Why We March for Life: Affirming Options, Quality Healthcare, and True Choice 

Pregnancy resource centers in California are under attack. From graphic messages spray painted  on center walls, to rocks thrown through windows, to men threatening staff with machetes, these centers have sadly experienced it all.

Yet California politicians seem more intent on harassing these centers and attempting to shut them down instead of investigating these crimes.

As a board-certified OB/GYN, I’ve seen firsthand the benefits of the compassionate and supportive care available to women at the thousands of pregnancy resource centers across the country. And ensuring these centers can continue to support women in need, and offer support to both them and their children, is part of the reason I’m joining residents from all corners of the state on April 22 in Sacramento for the California March for Life.

For women who have experienced everything from drug addiction to homelessness, to abuse and so much more, pregnancy resource centers stand as a beacon of hope and healing. When women are facing unexpected pregnancies with nowhere to turn and no support, these centers lovingly and non-judgmentally offer support – often at no cost.

Pregnancy centers offer parenting classes and provide necessary items from diapers, clothing, cribs and more. In many cases they even help women with housing, cars, and job placement – helping to provide real solutions to the challenges women often face and giving them a chance to improve not only their life but also their child’s .

Pregnancy centers are also frequently the first point of access to crucial, quality health care, with many of the thousands of life-affirming medical professionals I represent serving as medical directors at pregnancy centers. Centers can help connect women to health screenings, ultrasounds, and comprehensive obstetric care – with many providing initial care until a woman can be seen in a physician’s office.

Sadly, pro-abortion advocates driven by political gains instead of what is truly best for women are aggressively working to shut down pregnancy centers. But by working to shut them down, or vandalizing them so their services are temporarily paused, they limit choice for women everywhere. Many of the same people who champion “women’s choice” deny women the option to find support for a happy and healthy life with their child.

Many of California’s government officials, politicians, and celebrities also attempt to sell the barbaric practice of induced abortion as easy, simple, and empowering. They sell it as the only true “option” for women to be successful.

But the truth is no part of an induced abortion is empowering. Helping women to recognize the true powers of their bodies and allowing them to regain control of their lives is what truly empowers.

Given the fact that the majority of women who obtained abortions stated that if they’d had the support they needed, they would ‘ve made a different choice, shouldn’t we be doing all we can as a society to provide that support – including supporting pregnancy centers?

In my nearly two decades of practice as an OB/GYN I’ve sat with many women after they chose an abortion who told me of their intense regret and pain since making that choice, and how they longed to have that child with them. I’ve also cared for women who contemplated abortion but chose life for their child – and recounted how their lives were changed for the better because of it.

As people gather for the California March for Life to advocate for protections for women and preborn children, we’re advocating for the strength of women to overcome adversity and that our country can do better for women than the lie of induced abortion.

For every woman, and for every child, we march for true healthcare and informed information about that healthcare. We march for life-affirming options and support. We march for each and every human’s right to life.