From SFLA,

The FDA recently announced new restrictions on cigarette packages, forcing manufacturers to feature prominent graphic images on the front of every cigarette package to warn smokers of harmful effects that smoking can have on their health and those around them.

When picking up their cigarette packages, smokers will see pictures of a man blowing smoke out of a hole in his neck, a smoker’s mouth riddled with cancer, a baby under a cloud of smoke, and a deceased man, among other colored graphics.

This marks the biggest change in cigarette package warnings in over a quarter of a century and notes the shift in American public opinion about smoking.

Yet, what about abortion?

Where are the warning labels on abortion?

Where are the warnings to tell a woman that abortion will kill her child and scar her for life?

Sign your name to this petition to tell the FDA that all abortion facilities and abortion-causing drugs should come with graphic warning labels – showing women what an abortion really does.

Click here for the Petition.

This petition is sponsored by Students for Life of America, International Right to Life Federation, Life Coalition International, Catholic Coalition of New Mexico, Dr. Gerard Nadal, Life Issue Institute, Life Legal Defense Foundation, One More Soul, The Radiance Foundation, Pro-Life Nation, Operation Rescue, Survivors, Human Life Alliance, and Students for Life of Illinois

There are some things people should know about me before this crazy ride begins! I am currently a junior at Eastern Illinois University majoring in Communication Studies with an option in Public Relations and a minor in Advertising. I’m from New Lenox, a Southwest suburb of Chicago. But often times I go to Chicago. In my free time I like to play guitar; I have been playing for almost eight years. I also like to drink coffee; I drink about three to four cups a day. And I like to watch my favorite TV shows, which include House M.D and Law and Order: Special Victims Unit.

The reason why I decided I wanted to work here is because at home I had no summer job. I wanted to give this summer meaning. I wanted something more than just spending time with my friends. This past school year I was also very active in EIU’s Students for Life. Through my participation I became even more passionate about this cause. So, I applied for Students for Life and I got it!

I am excited about this opportunity for many reasons. One major thing is gaining professional experience in the non-profit sector of business. Which is my dream job! I am also excited to be advocating for a cause that I strongly believe in, the pro-life movement.

I am pro-life because I believe that protecting life is one of the most important things. Another reason is because I have been a witness to many family members who have had difficulty becoming pregnant, and seeing other people commit abortions because they did not want the child frustrated me. Also, I believe that I have to be the voice for those who do not have one.

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Hey pro-lifers! My name is Lauren Kilcommons and I am interning with Students for Life of Illinois this summer. I am a senior at the University of Illinois majoring in Political Science and Spanish.

I am the oldest of four kids and come from the lovely village of Stickney, Illinois (a Southwest suburb of Chicago). When I’m not doing pro-life work, you can probably find me running, playing Ultimate Frisbee, traveling or listening to live music.

During the spring semester, I decided to volunteer about four hours each week at the Students for Life of Illinois office. This experience allowed me to become more aware of the pro-life issues that students may face on college campuses.

For example, I found out that at my own university, the student insurance covers abortions. While there are thousands of pro-life students on campus, I was also disappointed to find that less than twenty students were willing to attend a student government hearing to challenge some of the women’s health procedures for which we are required to pay.

I think that it is important for students to educate themselves on pro-life issues and prepare for the challenges they will face after college. This includes having the confidence to contest authority figures and others about their convictions regarding life.

This is the reason that I am interning with SFLI this summer—I want other students to become more educated and have the courage to stand up for their beliefs.

Many people do not realize the effect that abortion has on other social issues affecting our world today. If we do not value the most innocent and helpless forms of life, is it really surprising that we have to deal with problems such as racism, poverty and abuse?

One of the most basic rights citizens deserve from their government is the right to life. I am pro-life because I believe in the value of life from the moment of conception to natural death. Respect of human life begins with the unborn.

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Hey fellow Pro-Lifers! My name is Mike Yoerger, and this summer I will be interning with Students for Life of Illinois. I am originally from Merrill, Iowa (near Sioux City) and attended Le Mars Community High School. Upon completion of my internship, I will be graduating Summa Cum Laude from the University of Northern Iowa with degrees in Political Science, Public Administration, and Psychology, and certificates in Industrial/Organizational Psychology and State and Local Government. My professional career plans include pursuing a PhD in either I/O Psychology or Public Administration, with the ultimate goal of working in the federal government.

In my spare time I enjoy playing sci-fi video games, studying the paranormal, volunteering for political campaigns, and engaging in pro-life activism. In my life, I’ve played 5 instruments: the piano, the clarinet, the tenor saxophone, the oboe, and the bassoon. The next instrument I hope to learn is the electric guitar.

