CPCs are there for the woman - before, during, and after pregnancy

By Rebecca Peters

Pregnancy care centres have been accused of being anti-choice with hidden, secret agendas. Let’s take a look at the situation.

Most local pregnancy care centres are faith-based. But what does that mean? Quite simply, it means that everything they do is based on their love for God and the truth of the Bible – that all life has value. That’s it. Everyone that works at a centre, whether staff or volunteer, shares these beliefs. They don’t preach them. They simply live them, by loving and honouring all life and every person that walks through the door, regardless of that person’s age, race, gender, or religion.

Pregnancy care centres offer medically accurate information on all three options available to a woman when she is pregnant – abortion, adoption, and parenting. The information is presented in a straightforward and unbiased way, because centres believe that when given accurate information, women are smart enough and fully capable of making the best decision for themselves. The only suggestion made to a woman facing a pregnancy decision is – take the time needed to make this important life decision.

Pregnancy care centres are not political. In fact, they are very careful in their words and their actions to stay away from controversy and politics. What they care about is meeting a woman where she is at and walking alongside her. No politics, no agendas. Centres provide a non-judgemental and confidential, safe place to be real and be heard. They offer resources, referrals, material supports, and programs. All for free, all regardless of the woman’s decision.

Pregnancy care centres are actually very much pro-woman. They are there for the woman – before, during, and after pregnancy … even if that pregnancy ends in abortion. Pre-pregnancy: education is provided on healthy relationships. During pregnancy: information is offered and support is given in the form of prenatal education and free maternity clothes and baby supplies. Post-pregnancy: centres provide a safe and supportive community, either in the form of parenting classes or post-abortion groups and support.

Yes, the staff and volunteers at pregnancy care centres love babies. But they love the woman too. Because they know it’s not easy, some of them have worn the exact same shoes … the shoes that walk into a doctor’s office with dread and walk out of an abortion clinic with a broken heart.

Pregnancy care centres believe every woman has the right to make a well-informed choice, with all of the facts and unconditional love and support.

This article originally appeared at Faith Today. Reprinted with permission by the author.

Rebecca Peters is Communications Liaison for the Canadian Association of Pregnancy Support Services (www.capss.com), an affiliate organization of The Evangelical Fellowship of Canada, publisher of Faith Today (Canada’s Christian magazine).

For pro-abortions' petition - see Charter

Regarding this ridiculous pro-abortion petition, here is what lawyer Carol Crosson had to say to me in an e-mail on this petition:

The TTC, as a government entity, is subject to the Charter, in particular section 2(b), which guarantees the right to freedom of expression. Government transit was found to be subject to the Charter in Greater Vancouver Transportation Authority in 2009, where the Supreme Court ruled that advertising on the sides of buses is protected under the Charter and when transit policies prohibit expression, this prohibition is subject to the Charter. 

The TTC does not have the right to prohibit a pro-life message due to the controversial nature of the message. Freedom of expression included the right to communicate controversial and unpopular messages. The Supreme Court has noted that the purpose of protection for freedom of expression extends to protecting “beliefs which the majority regard as wrong or false”, frequently involving “a contest between the majoritarian view of what is true or right and an unpopular minority view”. The Court has also ruled that section 2(b) protects all non-violent expressive activity, without discrimination based on content, however unpopular, distasteful, or contrary to the mainstream. 

In Wilson v University of Calgary, 2014 ABQB 190, a case about a pro-life display on the campus of the University of Calgary, the Court determined that the pro-life message lies "at the very heart of freedom of expression". 

There are exceptions to the rule that speech should be protected. Speech that threatens violence, public incitement of hatred, genocide as well as obscenity, is prohibited under the Criminal Code. “Hate speech” is not protected in Canada. However, the legal standard for hate speech is very high, as affirmed at the Supreme Court of Canada in Saskatchewan (Human Rights Commission) v. Whatcott, 2013 SCC 11.  These ads in no way violate the Criminal Code or legally qualify as hate speech. 

Other than these few exceptions, the right to share a particular message, despite its disturbing nature, is protected by the Charter. 

So, individuals may fill out petitions because they view these pro-life ads as "scare tactics and christian [sic] propaganda", but Pregnancy Care Centre advertisements posted on City transit buses are protected under the Charter. They cannot be prohibited because some individuals disagree with them, find them distasteful or even controversial.

