Anti-Abortion Protest

So today was the first Sunday of October so it was the "Life Chain" where religious groups go out and stand by a main road with their generic photocopied signs stating "Abortion hurts women" and "Abortion kills babies." My main issue with this was inescapable this year because of course the person protesting in front of my house had her 3 year old daughter with her. I asked some of the people protesting what their opinion on having children at the protest was. For the most part these people were very kind and easy to talk to (minus the one man in a lawn chair muttering "not even jesus will save your soul") but none really presented any original ideas. As for their opinions on children at the protests, many admitted to having their children there or in past years, and one said the only reason her younger children weren't there was because there wasn't enough room in the van because she took her older children and their friends with them. One said that her four year old granddaughter "knows" what abortion is, that it means "the mommy has a baby growing in her tummy and that she has decided to kill it." I asked if the granddaughter was curious as to why some women would seek this option, and she said that the question hadn't been raised but when it is in the future, she would inform her granddaughter that "sometimes a girl isn't ready for a baby, but that it is important to know that she can go through with the pregnancy and give the baby to someone who really wants it." Both this grandmother and a young mother agreed that young children cannot fully grasp the concept but should be informed of "Christ's love for the unborn."

When I asked why they were out protesting today I got varied but similar answers. One woman said she was there to "bear witness to christ." Another said to "spread Jesus's love" and another said "to inform." I asked one woman why she agreed with her sign, "Abortion hurts women" and she said that she feels some women seek abortions without knowing their full options and are hurt afterwards.

What was most interesting, was the students' responses, which ranged from indifference to anger. One house held a sign saying "Pro-CHoice" since the protestors were standing directly in front of the house. I was told though that the sign in it's entirety said "Pro-Choice...Bitches" so it may not have been taken seriously. A lot of cars drove by and honked, but these could have been honks of approval or anger. There were many who shouted out windows at these protesters telling them to go away. Most of those with signs ignored this and kept smiles on their faces. I wanted to place a "Pro-Choice" sign in my window but I couldn't find a marker, and was also in a rush to work or I would have spent much more time talking to them, and also to the students in obvious disagreement.

One thing that went across my mind was how I wanted to tell the protesters to get off my lawn because while I agree with their right to protest, I don't want it to seem anyone living on this property agrees with their opinion. However, the person sitting on my lawn was a girl no older than 5 with her mom, holding a sign saying "Abortion kills babies". How could I accuse a 5 yr old of trespassing? But if you think of it this way - her mother obviously thinks she is old enough to comprehend abortion and hold a fully developed opinion on it, like any other activist she must be ready to deal with the consequences. Not that it really needs to be said, but I did not even attempt to press charges but it was an interesting idea nonetheless.