On the Ground: Fighting Crisis Pregnancy Centers at Cal Poly Pomona

Jackie Lara is the president of the Cal Poly Pomona Female Sexuality Society, which is fighting a Crisis Pregnancy Center on their campus.

"Pregnant? Free pregnancy tests!"

"Still hurting from an abortion? Free counseling!"

Amongst the flyers for free pizza at meetings and books for sale, these are some of the advertisements which collegiate women view everyday. For most, it is background noise that simply passes through their processing center without notice, but for a select few, it can mean an opportunity to start anew.

However, when the woman arrives at the advertised location, she is met with a completely different reality. Posters on the wall depict fetuses in various stages of growth, along with biblical quotes set against pictures of happy, smiling babies. This is not the clinic she thought it was, but before she can leave, she is hustled into a bathroom and given a pregnancy test, then sent to wait in another room with a pregnancy counselor. This counselor tells the woman her baby was probably conceived two weeks ago and shows her the stage of development, and that she is going to have an October baby ... all before she even knows the results of her pregnancy test. When she informs the counselor that she had intended to get information about abortion, the woman tells her how her body will be forever damaged, and if she never wants to have children, she should consider sterilization. Luckily, this woman leaves with a negative test, but also with a negative experience. She feels regret, shame, and discontent regarding the entire situation.

This is not a localized incident; this is what happens to women when they go to Crisis Pregnancy Centers. In fact, the story above is a real woman's story. A member of the Female Sexuality Society went undercover to the Women's Pregnancy Center located on Cal Poly Pomona Property (right across the street from student housing) and this was her experience. She knew beforehand she wasn't pregnant, but she confessed to still feeling fear and tension while speaking to the counselor about the "baby."

Some may ask why this is so dangerous, why is this our concern? Cal Poly Pomona's unplanned pregnancy rate is twice the national average. Cal Poly Pomona women are an disadvantage, the odds are already against us, so it is no coincidence that a Women's Pregnancy Center popped up on our campus.

This is why the Female Sexuality Society felt compelled to fight. Because we realize that the women of Cal Poly Pomona are being targeted by religious, anti-choice, organizations; because we realize that 87% of CPCs provide false or misleading information about the health effects of abortions; because we realize that abstinence-only education doesn't work; because we realize that reproductive rights have made such progress and we refuse to return to back-alley abortions; because we realize that women who attend and finish college are more likely to wait to have children and be nurturing mothers; because we believe that all children should be wanted.

As of present, the Female Sexuality Society has taken this matter to the highest level of administration; we have yet to hear a response. California, and the CSU System, is in the midst of a devastating budget crisis, and while this CPC may provide a small inflow of revenue to the university, at what cost to the students? I don't know about the rest of the student body, but I want the law and religions to stay off of my body.

Photo credit: Female Sexuality Society