It is of note that the Canadian Code of Advertising is a mechanism of Advertising Standards Canada, which is a private entity, holding no legal power, and not compelled to adhere to the Charter. The TTC may use the Code as a guide in regulating its advertising. However, If the ad in question is not found in accordance with the Code, the TTC is still compelled to adhere to the Charter, which gives a broad berth to controversial messages.

Carol Crosson 

Barrister and Solicitor

Crosson Constitutional Law

For pro-abortions, the truth is what they say it is

I wrote here about a nasty petition going around, that was trying to get the TTC to remove this ad:

The pro-abortions used this "logic" to defend their petition:

"Pregnancy Care Centers are anti-choice and are known to provide women with false medical information on abortions. They use scare tactics and christian propaganda to influence people's decisions."

This is what Brian Norton of Christian Advocacy Society had to say about the petition:

"Oh no! Due to the politics of abortion, this is another one of those uninformed, misleading petitions being circulated.
   
The faith-based charity where I work has governed, now for 25 years, two pregnancy centres in BC, along with a residential shelter for abused women, and a sexual assault counselling consortium.
   
The issue of concern articulated in this petition is as follows: “Pregnancy Care Centers are anti-choice and are known to provide women with false medical information on abortions.”
   
In fact, pregnancy centres in Canada (to avoid any claim of source material bias) disproportionately refer to prochoice sources and prochoice affirmed epidemiological studies.
   
For example, regarding all physical risk factors (except one controversial risk still being studied), these are directly sourced from abortion clinics across Canada. Space permits noting only a few such abortion clinics: Women’s Health Clinic (Winnipeg), Brampton Women’s Clinic, Clinique Médicale Fémina (Montreal) and Kootenay Boundary Regional Hospital.
   
In addition, the client brochure with abortion medical information (which many or most pregnancy centres have available) has been “reviewed by more than 45 specialized practitioners in Canada, including perinatal nurses, family physicians, obstetricians/gynaecologists, medical ethicists, psychologists and social workers.”
   
Finally, the majority of pregnancy centres in Canada are members of the national best practice association, Canadian Association of Pregnancy Support Services (CAPSS). Any member centre which does not adhere to CAPSS’ stringent ‘Commitment of Care & Competence’ and ‘Code of Counselling Ethics’ will be disaffiliated.
   
For the few of you still reading this comment post …
   
To read about other erroneous allegations on pregnancy centres in Canada, you may wish to google “A Respectful Rebuttal to a Disrespectful Report”.
   
Whether we are “prochoice” or “prolife” or “undecided” on the ethics of abortion, we likely will agree that if a centre is able to offer a client accurate information – with realistic options and solutions to her unique barriers for continuing her pregnancy to term – she becomes more empowered to make an informed decision in accordance with what is most important to her.
   
Brian Norton
www.christianadvocacy.ca"

It's the petition that's saying things that are not true, and not CPCs at all.

I think our take away from this is that the pro-abortions have decided they just don't like crisis pregnancy centres, because they are life affirming. So instead, the pro-abortions have to make stuff up about CPCs.

(Note that as of writing, 14,496 people have thus far actually signed this petition. Do they really have any idea of what they're signing, and that what the petition is saying isn't even true? That...is a scary thought.)

CPCs helping in Zambia

So today I finally got around to filing. I don't like filing. It's one of those jobs that has to get done or else I start getting panic attacks because I can't find anything.

I picked up the newsletter from the Christian Advocacy Society of Vancouver and read it again.

One of their program directors was telling us about the work she was doing in Lusaka Zambia. She was doing training to educate pastors and their wives on the sanctity of life.

Norma and her team provided us with examples of the work they were doing there. Just one example:

"How does one support a pregnancy centre in a developing city in Zambia? Start a chicken and pig farm to finance their staff and services. This enterprise was supported by the church which the majority of our Lusaka team attends."

I thought to myself, wow how great is that? Imagine going to Zambia and helping the people there, like this pregnancy centre does. And to think that Joyce Arthur did (and continues to do) her darnedest to make life miserable for crisis pregnancy centres like the one in Vancouver and the life saving work they do.

I wonder if Joyce Arthur has ever done any pig farming in Zambia.