The Lumberjack



Students Serving The Cal Poly Humboldt Campus and Community Since 1929

Tag: 40 Days For Life

  • Pro-life protest through positivity

    Pro-life protest through positivity

    The sun streaks through the patchy white clouds and the breeze blows cold off the bay against Moriah Nelson’s face as she sits alone on a corner in Eureka. Next to her are white signs with black lettering stating the message of her protest.

    “Pray to End Abortion,” the sign reads.

    Nelson, 25, has been involved in anti-abortion activism for three years now, working with the Eureka branch of the 40 Days for Life.

    This is a protest that goes on throughout the length of Christian Lent, where protesters sit outside of Planned Parenthood in a peaceful demonstration.

    “It is compassion and Christ-like love that will change and help these women,” Nelson said.

    Nelson said that when she first found out about abortion, she was horrified.

    “I had a lot of misplaced anger as a teenager,” Nelson said.

    Nelson began her anti-abortion activism, as well as volunteering, at a local Pregnancy Care Center in order to initiate change. The center provides clothing and supplies to women and children in need, as well as hosting a medical facility equipped with volunteer nurses.

    “I like being able to serve in a tangible way,” Nelson said, “Women say to us that they are so thankful.”

    Nelson is the oldest of her eight siblings, the youngest is four. They all live together in their Eureka family home, and all of the children are part of a strong homeschool community.

    The family is involved with activism in the community. Nelson said her grandfather was heavily involved in solving the homeless issue up until his passing in 2016. Her brother Courtland, 20, is continuing the legacy.

    “We’re hoping we can build a relationship with the homeless and try to get them to a better place,” Courtland said.

    Every Friday night, Courtland goes out with a group of his friends and some sandwiches to talk and pray with the homeless in Eureka. He is also involved with a pregnancy clinic, painting for them and serving at the annual banquet.

    Courtland is not as active on the issue as his sister.

    While Nelson’s family and service is a huge component of her life, another big focus is her future husband and upcoming wedding in September.

    Her boyfriend Johnny Wisan, 25, is also a Eureka local currently working with at-risk children for an internship at a church in Wales. The program involves mentoring, praying and activities every night.

    The couple met at the age of seven through the homeschool community and she said they immediately knew they would get married.

    Nelson has been to Wales twice, and after their marriage, the couple plans to relocate if he is able to acquire a paid position at the church.

    Though she has never left her childhood home and family, Nelson said that through prayer, she and Wisan realized that Wales was where they could best serve the children.

    “How can I say I am pro-life if I don’t step up and make a change?” Nelson said.

  • Letter to the editor in response to “40-day anti-abortion protest begins in Eureka”

    Letter to the editor in response to “40-day anti-abortion protest begins in Eureka”

    Dear Editor,

    Regarding the Lumberjack article about the 40-Day Anti-Abortion Protest – HSU students need to know that not all religions or religious leaders believe that human sexuality is evil and something to be ashamed of. They need to know that some ways of faith regard sexuality as a blessing to be carefully and thoughtfully enjoyed between people as a way of communicating and sharing love – even if they aren’t married and even if they aren’t heterosexual.

    Like fire, human sexuality can, of course, hurt people both emotionally and physically. As people learn how to express their sexuality and share it with others, they learn by trial and error. Some religions shame people about this reality. Other religions offer factually accurate information and encourage people to make thoughtful and caring choices in keeping with their own deep values.

    The United States is a secular nation that works to guarantee freedom of religion for all its citizens. People whose faith calls them to abstain from all sexual activity before marriage or to abstain from birth control and abortion are free to follow the dictates of their hearts. And people whose faith or whose approach to life allows them more freedom around their sexual expression are also free to do as they see fit.

    Some religious people would like to do away with respect for religious freedom when it comes to human sexuality. But they do not speak for all religious people. Clergy for Choice is a group of interfaith religious leaders who support men and women in carefully finding their own way regarding their own sexuality. Clergy for Choice supports the compassionate and highly professional work of Planned Parenthood.

    So while some religious people practice 40 days of protest to end abortion and to end religious freedom around human sexual expression, other religious people practice a lifetime of supporting Planned Parenthood and thorough and effective reproductive health care for people as they make their own choices in this vulnerable and tender aspect of their lives.

    Sincerely,

    Rev. Bryan Jessup
    The Humboldt Unitarian Universalist Fellowship
    PO Box 506
    Bayside, CA 95524 – Phone: 707 822-3793

  • 40-day anti-abortion protest begins in Eureka

    40-day anti-abortion protest begins in Eureka

    In association with the global campaign 40 Days For Life, a group of people gathered in Eureka outside of Planned Parenthood to protest from Feb. 14 to March 25 in an effort to end abortion. Feb. 13 was the largest kickoff mlly the group has witnessed so far.

    The chill in the air was almost tangible outside of the Planned Parenthood in Eureka as a group of churchgoers gathered on the corner to protest abortion.

    Feb. 13 was the kickoff rally for the 40 Days For Life campaign, a global organization that strives to end abortion through prayer and peaceful activism.

    Stephanie Goodwin, 51, ran four campaigns in the city of Eureka and says the reaction from the community has not been negative.

    “There’s a lot of positive reactions,” Goodwin said.

    Goodwin said the organization’s aim is to be very peaceful, with their primary goal of restoration and healing.

    The campaign began on Feb. 14 and continues until March 25. The group will be returning to host the 40 Days For Life vigil from 7 a.m. until 7 p.m. every day.

    Bill Belairs, 63, and his wife Donna Belairs, 60, also have had positive experiences in their time participating in anti-abortion activism.

    “Some people flip you off,” Bill said.

    At this rally, not one individual came to protest the protesters.

    The Belairs said this was the biggest kickoff they have ever had for the 40 Days For Life protest.

    The rally began with individuals gathering on the corner of Walford and Wilson, shaking hands, lighting and passing out candles and then gathering.

    The ceremony opened with a prayer from Reverend Eddie Ramon, 46, who is the associate pastor at the Sacred Heart Church in Eureka.

    “We ask the Lord to stop the horror of the taking of human lives,” Ramon said.

    After his prayers, which Ramon recited in both English and Spanish, Mark Seitz, 39, with the Fortuna Church of the Nazarian took center circle to begin his prayers, accompanied by a trumpet made out of an animal horn called a shofar.

    “We must proclaim publically and fearlessly that though abortion may be legal in our land, it is not just in our land. For America, we sound the shofar,” Seitz said.

    A guitar was played and lyrics were passed around as the group sang songs such as “Create me in a Clean Heart,” “Oh Lord I Love you Forever” and “No Longer Slaves.”

    The event concluded with a final prayer from Reverend Ramon and attendees parted ways until they join again the next morning at the official beginning of the protest.

    Reverend Eddie Ramon reading from Matthew 18:19 to a crowd outside of the Eureka Planned Parenthood to protest abortion as a part of the 40 Days For Life initiative. Photo by Abigail LeForge.

    The press release for the event boasts the successes of these campaigns, claiming they have saved almost 14,000 children from abortions.

    “Dozens of abortion facilities have experienced sharp setbacks, cutting back hours and closing down for days at a time,” Goodwin said. “94 abortion facilities have been closed.”