The main reason why I decided to intern with SFLI is because it provides an invaluable opportunity for pro-life activists such as myself to become more effective leaders. Since my early childhood, I have always felt the most strongly about life issues. It is my firm belief that abortion is always the wrong answer.

You want to outlaw all abortions? Isn’t that a bit extreme?

It is not surprising that many people have this response. The mainstream media regularly tries to portray the pro-life movement in a negative light. That being said, the facts tell quite a different story.

First, it should be noted that over 95% of abortions are committed purely out of convenience, essentially as a form of birth control; only 1% are because of rape or incest, 3% because of potential health complications, and 1% because of fetal abnormalities.[i]

In regards to convenience abortions, a recent Gallup poll reveals that, by 61-37 percent, Americans are strongly opposed to them.[ii] A clear majority of Americans share the pro-life view.

But you wouldn’t allow any exceptions? Not even for rape, incest, or the life of the mother?

In cases of rape and incest, I would argue that the circumstances in which one was conceived should not bear impact on the legitimacy or value given to that life. The innocent life growing inside the mother should not suffer for the crimes of his or her father.

It should also be noted that the alleged 3% of abortions committed to “save the life of the mother” include cases that do not actually involve abortion, such as operations have unintentionally resulted in the death of the fetus. In fact, it has been said that in modern times, “there are no situations where abortion is medically or psychiatrically justified to save the life of the mother…. with the advancement of medical science, today’s doctor is never faced with the dilemma of choosing between the life of the mother and the life of the baby.”[iii]

Even if one were to argue that there are certain risks associated with pregnancy, there are also a great deal of risks with abortion.

Finally, there is the issue of fetal abnormalities. For example, it has been estimated that, as of today, over 90% of babies with down syndrome are being aborted.[iv]

In response to this I would ask those in the pro-choice movement what gives them the right to decide whether or not another person’s life is worth living. The answer is that they have no such right, no one does. Each life has value, purpose, and is deserving of the most basic legal protection – defense of his or her life.

Okay, but what does this have to do with me?

There may be many of you reading this post who agree with everything written in the preceding paragraphs, but still unsure if becoming more actively involved in the pro-life movement is worth your time. As a campus pro-life leader, it has been my experience that there is nothing more worthwhile.

In the effort to change hearts and minds, college campuses are a key battle ground that we cannot ignore. As of today, approximately 1/2 of women entering college are pro-life, yet only 1/4 are still pro-life upon graduation.[v] This is one of the many signs that we are not yet meeting the challenge brought forth by the pro-abortion advocates. However, you can help to change this.

Get in touch with local pro-life organizations, work with them to become more informed about life issues, and seek out others in your community who are willing to hear what you have to say. Not everyone will be willing to listen, and there are many who will resist your message. However many times this might happen, it is important to never get discouraged. Spreading the pro-life message does matter, every voice does help, and every life saved is another victory.

References

[i] Finer, Lawrence B., Frohwirth, Lori F., Dauphinee, Lindsay A., Singh, Susheela, and Moore,
Anne. (2005). “Reasons U.S. Women Have Abortions: Quantitative and Qualitative
Perspectives.” Perspectives on Sexual and Reproductive Health. 37.3 (2005): 110-118.
Print.
[ii] Saad, Lydia. “Americans Still Split Along “Pro-Choice,” “Pro-Life” Lines.” Gallup. Gallup, 23
May 2011. Web. 1 Jun 2011. http://www.gallup.com/poll/147734/Americans-Split-
Along-Pro-Choice-Pro-Life-Lines.aspx.
[iii] Human Life Alliance. (2009). “FAQs about Abortion.” Human Life Alliance. N.p., 2009.
Web. 1 Jun 2011. http://www.humanlife.org/abortion_tiredofrhetoric.php.
[iv] Harmon, Amy. “Prenatal Test Puts Down Syndrome in Hard Focus .” The New York Times.
The New York Times, 9 May 2007. Web. 1 Jun 2011.

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/05/09/us/09down.html.

[v] Jalsevac, John. “Hundreds of pro-life student groups sweeping across U.S. college campuses.”
Life Site News. Life Site News, 9 Dec 2010. Web. 1 Jun 2011.

http://www.lifesitenews.com/news/students-for-life-of-america-raising-up-a-new-

generation-of-pro-life-warrio/

Days of Action 2011-2012

Pro-Life Flash Mob Day – September 15th, 2011

Pro-Life Day of Silent Solidarity – October 18th, 2011

I’m Pro-Life Ask Me Why – November 16th, 2011

Stop Killing the Dream – February 7th, 2012

Abortion is Bad for Women – March 8th, 2012

National Pro-Life T-Shirt Week – Tuesday April 24th – Monday April 30th, 2012

Pro-Life Leadership Summit

Bring Your Campus To Life, our annual Pro-Life Leadership Summit will be held on October 22nd, 2011!

