As a teenager, I wanted to help people in my community and was excited to learn I could volunteer at my local pregnancy center. They offered free pregnancy tests, ultrasounds, consultations and many more resources for pregnant people.
It did not take long for me to realize that these services weren’t being offered by a legitimate medical service and only existed to spread false information about the spectrum of options pregnant people have and to demonize abortion health care. My experience was not rare and barely scratches the surface of what people experience at crisis pregnancy centers (CPCs), which can lead to people having no medical options after being told false information. These CPCs are everywhere, including Winona.
Attacks on reproductive health care have increased in the post-Roe V. Wade era. According to UnRestrict Minnesota: “[CPCs] are part of a billion-dollar industry operated by national anti-abortion organizations like Care Net, Heartbeat International, and Birthright. Their primary mission is to block access to abortion services by spreading disinformation…Despite masquerading as pregnancy resources or maternal wellness centers, these anti-abortion facilities and fake clinics are not typically legitimate medical clinics…Therefore, they are not HIPAA-certified or compliant…these fake clinics, they currently outnumber legitimate abortion clinics in the state at a ratio of about 11:1.”
Pregnant people should be able to receive medical care that doesn’t come with coercion or disinformation, they deserve to be informed about all of their options, including abortion. The stories of young women entrapped by crisis pregnancy centers and the political and legal system that make it possible are important voter issues. Join me, WSU Students for Reproductive Justice and Gender Justice in the Science Laboratory Center 120 on September 24th at 6pm to watch Preconceived and learn more about the pervasive nature of CPCs.
