Anti-Abortion Counseling Centers Are Not Alternatives to Health Centers
by Hannah White (she/her), Letty Torres (she/her), and Max Mapes (they/them)
Given the overwhelming victory against the abortion ban on the Colorado ballot last year, you might have seen pro-abortion activists breathe a collective sigh of relief or let their guard down in the fight for legal abortion. But there’s still uncertainty surrounding abortion access on the federal level as a consequence of Justice Amy Coney Barrett’s confirmation this past October. Already this year, the reproductive justice movement has seen a disappointing Supreme Court verdict that will require people to pick up their abortion pills in person, adding yet another burden to those seeking an abortion (on top of the burdens already caused by the pandemic). The cycle of abortion stigma and disinformation certainly contributes to the erosion of equitable access to abortion on every level. While it may get more coverage on the state and federal level, there are small ways to minimize the impact of stigmatization and disinformation surrounding abortion. Challenging the media’s marginalization of the harm that anti-abortion activists perpetrate is one of them.
One of the most harmful tactics of the anti-abortion movement is the weaponization of pregnancy counseling through anti-abortion counseling centers (AACCs). AACCs, also known as Crisis Pregnancy Centers (CPCs), Pregnancy Resource Centers, or Fake Clinics, are pro-life, often faith-based, organizations whose sole purpose is to prevent people from accessing abortion care through deception, medical disinformation, and stigma. AACCs mimic the language, design, and even building interior of real reproductive health centers to trick people into thinking they are medically licensed reproductive health centers. They get people in the door by offering free pregnancy and STD testing and advertising themselves as comprehensive reproductive health centers. Then, they provide medical disinformation about abortion, contraception, and safe-sex practices “that have been labeled as inaccurate and deliberately misleading by the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists.” But based on the media’s portrayal of AACCs, you wouldn’t know that.
In a recent article published by MetMedia — MSU Denver’s student-run publication — the author, Rachel Lorenz, went over the different healthcare options offered to Auraria students, including Alternatives Pregnancy Centers, an AACC that often parks their “mobile clinic” (a windowless white van staffed by volunteers that don’t need to be medically trained) on Auraria’s campus. Lorenz’s article is just another incident of the media falsely equating real health centers and AACCs, feeding into the lie that AACCs are legitimate reproductive health centers, perpetuating the harm that AACCs cause.
We at the Brazen Project want people to know that going to the Health Center at Auraria and going to Alternatives are very different experiences. Alternatives is not a licensed health center, nor are they required to have licensed medical professionals on-site. Prospective patients will not receive accurate medical information or be informed about all of their options. The Health Center at Auraria is a licensed health center with licensed practitioners that can help with all your healthcare needs. Their staff will talk to pregnant students about all of their options, including abortion. They do not have a hidden agenda and seek to help all students stay safe and healthy. Even if you do not want to get an abortion, going to the Health Center at Auraria — or another legitimate health center — and seeing a real healthcare provider that is required to provide you with medically accurate information is still a better option.
