Copyright ncregister
In the wake of the leak of the U.S. Supreme Court’s Dobbs decision in 2022, Sen. Elizabeth Warren, a Democrat from Massachusetts, took to the Senate floor to announce the Stop Anti-Abortion Disinformation Act at the federal level. “In this extraordinary moment, we must do everything we can to ensure that patients get the health care and reproductive services that they need — and that includes protecting patients from the deceptive practices of some so-called ‘crisis pregnancy centers,’ or CPCs,” Warren declared. Although the bill never passed, similar legislation exists in California, Illinois and elsewhere. That same year, more than 100 pro-life pregnancy centers were attacked. Within hours of the release of the Dobbs decision on June 24, 2022, a pro-life pregnancy-resource center (PRC) in Salt Lake City was vandalized. A sign was taped to the front of the door that read: “If abortions aren’t safe neither are you,” adding, “Women are fragile, not like a flower, but more like a bomb.” Fast-forward to 2025: Filmmaker Cindy Morales has produced a new documentary — Fake Clinics? — that will air on EWTN this Friday. She said these targeted attacks are not new, but she chronicles the recent rise in such incidents, including legislation targeting the vital work the pro-life centers do in communities across the country. “The attack on PRCs for being ‘fake clinics’ is not new; but after the Dobbs decision, they really ramped up,” Morales told the Register. “State and federal legislators introduced bills claiming PRCs engaged in false advertising and tried to force them to tell their clients where to get an abortion. My state of Illinois introduced several bills that are making their way through the courts; Massachusetts, California and other ‘blue’ states as well.” The documentary not only exposes the smear attacks, vandalism and dangerous legislation being deployed by pro-abortion states across the country; it also weaves in insights from the real people running these centers and the women who they serve. The documentary sheds light on the deceptive practices of abortion facilities like Planned Parenthood. One woman claims that when she decided not to go through with an abortion, the doctor tried to coerce her to follow through. And pro-abortion senators spread devastating lies about the centers, Morales said, explaining that these politicians claim that “PRCs use false advertising to get women into the clinic and lie to them about abortion risks and even the age of the baby,” Pro-life doctors are also featured, including Dr. Karen Poehailos, who has worked extensively in NaProtechnology and is also renowned for her abortion-pill-reversal service. She has had tremendous success reversing abortions after women took mifepristone, which is really becoming more commonplace, despite the dangers associated with this deadly drug. “When the abortion pill was first introduced, it was with several stipulations that are no longer being followed,” Morales said. “It was only supposed to be used for the first seven weeks of pregnancy. You had to see a doctor. Now, you can order the pills and have your abortion in the comfort of your bathroom. Predicably, ER visits under these circumstances are on the rise. And it is only a matter of time before more women die because of this ‘safe’ pill.” And this war against pregnancy-resource centers also highlights the physical and psychological trauma that exists for any woman who aborts her baby. Pro-life pregnancy-resource centers do everything for the health of the woman and the baby. So why are they being attacked? “I think they are being attacked because they are the most effective weapon the pro-life movement has against abortion,” Morales told the Register. Peggy Hartshorn, chairman of the board of Heartbeat International, has called pro-life pregnancy-resource centers the “foot soldiers” of the pro-life movement. And they keep growing, while abortion facilities are shutting down. Morales said that there are more than 3000 pro-life pregnancy centers across the country. “Abortion centers keep closing, and I think they are down to around 650 to 700.” The medical services usually offered by pro-life centers are limited to ultrasounds, pregnancy tests and sometimes STI testing. Nurses, sonographers and doctors that work for PRCs have to follow standard procedures, carry malpractice insurance, and are regulated by the standards of their profession, ensuring quality care. Morales said PRCs are ultimately in the business of offering hope: “They offer hope, empowerment and real solutions during crisis pregnancies. The message that abortion providers give is ‘you are not strong enough to handle having your baby.’ Abortion activists try to sell abortion as the empowering choice, but it isn’t. A crisis brings a woman to an abortion facility. When she walks out, the baby is gone, but the crisis that brings her there is not. Pro-life pregnancy centers help a woman deal with the crisis.”
