It takes a fair amount of courage to defend the truth on a decidedly liberal campus such as George Washington University. Nevertheless, TFP Student Action volunteers welcomed the challenge and visited the university on March 8.
Their mission was simple: Defend innocent life and challenge abortion and its culture of death, which includes opposing same-sex “marriage.”1
As TFP bagpipers announced their arrival with resounding tunes, hundreds of students who were walking to class received a hard-hitting flier: “10 Reasons Why Abortion Is Evil.” The campus was calm for now. “There are a million reasons to be against abortion!” remarked one lady noticeably happy to see us.
Rampant Relativism
Yet years of moral relativism in academia produced a shipwrecked generation with many unable to distinguish right from wrong. Even the mental capacity to acknowledge the right to life — one of the most basic rights — is waning in minds.
For example, TFP volunteers met students who favored the killing of the unborn by means of abortion, yet in the very same breath, thought Osama Bin Laden should not receive the death penalty.
Simply mind boggling, isn’t it?
By now several pro-abortion students had grouped together, forming a disorganized counter-demonstration. A male student stood in front of our banner holding a sign bearing the feminist slogan: “My Body, My Choice.” Before long a number of lively debates erupted on the sidewalk.
Winning the Abortion Debate
Rather than discuss the issue civilly, some abortion advocates resorted to yelling hysterically, interrupting arguments in favor of the unborn, or name-calling. Their rudeness was not lost on bystanders and ultimately worked in TFP Student Action’s favor: “I’m not with you guys [TFP], but anytime you try to answer a question, they [pro-abortion students] cut you off,” observed one student. “I don’t agree with you, but you have a lot of guts coming out here to do this,” he said. “Great job! Keep doing what you are doing!”
Thomas Ponelli, a student at St. Louis de Montfort Academy was sprinkled with the shreds of a TFP flyer ripped up by a female student. Another student said, “This [TFP campaign] should be against the law!”
Here is a sample discussion between TFP member Kenneth Murphy and two female students:
Female 1: “Any soldier who wants to kill is a murderer.”
Murphy: “What is your definition of murder?”
Female 1: “Any form of killing.”
Murphy: “So if you killed your friend, that would be murder, right?”
Female 1 & 2: “Yes.”
Murphy: “Can she defend herself?”
Female 1 & 2: “Yes.”
Murphy: “But what if she killed you in the process of defending herself? Would that be murder?”
(Simultaneously)
Female 1: “Yes”
Female 2: “No”
After The GW Hatchet published an article about the TFP campaign, a student contacted the TFP with the following message:
“I am a student there [GWU] and I unfortunately missed the demonstration because I am studying abroad this semester, but I read about the courageous young men who stood up for what they believe in by publicly declaring our truth. I am sure that at a very liberal school, they did not have the easiest time, but their presence was important — and appreciated by at least some of us. I also really respect that the group was all young men speaking about abortion.”
The fight for life is more than just a side issue in the political debate. It takes center stage in the greater fight for our Christian civilization. With renewed enthusiasm, TFP Student Action will continue visiting college campuses this semester and do its part to defeat the horror of abortion and the Culture of Death.