action is taken, both mother and child die. The only pro-life response is to save the life you can.
• If the complication arises later in pregnancy (after about 24 weeks), the mother can deliver prematurely, and appropriate efforts will be made to save the child.
• If the mother has uterine cancer, she may act heroically to carry the baby until the age of viability, even if the growing cancer imperils her own life.  However, such a sacrifice cannot be required by law.  She must be allowed any medical intervention necessary to save her own life.

Medical professionals must act in good faith when making medical judgments.  Even if laws with exceptions were not properly applied, however, we would still oppose a legal solution that denies women legitimate life-saving medical care.

Pro-abortion advocates wish to label our side as uncaring toward pregnant mothers with serious medical problems. By clarifying the life of the mother exception, we affirm the value of both mother and child.

We are delighted to introduce our newest staff member, Caleb Johnson! Now some of you may be thinking, didn’t they just introduce him last summer? And you would be correct! Caleb interned with us last summer and it was such a fulfilling experience for him that he decided to join us full time. We are so thankful!

Caleb grew up in a godly family but says, “I only became experientially pro-life after the bloodguilt of supporting an abortion destroyed everything in my life. I became actively pro-life after I was saved and delivered from my guilt.” God healed Caleb and then showed him that he needed to reach others with the truth.

About a year after Caleb was saved, he was struck by stories in the Old Testament in which God warned the people of Israel that they would be held responsible for the innocent blood shed in their land. Caleb couldn’t help but notice the similarities between Israel in the days leading up to that judgment and the current state of our own nation. In ancient Israel, it wasn’t just the directly guilty parties who felt God’s judgment. Ezekiel, Daniel, and others were innocent and yet they were exiled along with all the rest.

This is when Caleb realized he needed to actively fight abortion or there would be some very serious consequences not only for the preborn, but for himself and our country as a whole.

This is not the first time Caleb has fought for his country. He served as an infantryman in the United States Marine Corps for four years, including two combat deployments in Iraq. No stranger to confronting evil, he has now sacrificially committed himself to yet another war here at home.

Caleb started his pro-life activity by ministering outside an abortion center. However, he quickly realized that his success rate was very low. He wanted to find a way to reach people before their hearts were hardened, but sidewalk counseling was the only thing he knew to do. In what Caleb describes as an answer to prayer, his dad told him about CBR. As soon as Caleb heard about the Genocide Awareness Project, he signed up for our mailing list. When we next put out the call for volunteers, he joined up!

Wanting to be sure before quitting his existing job as a personal fitness trainer, Caleb decided to participate in our Summer Internship in 2023. At the end of the summer, he felt God was calling him to full-time work to end abortion. We are so very glad he is with us.

In his new role as Community Outreach Coordinator, Caleb will be training local pro-life leaders to be more effective by using CBR tactics and resources. Welcome aboard, Caleb!

Even more stories from our outreach at Kent State University.

Not everyone was rude. Angela stopped to tell volunteer Pam, “I am a pre-med student, and my textbooks confirm exactly what you are saying about human development.” She returned later in the day with a friend and they both began enthusiastically defending the preborn.

They even thanked us! Lisa boldly stepped between us and the protesters and proclaimed, “Thank you for being here.”  She encouraged each of us with her sweet demeanor. We always appreciate it when students express their support, but it’s even more inspiring to see when the campus environment is particularly hostile.

While some were truly touched… One young woman stood at a distance and stared at the photos for a long while. Eventually, she approached CBR staffer Amanda saying, “Wow, this is so graphic.  I have never seen anything like this before.  This is so sad.”  They spoke for a bit, and it was clear that she was very deeply moved by what she saw. Finally, she walked away, still pondering in her sadness.

Others remained hard-hearted. Unfortunately, not everyone was as open. A male student briskly walked past the display and gruffly said, “Give me a coat hanger.  I’ll do it any day!” We hope that one day his heart will be softened toward his preborn brothers and sisters.

Here are even more stories from Cody & Caleb’s trip to Florida with our Canadian colleagues.

Showing the truth before it’s too late. After hearing the facts of human embryology, Andre agreed that the preborn are living human beings. But, he raised several concerns, such as foster care, life of the mother, and rape. Andre said, “Logically, factually, objectively, I agree with you, but when put in hard situations, I’m not sure people would make the logical decision.”

That is why projects like GAP and AAP are so important; so that people can see abortion and consider the child’s worth before they find themselves in a terrible situation.

The science of life before birth. Jasmine ranted, “All y’all want to do is talk about the baby and not anything else!” But her true objection was that she doubted our photos were real. So, Cody showed her the See Baby Grow app from the Education Resource Fund (www.ERF.science).

