Arlington, Va., May 7, 2009 / 09:49 am
Students for Life, a national pro-life student organization, sent President Obama a letter saying they were "alarmed" at the administration’s "ignorance" by including pro-lifers in the Department of Homeland Security’s Assessment of "Rightwing Extremism" report and requested that Obama "educate" his staff on the goals of the movement.
Last month, CNA reported that the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) equated being "abortion opponents" with white supremacists. Since the release of the report, DHS Secretary Janet Napolitano has retracted some of the statements from the report concerning veterans, but has failed to retract any of the reports comments made about the pro-life movement’s inclusion in the report.
Students for Life, which has local organizations at over 492 universities, said the report was "extremely insulting" and clearly showed the Obama Administration’s "ignorance" about "what [they] stand to accomplish."
The letter also referenced a previous DHS Reference Aid, Domestic Extremism Lexicon. The report said that pro-lifers were "a movement of groups or individuals who are virulently antiabortion and advocate violence against providers of abortion-related services, their employees, and their facilities. Some cite various racist and anti-Semitic beliefs to justify their criminal activities."
In response to these reports, Students for Life clarified that this description is "terribly inaccurate." They explained to Obama that their group includes all political parties, races, "people of faith and no faith," and said that his Administration’s charge was "absurd" and was "labeling" 48% of the 18-29 year-old group as "violent extremists."
Their letter also noted that their group works "tirelessly every day" to "educate the campus body about the procedures of abortion, the risks and complications of abortion, and fetal development." They also work to help the mother after giving birth by lobbying their administrations to "reduced cost daycare, flexible class schedules, and student-parent housing."
The conclusion of the letter clearly reminded Obama that none of their mission statements promoted anything "racist, anti-Semitic, violent, or disrespectful to the United States" and that anyone who "commit acts of violence are, in fact not pro-life."
Students for Life also requested that Obama "educate" his staff "about the goals of the pro-life movement" and correct their misguided views. They also offered to meet with Obama to discuss their "visions and goals" for America.