Hope to see you there!

The University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign automatically enrolls their students in a healthcare plan that pays for abortions. This means that any students who do not opt-out of the student insurance policy are automatically enrolled in paying for abortions.

Members of the Illinois Student Senate are trying to stop forcing students to pay for abortions but they need your help! Please fill out the petition below to show the University that we won’t stand for abortion in the UIUC healthcare plan!

—PETITION—

We the undersigned ask that the University of Illinois stops covering abortion as “any other sickness,” in its mandatory student insurance plan.

• As students, we do not want to be forced to pay for abortions
• As alumni, we do not want to support our alma mater if it forces current students to pay for abortions
• As concerned citizens, we do not want our tax dollars to fund abortions at the University of Illinois through federal Pell grants.

We demand that the University removes the coverage of abortion in the student insurance plan as soon as possible.

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History:

Following the discovery that the University of North Carolina required its students to have health care and automatically enrolled them in a plan that covered elective abortions, Students for Life of America researched the 200 largest universities in the United States to see how similar their plans were to North Carolina System’s plan. SFLA looked at a) if the school required health care, b) if they automatically charged a student’s account for health care, c) if the school offered a school-sponsored health care plan, and d) if the school-sponsored health care plan covered elective abortions.

SFLA found that out of the 200 schools researched:

• 67 or 33.5% of 200 schools require students to have health care coverage
• 194 or 97% of the 200 schools offer school-sponsored plans
• 86 or 44.3% of the 194 schools who offer school-sponsored health care plans cover elective abortions
• 38 or 44% of the 86 plans that cover elective abortions, automatically enroll their students in an abortion health care plan.
• 66 or 33% of the 200 schools automatically enroll their students in their school sponsored health care plan to student’s accounts.
• 38 or 57% of the 66 plans automatically enroll their students in a school sponsored plan that covers elective abortion.

SFLI’s next Activism Day is only three weeks away! Abortion is Bad for Women is an Activism Day that aims to spread awareness of the devastating effects that abortion has on real women every day. For instance:

- Suicide rates for women who have had abortions are 6 times higher than woman who have not had abortions

- Women who have had abortions are 65% more likely to suffer from clinical depression

- A girl who has an abortion before the age of 18 increases her risk of developing breast cancer by 150%

To learn more and to get started on planning for your campus, visit AbortionisBadforWomen.com

Little did she know that we had just finished our 40 Days for Life campaign. This campaign had energized our pro-life students to continue praying at the abortion facility even after the 40 Days were over. Several pro-life students accompanied Joy, our wonderful sidewalk counselor, in praying and being a physical sign of hope on the sidewalk that Friday morning.

Ashley did not expect to see them there, but when she did it offered her hope. She chose to keep her baby Jasmine because of the pro-life presence and support!

The students quickly made Ashley a gift basket to help her with her immediate needs and pro-life community members helped her through this difficult time.

Ashley is so grateful for the blessings that she received from the pro-life community that she has begun to give back to other families in need! This is the cycle of love and life that is started by your generosity and prayers. Will you help me continue this cycle?

This Christmas, whatever you are able to give before the end of the year will count up to three times for SFLI! (details here)

Select your Gift Amount Then Click “Make a Donation”:
 

I would like my gift of $1,000.00 to be multiplied up to $3,000
 

I would like my gift of $500.00 to be multiplied up to $1,500
 

I would like my gift of $200.00 to be multiplied up to $600
 

I would like my gift of $100.00 to be multiplied up to $300
 

I would like my gift of $50.00 to be multiplied up to $150
 

I would like my gift of $25.00 to be multiplied up to $75
 

Other: I will choose my own amount to be multiplied
  

Your most generous one time gift to Students for Life of Illinois will be multiplied up to THREE times this year! Help us to receive ALL the matching funds by January 1st!

I know the economy is rough right now. It has definitely affected our budget this year. So, if you want to give a larger gift but the funds just aren’t available right now, there is another way to give.

Our matching donors have agreed to match new monthly pledges started now for the entire year! You can multiply your gift every month of 2011! All you have to do is start your monthly gift now.

Monthly gifts truly help to sustain my work with Students for Life of Illinois all year long! This year, your new monthly gift can count for even more!