Jasmine was shocked by the endoscopy video of what the baby looks like in the womb so early. She was so visibly affected she could barely even talk. As she was about to leave, Cody gave her information on pregnancy resource centers and post-abortion healing ministries.

A baby is always a blessing. Vincent told Cody that he thought abortion should be permissible only in cases of sexual assault. Cody acknowledged the difficulties regarding conception from rape and Vincent acknowledged that the preborn is a living human being. He was touched when Cody told him the baby would be the only good thing that comes out of that scenario and that abortion would just add another trauma. Vincent walked away with lots to think about.

 We are always ecstatic when we have an opportunity for outreach on a campus that we’ve never visited before. Those of us from south of the Mason-Dixon Line aren’t quite so ecstatic when it involves the threat of snow. Luckily, that remained just a threat and we were able to conduct two full days of outreach to students at Kent State University. They had some chilly dispositions, but those didn’t phase us one bit. 

What a charmer. Due to administrative regulations, we deployed our handheld 5’x5’ signs and soon had many protesters chanting, yelling, and cursing. One young man turned to volunteer Pam and said, “Why are you hiding behind that sign?” She laughed and said, “I’m not hiding, I’m just really short!” With no good answer, he responded “Well, go f*** yourself!”

And he wasn’t the only one. One of the female protesters was getting loud and agitated. Walking around our signs, she was yelling, “Do you have a medical degree? How many children have you adopted?”  CBR staffer Jane asked, “How many do I have to adopt?”  She kept screaming her questions and Jane kept asking the same one back to her, “How many do I have to adopt?”  Finally, she just screamed “All of them, b****!”

Each February, our friends from the Canadian Centre for Bio-Ethical Reform (CCBR) escape the Great White North to conduct their Abortion Awareness Project (AAP) at universities in Florida. (The AAP is similar to our Genocide Awareness Project.)

CBR staffers Caleb Johnson and Cody Levi joined the Canucks and had dozens of life-changing encounters with students. They came back with many fantastic stories.

Human rights for all human beings. Caleb asked a young man approaching the display if he thought abortion was okay. He said, “No, but it’s the mother’s choice.” So, Caleb used three questions to get to the heart of the issue:

· If something is growing, isn’t it alive?

· If a male human and a female human reproduce, isn’t the offspring human?

· Do you believe in human rights?

The student answered “Yes” to all three. Then, Caleb brought it full circle and asked “And who do you think should get human rights?” The young man smiled widely, “Every living human being.”

Food for thought. Another young man flipped the bird, cursed at Caleb’s question and stomped away. However, about ten steps later, he turned around and came back, saying, “You know what, a respectful question deserves a respectful answer. I’m so sorry.” After that, they had a friendly exchange, during which Caleb was able to make our pro-life position clear. We don’t always change someone’s mind on the spot, but we always give them something to think about. 

Silently pro-life. A pro-life woman from Brazil shared that in her home country, if someone finds out that you are pro-life, you are harassed and hounded until you change your mind or until you won’t dare bring up the topic anymore. And we thought we had it bad!

The following is Part Two of a reflection written by CBR Project Manager Brad Martel about an encounter he had with a student at Cleveland State. Part One was sent last week and can also be viewed here. 

As Stevie neared the end of her story, I knew the answer: Stevie needed the Gospel. “God loves you,” I began. I had her full attention. Had anyone ever said this to her before? “God knows everything about you. He knows the parts that you don’t share with others and even the parts that you don’t understand yourself. And He loves you. He wants an eternal relationship with you. But there’s a problem.”

I told her how our sins separate us from God and how Jesus reconciles those who trust him. I then thanked Stevie for her time and wished her well. She left the display, found a friend nearby, and wept with her. We both experienced the power of the Gospel message.

Transgender people are especially ready to hear the good news about Jesus, for a few reasons. First, they know something is wrong. The Gospel makes clear that we all have a deeply rooted problem. We agree on this main point. It remains for Christians to explain the problem, what separates individuals from God.

Second, they are looking for a major transformation. The Gospel explains that when anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation! Christians are further exhorted to be transformed by renewing our mind, to put away the “old man.” Here again, we both agree on this main point. It remains for us to explain the healthy and truly necessary transformation.

Lastly, they want, above all, to be accepted. The Gospel assures us that there is no condemnation for those who are in Christ, and that there is fellowship for the believer with God and man. As a church, we are members of a body. Transgender people lead difficult lives and they need the Gospel. They need the truth about their inherent dignity as people created in the image of God.

Click here to learn more about our very first Capitol GAP at the Tennessee Legislature in Nashville. Below is the letter we hand delivered to all the legislators that day.

The following is Part One of a reflection written by CBR Project Manager Brad Martel about an encounter he had with a student at Cleveland State. See Part Two here.

