See the photos

Holding these posters was a great growing experience for me. It was the best week of my life. I learned so much . . . . I was persecuted . . . . Many of my friends, including some of my close friends were angry . . . . Some of my friends are not speaking to me anymore. However, God really taught me how to stand up for my faith. He even provided several opportunities to share the Gospel with non-Christians.

Sarah Fassman, a freshman science major, e-mailed a similar account:

At first I was hesitant to help hold the signs around campus. I pictured angry people yelling in my face and I didn’t know what I would say or do if that happened.

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When I first saw the signs I was startled. I didn’t know what to expect, but I hadn’t expected them to be that big or that graphic.

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While I helped out that first day I realized how important it was to have the students on my campus see these pictures.

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Each day of the week found me more and more absorbed in helping out. I found that I couldn’t stay away from the signs. There were so many opportunities to talk to my peers who agreed and disagreed with our stance. I talked to so many people that week who I never would have talked to if not for the signs. Several of my friends came and helped out as well and we all agreed that no one on campus would forget that week.

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I learned a lot from watching Gregg, Lois, David, Dina and Austin [CBR staff members] calmly talk to people who yelled in their faces.

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It also gave us the chance to share the life saving message of Jesus Christ with people.

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If I wouldn’t have helped out I think I would have still had my reservations about the whole thing, but being there and actually helping made a huge difference. I could see first hand that we were making a difference in peoples lives.

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I am so glad that I trusted in God to help me. We should not be afraid to tell the truth. The truth will most definitely offend and convict people of their sin, but that is what will make them see their need for a savior -- Jesus Christ. I am so glad that GAP came to our campus. I learned so much about God from this experience.

I never pictured abortion being like that, I couldn’t believe (and even thought at first that that the pictures must be fake) that it was true. I had read the methods of abortion in many books. I had studied biology and general anatomy (since my major was originally pre-med) but I never pictured abortion being like these pictures. No wonder the books I read didn’t have any pictures.

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Hearing Gregg and being involved during the week definitely changed me. I’m very grateful to God for opening my eyes and for you guys taking the time to come here and making a difference.

In addition to CBR’s daily display of a confidential phone number which could be called for crisis pregnancy or post abortion help, Campus Crusade for Christ offered aid in the campus newspaper:

If there are any women (or men) out there who don’t feel they’ve fully resolved the pain of having an abortion, please contact us and allow us to love you as Christ does, listen to you and help you to work through the pain. You can contact us by e-mail at: beh7@psu.edu. There is hope!

Staff members of several campus Christian ministries helped hold our GAP signs each day and leaders of seven of these organizations also published a joint letter offering post-abortion healing in Christ, urging adoption over abortion and listing the phone number of the local crisis pregnancy center.

The only cleric to condemn the project in print ("unacceptable") was Fr. Fred Byrne, the priest who directs the Penn State Catholic Community. But many members of the Newman Association (Catholic students) nevertheless participated in the project and the pastor of the local Catholic parish, Rev. Anthony J. Petracca wrote the following in a guest column he penned for the local paper:

I am happy that this display appeared on campus, in an academic milieu, where students are not to be fed some party line, but taught to think by being exposed to different points of view.

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Jesus has been recrucified in lynched blacks, gassed Jews, and now in aborted babies. How long are we going to permit such inhuman violence to continue?

Before setting up a display on the edge of campus which adjoins a major shopping district, CBR placed several warning signs a block away from the abortion panels, cautioning parents of young children who might wish to avoid the area. A mother nonetheless ventured forward, picking up her four-old and turning him away from the display. She wrote the school newspaper to describe having resisted pressure to abort this child and to say: "I’ve never written a letter like this before, so I thank those who put up the billboards . . . for making me face the truth of all the terrible crimes against human lives and impacting me so deeply."

Amid much student disapproval, a columnist for the school paper wrote that:

The posters serve as a positive influence on campus, not only to preserve free speech, but also to remind people of what is going on in the world.

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It’s easier to allow things like abortions to go on if you can pretend that they don’t happen, or if you don’t understand what they really are. "Out of sight, out of mind." But with posters like the ones displayed on campus you can’t hide from the truth.

The campus newspaper itself editorialized that:

No matter what anyone thinks about abortion or the week-long demonstrations, it cannot be disputed that the display and the issue generated discussion throughout much of the community.

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If nothing else, the Center for Bio-Ethical Reform and its display made the majority of us think.

Seeing an abortion is traumatic. But having one is immeasurably more so. And experience teaches us that people who have seen an abortion are far less likely to be willing to have one -- or to tolerate their unrestricted availability.

GAP has proved itself to be astoundingly effective but it is almost equally controversial. Prior to our arrival at Penn State, one local pro-life organization so vehemently opposed the project that they refused even to help provide lodging for our volunteers. To their credit, after spending two days surreptitiously observing student reaction to the displays, two of the group’s leaders conceded to us that they had been wrong in predicting disaster. Even more graciously, one of those leaders later wrote to encourage us to repeat the project "at every college campus in America."

The pro-life movement has unwittingly made itself part of the abortion cover-up. We care more about what people think of us than what they think about abortion! We are telling society, "you don’t bother us and we won’t bother you."

GAP at Penn State was the first time in the history of the pro-life movement that so many Americans in the age group that is prime for abortion vulnerability have been so effectively engaged on this issue. There is no way of ever knowing how many lives were saved but easily thirty thousand students could have seen these photos and a considerable number of them were either pregnant at the time or soon will be. Some of them will no doubt choose life after seeing a truth that mere words could never adequately convey; images they will remember until the day they die, revisiting these pictures again and again. And they will go on to be leaders in government, science, education, business and the professions. Their influence on this nation’s future will be immense. We believe that historians will look back at this week as a turning point in this country’s struggle to end abortion. Although the gains were great, the expenses were not. This may be the most cost-effective pro-life project ever conceived.

CBR waived our honoraria and absorbed all of our expenses for food, lodging and travel (including very expensive truck rental to transport 26 signs, 8 generators, outdoor lights, power cords, etc.). The students were not charged a penny for our presence on their campus. There are many reasons that it was wise to not accept any money from the University, not least, that The Department of Police Services nearly went broke paying overtime to officers assigned to provide us with security. We also distributed video tapes, posters and training manuals (already in use by students writing academic papers, speeches, etc.) free of charge.

We plan to repeat our success on every major college campus in America but we need your help in funding this exciting new venture. We need $15,000 to buy a used truck to transport and store the signs and related equipment (a 24 foot box-bodied diesel truck would be ideal) and approximately $5,000 must be raised to fund each campus visit. This is hard work. But if you can help us, it would be difficult to imagine a more worthwhile way to invest your pro-life dollars.

P.S. One last letter from Penn State freshman:

. . . [A]s I walked closer to read and compare pictures, I began to cry. These large and eye-catching pictures depicted the harsh truth of today’s society and my tears were shed for that little helpless body that could have been our next president if he or she was only given a chance. I entered college last fall with a strong religious background and my opinion on abortion had fallen to just thinking it was not good for my own life. After really looking at these pictures, I realized that perhaps this opinion stemmed from the fact that I could not stand up for myself and these children of God on such a liberal campus. . . . I admire the strength of those who peacefully stood together for their beliefs and welcomed all concerns, complaints, and even opposing protest . . . . This message was powerful and I pray for your safety and strength.