Amount per month then Click “Payment Plan”:
 

I would like my gift of $100.00/mo to be multiplied up to $300/mo
 

I would like my gift of $75.00/mo to be multiplied up to $225/mo
 

I would like my gift of $50.00/mo to be multiplied up to $150/mo
 

I would like my gift of $30.00/mo to be multiplied up to $90/mo
 

I would like my gift of $25.00/mo to be multiplied up to $75/mo
 

Other: I would like to enter my monthly gift amount click here.

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Your most generous monthly gift to Students for Life of Illinois will be multiplied up to THREE times this year! Help us to receive ALL the matching funds by January 1st!

Merry Christmas!

John-Paul Deddens – Students for Life of Illinois

P.S. With your help we can reach more mothers like Ashley and save more babies like Jasmine! Please give now to maximize your Christmas gift this year! Click here to help!

All donations are tax deductible to the fullest extent permitted by law. Students for Life of Illinois is a registered not-for-profit organization according to Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code. No goods or services will be provided in exchange for this donation.

If you have issues with the payment system, please contact us at info@prolifeillinois.com

Ruth Lobo, President of Carleton LifeLine being placed under arrest.

On October 4th, four members of Carleton’s pro-life group, Carleton LifeLine, were arrested while holding a peaceful demonstration on campus’ main quad, and now the university is trying to take away the group’s certification.

Two weeks ago, Carleton Lifeline was notified that the school Student Association would be decertifying the group in less than a week, on November 18th, unless they renounced the pro-life beliefs expressed in their group constitution. The Carleton University Student Association (CUSA) is using the school’s “Discrimination on Campus “ policy, which upholds “a woman’s right to choose” to justify discriminating against the pro-life student group

If Carleton Lifeline loses their official group status, it will be a significant loss and will hinder their activities on campus by denying them the student space, resources, and funding all other student clubs have access to.For student pro-lifers, being on campus is fundamental to the mission of educating other students about abortion and helping women facing unplanned pregnancies.

Here’s how you can help:
ACTION 1: Add your name to our petition protesting Carleton University’s discrimination against pro-life students here: www.standwithcarleton.com

ACTION 2: Call and e-mail Dr. Roseann O’Reilly Runte, President and Vice-Chancellor of Carleton, and tell her to stop the discrimination against pro-life students. Her office phone is 613 520-3801, and her e-mail is: presidents_office@carleton.ca.

ACTION 3: Next, please DONATE to the Carleton University Lifeline group.
They need help to pay their attorney fees and launch new educational projects on campus. Just $5 would help this group! Please know, 100% of all funds will be donated directly to Carleton University Lifeline and all American donations are tax-deductible. Donate here: https://secure.campaignsolutions.com/studentsforlife/donation3/?initiativekey=JQWRIIVLBHAO.

ACTION 4: Get More Info
Unfortunately, it is not uncommon for Canadian pro-life groups to face discrimination and censorship on their university campuses. A number of groups have fought for the right to exist on campus and for fair and equal treatment from their student unions and administrations. For more info on the challenges Canadian students face and on Canadian campus pro-life activism in general, visit the National Campus Life Network’s website: http://www.ncln.ca/campuses/discrimination-on-campus/

These students are being silenced on a university campus, a place where people should especially be allowed to freely discuss ideas. Please stand with Carleton and support these pro-life students!

This is where you get a chance to talk about and defend your pro-life convictions! You get the opportunity to personally open minds to the pro-life message! It’s great!

There are more details at WhyProLife.com, this is a quick rundown of how it will work for your campus.

1. Recruit your pro-life group and friends
2. Refresh your memory on pro-life facts
3. Pick some times to be out at a busy place on campus together while classes are changing
4. Pass out fliers and explain your pro-life convictions

If you haven’t done this before, don’t worry, it will be great! Just go with someone else and you can work together and support each other. You will likely mostly encounter apathy when talking with people. Let your passion and love for pre-born people to show through. That is the best way to break someone’s apathy.

Get started sharing the pro-life message, refreshing your memory on abortion facts and handing out pro-life fliers at WhyProLife.com now!

The SpeakOut Illinois 2011 conference is coming Saturday, January 29. This year’s featured speaker will be Ken Blackwell of the Family Research Council, and David Bereit of 40 Days for Life will receive the Henry Hyde Life Leadership award.

Breakout sessions will be directed by Eric Scheidler of the Pro-Life Action League, Bill Beckman of Illinois Right to Life, Carl Schroeder of Lutherans for Life, Rev. Doug Merkey of Churches for Life and State Representatives Patricia Bellock and Joseph Lyons.

SpeakOut Illinois and TeenSpeak are always great events that I personally benefit from every year. I hope I see you there! Click here for more.