. . . because action speaks louder than words.
League history, NOW v. Scheidler, Action News, Joe Scheidler, League staff
League history, NOW v. Scheidler, Action News, Joe Scheidler, League staff
Q & A on abortion, the unborn child, where we stand on the issues and more
Helping abortion-bound women choose life for their babies
Unmasking the truth about abortion in the public square
Our youth outreach, raising up a new generation of pro-life leaders
Abortion industry converts tell the inside story
News and commentary from the Pro-Life Action League
NOTE: Due to its length, this article is split into four parts.
Itinerant pro-life activist Bob Roethlisberger heads up the line of signs on northbound Lake Shore Drive, July 9 [Photo by EJS]
Walking down the line of Face the Truth volunteers spread out along Perryville Road in Rockford I pass a middle-aged woman holding her sign up with one hand and counting off Rosary beads with the other. Moving on I see a young man reading his Bible, a teenage girl singing hymns, a young mother holding a sign with her son, who is eager to help save babies. At the end of the line a mother holding a sign with her little girl remarks on the blue sky overhead: "The Lord is so good."
We often say that if Face the Truth did nothing but bring good people together to put their faith into action, it would be worth it. Of course, our Tours do much more -- they keep abortion before the public, appeal to the conscience of the nation, change hearts and minds and even save babies' lives. But it is a special blessing simply to be out on the street with fellow pro-lifers, and this year's Tour drew out more new participants than ever to share in that experience.
The 2004 "Summer Blitz" Face the Truth Tour began as last year, with three days in Downtown Chicago, starting Wednesday, July 7. Each morning downtown we held eight-foot signs on the Kennedy Expressway overpasses, one of our most powerful sites last year.
Kennedy traffic passes the Tour on the Monroe Street Bridge, July 8 [Photo by Dan Gura]
In the wake of the violence during our spring Campus Truth Tour (see the Spring 2004 Action News), we employed a new strategy on the overpasses this year. Instead of placing one sign on each side of seven or eight bridges, we concentrated groups of signs on the Madison and Monroe Street bridges, with two people on each giant sign and a "floater" on each side of the bridge ready to help out or videotape any disturbance.
Each morning we reached tens of thousands of cars and trucks on the highway below. No counter-protesters ever showed up at this site, and after the first day we didn't even see the police, who quickly realized we were peaceful and responsible.
Tim Murphy enjoys shade from Old Glory on Michigan Avenue, July 8 [Photo by EJS]
Our midday stop on the first day of the Tour was Daley Plaza, a favorite site with its large number of mostly supportive lunch hour pedestrians. Sidewalk construction on the Plaza presented a logistical challenge, but we devised an effective display along two sides of the Plaza and across Clark Street in front of the County Building.
Daley Plaza provided the first success story for our 2004 Face the Truth T-shirts, which said on the back: "Pregnant? Hurting? Need Help?" followed by the number for the National Life Center's 24-hour help line,1-800-848-LOVE. A woman saw Jean Crocco's shirt and asked about getting help. She said she was concerned she might be pregnant. Jean gave her information about area pregnancy resource centers, including Aid for Women only a few blocks away. The woman asked for prayers, and Jean prayed over her right on the spot.
A father and son visiting downtown stopped to hold signs with us, the first of many volunteers this year who saw the Tour and joined us. The father, Rock, said he and his son, Little Rock, were thankful that Jesus had called them to do this work that day.
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Tour display along Dearborn Street at Daley Plaza in Chicago, July 7 [Photo by EJS]
We are often criticized for exposing children to our graphic abortion signs and supposedly traumatizing them. Our response is that while we understand this concern, it cannot justify hiding the reality of abortion, and that when children see the victims of abortion they react with sympathy rather than horror. A case in point was a little boy exiting the County Building. He saw one of the Baby Choice signs, which show the severed head of a fully developed unborn baby, and said with concern, "Oh, who did that to that little newborn baby?"
One day he may remember that picture when faced with a crisis pregnancy, as did a young man who talked to Tom Hudson at the day's final site at Madison Street and Wacker Drive. He told Tom he saw a picture of an aborted baby in elementary school, and remembered it years later when he got a girl pregnant. They decided to keep the baby. When Tom had to leave to catch a train, the young man took over holding his sign.
Many volunteers commented that the throngs of commuters en route to the train stations were noticeably less hostile than during previous Tours, with many thank-yous and blessings. Perhaps our repeated visits are having an effect, or perhaps people were impacted by the new signs that we used for the first time at this site.
The new Jesus signs on Madison Street west of Wacker Drive, July 7 [Photo by EJS]
A fixture of our Tours is the Jesus sign: Beth Swiegard's painting of a weeping Jesus holding an aborted baby with the caption below, "Abortion Kills His Children." This year Tour veteran Tim Murphy changed the caption on one side of each sign to read "Jesus Forgives and Heals." Five of these powerful signs lined each side of Madison east of Wacker, followed by our other new sign which says in large block letters, "Need Help? 1-800-848-LOVE."
After again reaching thousands of expressway drivers on our second Tour day, July 8, we returned to another great site from last year, the Art Institute of Chicago on Michigan Avenue. About a dozen pro-abortion counter-protestors showed up to pass out crude flyers and hold "Keep Abortion Legal" signs.
Some passers-by were confused by the juxtaposition of these signs and our graphic abortion signs, uncertain which side we were on. Seminarian Jared McCambridge said he didn't mind if people thought we were supporting abortion: "They have to make the connection that this is legal in our country. If they can't come to the judgment that that's something evil based on what they see, then I'm not going to be able to talk them out of it -- I can only pray for them."
[Go to Part 2]
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