Chapter Ideas: Involving Youth in the Pro-Life Movement (Part 2)

Colleges 101: Bringing Your Message to Your Local Campus

By Holly Miller
NRLC Field Coordinator

My first day of college changed my life forever. I was a wide-eyed 18-year-old and it was a beautiful September afternoon at Seattle University (SU). There were blue skies, green trees, mountains on the horizon in every direction, and, contrary to popular belief, no rain was in sight at that time of year. Plus, I had just moved away from home for an amazing adventure in academia.

Maybe I was a little nervous, but excitement was in the air, and it was intensified by the fair being held in the middle of campus. Each of the 100- plus clubs on campus had a booth advertising their causes and activities, and like most freshmen, I signed up for at least half a dozen, including, in my case, Students for Life.

I can still picture the Students for Life table: over in the back, left corner of the Quad with two smiling women sitting behind it. I didn't realize until a few weeks later that those two seniors were the only active members of the club.

I immediately became the third active member, and as the months and years progressed, we became a larger, more active, and more vibrant club. More importantly, the right-to-life movement had a presence and unborn children had a voice on our campus.

My personal commitment to the right-to-life movement also deepened. I don't know where I'd be today had I not made that little effort to join SU Students for Life, but it's a safe bet I wouldn't be sitting at this desk in the National Right to Life offices in Washington, D.C.

I was raised pro-life, and loved debating friends about the issue. But I had never been active until that day in college. From there, I got an internship application for the National Right to Life Committee, was offered the internship, then another one, then a full-time job here starting in 2000.

Three years later, I've been able to help elect a pro-life President, hold the U.S. House and take back the Senate. I've especially enjoyed working with the many chapter chairs and grassroots volunteers around the country in my travels as field coordinator.

All this because two young women had the courage to start a Students for Life club on a liberal college campus in Seattle!

My story is quite similar to those of many young people I've met through National Right to Life and National College Students for Life. And we need more of those students to become actively pro-life in order to educate their classmates and stay active after graduation.

If your community has a college or university, be it private or public, small or large, religious or non-sectarian, make an effort to educate and involve its students in the right-to-life movement. Below, I'll outline a few ways to prevent the work of your chapter from stopping at the border of the college campus.

Encourage identified pro-life students to start a Students for Life group. College students making the effort to educate their friends and classmates on the life issues will be much more effective than an outside organization. Students relate to their peers and thereby respond better to peer education. I believe that most of the discussion of this issue on campuses happens in dorm rooms, at coffee shops, and around cafeteria tables. A Students for Life group that educates its members will have a ripple effect throughout campus every time these conversations occur. Moreover, a group of pro-life students just being themselves will challenge the media-driven negative stereotypes many have about pro-lifers.

Next, every campus has them, but they may be tough to spot. They may be hiding in math departments, business schools, or engineering labs. I am referring to pro-life professors.

Make a concerted effort to identify faculty members that share our respect for life. Regardless of their field of study, they can bring a pro-life perspective and have a much easier time operating on campus than would an outside speaker. Students for Life groups also need faculty advisors to champion their interests to the school administration and provide sound counsel. Thus, even a pro-life professor who has no interest in speaking up can be an invaluable asset for pro-life students.

Another way to promote the pro-life message is to offer to provide speakers to address college classes. Local pro-life legislators, crisis pregnancy counselors, doctors, nurses, and lawyers would all be fantastic guest speakers on their areas of expertise.

For example, ask a pro-life obstetrician or general practitioner to teach prenatal human development to biology students. Local pregnancy resource centers may be able to provide a speaker for psychology or sociology classes on post-abortion syndrome, or the impact of teen pregnancy, abortion, childbirth, and adoption on young mothers based on their experience working with pregnant teens.

Making educational resources available to the women's center, campus ministry, and the library are easy and relatively inexpensive ways to make the pro-life perspective available to students. Leave your chapter's contact information with each piece of literature so students know where to turn for more information.

Cosponsor an event to be held on campus. Our student group helped the local chapter host its annual oratory contest for high school students. The chapter was able to use the school's facilities for a reduced rate and the event was a good recruiting tool by bringing pro-life students to campus. Campus groups also appreciate the encouragement and support (sometimes financial) of the wider community, and helping them pull off an event is a good way to enhance the quality of their work.

Finally, don't forget to invite students to volunteer with your local chapter. They will bring energy and fresh ideas to your work. This is also a good way to introduce them to active involvement in the right-to-life movement as an adult.

So, what are you waiting for? Making inroads at your local college will have a much larger impact than you realize!