How do you talk to college students about the transgender issue? I was still a volunteer when CBR introduced new signs tackling this topic in 2022. After much experience, I was comfortable debating abortion with students, but this was a whole new world. Though I felt tentative about the subject, I understood its necessity. It’s not as if CBR sought out another moral evil to address. No, the transgender issue found us.

At each college we visited in 2021, we encountered students advocating to normalize transgenderism. In 2022, we discovered that at least 1,130 girls under 18 years old received “top surgeries” between 2016 and 2019 in the United States. These surgeries consist of removing healthy breasts from girls who identify as boys. This child mutilation masquerading as “gender-affirming care” demands a response.

At Cleveland State University, I met “Stevie”. Based on her own experience, Stevie believed that girls, at least as young as 16, should be allowed to receive “gender transition surgery.” She shared stories of being bullied growing up, of not being allowed to use either male or female bathrooms at times, and of parents complaining to her school about their children having to be in the same room with her. Stevie attempted suicide at 17.

Stevie later underwent a double mastectomy, but she still suffers from scoliosis from the years of binding her breasts to hide them. She described many rounds of therapy and vetting before transitioning. Her life would have been less difficult, she claimed, had she been allowed to have her surgery earlier.

At this point, my sympathy for Stevie was immense. She had suffered for years from gender dysphoria and ostracism. She was convinced that her decision to transition to a “man” was the right choice for her. What do you say to such a person?

When the Tennessee General Assembly opened its 2024 session, CBR was there to greet lawmakers with a timely message: Planned Parenthood (PP) kills more children than guns do.

Recently in Tennessee, PP has been sermonizing on issues that have little to do with abortion, birth control, or even parenthood. For example, PP has cited bans on drag shows for kids and “gender-affirming care” for children as “lowlights” for the 2023 General Assembly. (Thank you, Tennessee!) Another so-called “lowlight” was failure to pass “meaningful gun control legislation.”

So why would PP, who kills children as their primary “service,” then turn around and claim the mantle of protecting children from gun violence? Because they can’t make money killing children in Tennessee anymore, and they have little support in the legislature, so they need to ally with other causes to make themselves appear relevant.

They are not going to just go away, so our goal was to expose their hypocrisy as we reminded lawmakers that abortion decapitates and dismembers little children.

First, we stood outside the lawmakers’ only entrance to the Capitol parking garage, thereby reaching all of them as they arrived for the first day of session. Next, we took our signs to the Capitol entrance to engage pedestrian visitors as they arrived to observe the proceedings. Lastly, and perhaps most importantly, we hand-delivered a letter (See next week’s email to get the full text) to all 132 representatives and senators in their offices.

Many pro-life lawmakers said they were encouraged and thankful for our presence. One female legislator even said, “I sponsored pro-life legislation in 2019. I had no idea Roe would be overturned so soon. I appreciate you being here.” A well-dressed young man smiled as he told us, “I was all ready to dislike your signs, but you guys actually have it right!”

The positive response from Tennessee legislators is a strong rebuttal to pro-lifers who refuse to expose abortion for fear it might reduce our influence with lawmakers. In Nashville, we showed that the opposite is true.

This was our first Capitol GAP, but we pray it won’t be our last. If you want to see this at your own state capitol, please email us at CBRSoutheast@CBRinfo.org.

More stories from our outreach at Cleveland State University in Ohio.

How can you? Fatima was so angry with our comparison of abortion to genocide that she left her class mid-lecture to tell Amanda just that! Amanda remained calm despite her attacks, and they eventually had a productive conversation. Before Fatima left, she said “I need to go home and think about the things you have mentioned. They make a lot of sense.” That’s a win in our book!

Activating the convicted. With tears in her eyes, a young woman told Jane “Thank you. This is just never seen here. I am surprised you are here. I am glad. This needs to be seen.” Another young woman expressed similar sentiments, “I know the truth of these pictures and I am so thankful you are here.” We are always so glad when pro-life students are encouraged by our presence on their campus. We try to connect them to pro-life student groups so that they can make a difference themselves after GAP is over. 

24 hours to a change of heart. On the first day, Vinny claimed to be pro-choice but admitted he is opposed to abortions after 13 weeks.  He asked volunteer Bill many thoughtful questions before wandering around listening to pro-choicers’ arguments. He returned the next day and began debating from a pro-life position. When obnoxious students tried to interrupt, he said, “Please leave, so the rest of us can have a very important conversation.” He just needed to sleep on it before he understood the consistency of the pro-life position and the horrible consequences of the pro-choice mentality.

CBR has varied its visual message at the March for Life in Washington, DC over the years. What has remained constant, however, is our two-fold purpose. First, we are there to reach school children who attend the March, not because they are pro-life, but because they want to go on the field trip with their friends. These children need to know why abortion is wrong. Second, we are there to convict pro-life people that they should do more than just march once a year. 

