According to research from the Guttmacher Institute, the former research arm of Planned Parenthood, the reasons mothers undergo elective abortion are most often socioeconomic. Instead of offering support and resources to give pregnant mothers a path out of desperate circumstances, the abortion industry and its allies suggest that women should undergo abortions and be returned to their difficult situations. Abortion activists even exploit the plight of the homeless to push for unrestricted elective abortion, claiming abortion is necessary because there are already too many “starving, homeless babies.”
Thankfully, there are organizations that offer an alternative for mothers and their children. VICE recently profiled an organization in France that offers housing for homeless mothers and their newborns. In many cases, these women and their children would otherwise have nowhere to go and would be forced onto the streets. “Since June, we’ve welcomed 50 homeless new mothers,” Sihem Habchi, director of activities at the Aurore Association, which runs the center told VICE.
In addition to necessities and adequate shelter, mothers also receive other resources. “Here at the centre, the women have access to a childcare nurse and medical observation, since their health is typically so fragile,” Habchi explained. The group also assists women in applying for different forms of assistance and preparing them for employment following their stay. While most mothers only stay for three months, Habchi says “no one will leave the centre without somewhere to go.”
For some mothers, they become homeless when a partner or family member learns of the pregnancy and turns them out or attempts to coerce the mother into abortion. This was the case for one of the mothers in the center who explained, “In my village in Côte d’Ivoire, they kill women like me, women who haven’t undergone religious rites. I left to protect the baby inside me.”
After staying at the center, many mothers secure employment and are optimistic about their family’s future. One woman, who will be working for a cleaning company, told VICE that once she moves out, “I’ll be opening up a place at the centre for another girl who needs it.” Unfortunately, the center in France is likely to close later this year for reasons not specified in the reporting.
Thankfully, this model of compassionate care is not unique to France. In 2018, a housing developer in Canada donated an entire building to house homeless mothers. Resources like those offered at the center in France also exist in the United States and other parts of the world. Pregnancy resource centers connect mothers with resources for a healthy pregnancy, help families find assistance for food and housing, provide necessities like clothing and baby supplies, and offer classes to prepare mothers for parenting and career development, or work with mothers who want to place their children in adoptive families.
Mothers in difficult circumstances deserve real help and real options, not the lie that their child is better off dead than born into poverty.
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