By Debbi Canepa, Oregon Right to Life Education Foundation President.
Abortion and physician-assisted suicide should be unthinkable. Pro-life advocates find it hard to understand how these practices can seem acceptable to good people. Yet we saw this year that the Democratic party not only endorsed but celebrated abortion and euthanasia.
To fight back, we need to be educated on pro-life issues and aware of the life-giving care that surrounds us. Do you know the pregnancy resource centers and pro-life doctors and nurses in your community, for example? Have you educated yourself on embryonic and fetal development? Do you know what is involved in performing an abortion? Do you ever study pro-life apologetics? Are you aware of organizations such as the Abortion Survivors Network? Do you keep up-to-date on new laws related to the life issues being proposed around our country?
As a pro-life advocate, I urge you to keep yourself up-to-date on pro-life issues and facts, so you won’t be fooled by misinformation. The Oregon Right to Life website (ortl.org) is an excellent resource, as is the Charlotte Lozier Institute (lozierinstitute.org). The Abortion Survivors Network (abortionsurvivors.org) works to empower the abortion survivor community and those impacted by unsuccessful abortions.
Another excellent resource is the annual Oregon Right to Life “Together We Advocate” conference. This year it is on Saturday, March 1, 2025 at Rolling Hills Community Church. I also urge you to take advantage of the Oregon Right to Life Education Foundation pro-life contests. Children ages kindergarten through 12th grade can enter drawings, essays, films, and for the older grades, speeches. Check it out at ortl.org/contests.
We won’t all have an opportunity to communicate our pro-life beliefs in official speeches, but we can all take advantage of everyday conversations. When educated, a few well-chosen words spoken for life can make a difference. Our family members, neighbors, fellow church members and co-workers need to hear from us.
Make your voice heard! Let’s make the culture of death unthinkable.