Convincing marchers to take abortion more seriously is made difficult by the atmosphere, which is often more like a celebration (of what, we’re not sure) than a call to arms. More like a birthday party than a funeral. This sentiment was made painfully obvious this year by an individual seeking to draw attention to himself just a few yards away from our display. 

Standing atop a cart with a loudspeaker and dressed like a continental soldier, this man was blasting disco music and encouraging marchers to sing along and dance. Many enthusiastically obliged, reveling in the party atmosphere. Ugh.

The next moment, they realized why there is a March for Life. They were confronted with our photos of the dismembered victims of abortion. The juxtaposition could not have been more stark. It was readily apparent on their faces. The smiles vanished, replaced with appropriate expressions of somber realization and grief.

This misguided, disco-loving continental soldier could have set up his sideshow anywhere along the route. Fortunately, he was right next to us. His knavery, though regrettable, made our message all the more powerful. Our photos of the victims of abortion gave thousands of marchers the opportunity to reflect on how they can take further action to end legalized child killing.

Abortion education had ramped up at Cleveland State University for many months thanks to the courageous efforts of our former intern Ilyssa and her student group Advocates for Life. That prep work paved the way for our visit with the Genocide Awareness Project and resulted in many seeds being planted, watered, and even some beginning to bear fruit.

They can’t fight back. A male student gave every reason he could think of for why abortion was okay and even good in some cases. Tired of all his excuses, long-time volunteer Pam asked him to consider what abortion does to that child. That didn’t seem to make any difference to him. Finally, Pam said, “I think the only reason we can get away with abortion is because the baby can’t fight back.”  That stopped him cold, and he slowly said, “You know, I think you’re right.”

Let’s be civilized. As three female students pelted Amanda and Brad with rapid-fire questions, Marshawn, an older black man, listened silently nearby. They were interrupting each other as well as our staff. Eventually Marshawn calmly interjected, “Why do you have to yell?  Why do you have to use profanity?  If we’re going to talk, let’s be civilized!”  The three girls were stunned, but his words had an effect. They then restarted the conversation, much more politely.

Responses to GAP at West Virginia University ran the gamut.  Protestors personally insulted staff and volunteers and gave ranting monologues into megaphones. We even had an incident with Starbucks refusing us service. Not exactly how we imagined “almost heaven” to be. However, campus police were diligent, pro-lifers stopped by to say thank you, and a multitude of good conversations were had.

Unexpected support. Many transgender students wanted us to know that they were not “with” the protestors. We had genuine conversations with them and discussed the contagion situation of young girls struggling with their identity and running to the trans “fix.” This reaction was surprising to say the least!

Utilitarianism. “We judge value based on the ability to do something. This entity you call a human from fertilization is unknown potential. Our move toward AI (artificial intelligence) may make this human potential unnecessary.” Who gets to decide whose potential is “unnecessary” or not valuable? Many regimes have decided certain groups of people are not valuable based on arbitrary characteristics. Is that the example we want to follow?

Hurting faculty member. A Jewish professor screamed accusations that we were being disrespectful to “her people” and that we were exploiting the pain of her three miscarriages. Exposing injustice against Jews honors, not disrespects them, as is proven by museums that document the Holocaust.  Miscarriage is a tragedy that affects many.  We hope she finds healing that she needs, and we educate others to enable them to avoid the lasting pain of abortion.

We are delighted to introduce Brad Martel as the newest member of the CBR family! After 10 years of investing in CBR financially and five years of volunteering, Brad retired from his job as an engineer and has taken on the role of Project Manager.

Brad and his wife Diana have lived in Knoxville for over 30 years. He first heard of CBR from a church friend. Initially, these very newsletters were his only form of communication with us. At first, the graphic images made them difficult to read, but he admired CBR’s persistence in using them to defend the preborn.

After five years of monthly giving and reading our stories, Brad was inspired to volunteer with us. Volunteer Coordinator Jane Bullington invited him to GAP, saying, “It will change your life!”
Jane could not have been more right! Brad’s first time “in the field” was at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville in 2018. He continued volunteering as much as he could over the next five years, saying he “was impressed with the directness of the pro-life message and with the staff … I found I enjoyed the impact we have and the camaraderie.”

In 2022, Brad felt convicted to work for CBR. It just so happened that Fletcher also felt that Brad needed to be working with CBR and asked him directly to quit his job and join the staff. After much apprehensive prayer, he heard the Lord say, “It’s an opportunity, Brad.”

When he retired last summer, Brad began working full-time for CBR. As Project Manager, he organizes and leads The Genocide Awareness Project and other events.

To support Brad’s work, please visit AbortionNo.org/SE/give and designate your gift to “SE GAP Director (SE-BJM)”.