Our republic whose founding documents recognize and protect the God-given right to free speech has witnessed some of its most esteemed beneficiaries undermine it. For examples, the Associated Press, Reddit, and the Merriam-Webster Dictionary took it upon themselves to “redefine” words and language in the service of politics; and, as time and again we’ve seen, once these “redefinitions” happen, what follows is the censorship and the cancel culture that enforces it.
The Associated Press added an entry to its style guide directing journalists to put the term “crisis pregnancy center” in scare-quotes, and to use “anti-abortion center” instead, to convey that “the centers’ general aim is to prevent abortions…”
The AP added this entry between Nov. 20 and Nov. 27, 2022, according to The Daily Signal’s search… The guide describes the centers as “set up to divert or discourage women from having abortions” and warns writers against “potentially misleading terms” like “pregnancy resource centers or pregnancy counseling centers.” [Emphasis mine.]
“It’s disgraceful that so-called journalistic professionals succumb to pro-abortion political activists to do their bidding… These centers are the backbone of the pro-life movement, serving as boots-on-the-ground representatives of a movement that cares deeply for both mom and baby. [Again,] it’s a disgrace that the media have taken such an active stance against these centers, especially at a time in our history when women really need help, acknowledgement, and someone to lean on during a difficult time.”
The AP’s pregnancy center definition follows at least 80 attacks against pregnancy centers since the leak of the Supreme Court’s draft opinion overturning Roe v. Wade in early May, according to the Catholic Vote tracker. Abortion advocates have firebombed and spray-painted the centers, which provide free medical and financial support to pregnant and new mothers, with pro-abortion and anarchist messages and symbols.
“Offer(ing) love and practical resources…[Pregnancy help centers] help everyone and their doors are open to women who seek counseling and support after all forms of pregnancy loss. It is well past time that the AP Guide’s authors visit some of the thousands of thriving centers everywhere in the U.S. and get the guide back to a standard of high-quality reportorial content and ethics.”
At the risk of transgressing the dictates of the Apparatchik Press Substancebook, I say “Amen.”
A Human Events contributor, the Hon. Thaddeus G. McCotter (M.C., Ret.) represented Michigan’s 11th Congressional district from 2003-2012, and served as Chair of the Republican House Policy Committee. Not a lobbyist, he is a frequent public speaker and moderator for public policy seminars; and a Monday co-host of the "John Batchelor Radio Show," among sundry media appearances.