The Foundation to Abolish Abortion went to the Heartbeat International conference. That’s actually a really big deal. Here’s why you should care:

Heartbeat International, an anti-abortion pregnancy center chain, regularly frames themselves as “compassionate.” A search of their website turns up 134 results in which they laud the alleged “compassion” of their affiliates and other anti-abortion pregnancy centers. They claim to provide “kindness and compassion” to all clients. They’ve even gone so far as to publish a letter condemning the criminalization of abortion seekers in an attempt to frame their opposition to abortion as moderate. Despite this claim to “compassion,” Heartbeat International allowed the extreme anti-abortion group Foundation to Abolish Abortion to table at their most recent conference. Ironically, Heartbeat International’s conference used the theme “The Power of Love.”

Groups like the Foundation to Abolish Abortion do not position their work as loving. Instead, they openly seek laws to punish people who have abortions. They are part of what’s known as the “abortion abolition” movement. This movement co-opts the language of slavery abolitionists, calls for the immediate legal end to abortion without exceptions, and demands that parties involved in an abortion — including the person having the abortion — be charged with murder. The Foundation to Abolish Abortion, which has been sharing its pro-criminalization views on X (formerly Twitter) since 2022, has made it clear that they support the death penalty being applied in these cases. These pro-criminalization, pro-death penalty views did not stop the “compassionate” Heartbeat International from allowing the Foundation to Abolish Abortion to spread their chilling ideology to the anti-abortion pregnancy center workers and volunteers who attended the organization’s flagship annual gathering.

The Foundation to Abolish Abortion spoke positively about their experience at the Heartbeat conference on X (formerly Twitter), claiming that, “Because there is no contradiction between justice and mercy, we can both minister to abortion-minded women and criminalize abortion as murder for everyone involved, including women.” They doubled down on this claim in an article published after the conference, not only claiming that criminalization and mercy go hand-in-hand, but that many anti-abortion pregnancy center employees attending the conference supported their message:

To be clear about what kind of “efforts” the Foundation to Abolish Abortion wants to see, here’s an example of them praising Equal Protection South Carolina president Mark Corral, who testified in support of a state criminalization bill. While the bill does not call for the death penalty, Corral made a point of expressing his support for the death penalty for some abortion patients.

Not exactly the ‘loving,’ ‘compassionate’ marketing anti-abortion pregnancy centers tend to pursue.

Which brings me back to anti-abortion pregnancy centers more generally. Despite some anti-abortion advocates claiming that criminalization would harm anti-abortion pregnancy centers, anyone keeping track won’t be surprised to learn that anti-abortion pregnancy centers are open to the message of criminalization. The head of at least one anti-abortion pregnancy center chain, Alliance Family Services, has since openly embraced “equal protection” (the language often used for criminalization bills) and been platformed by the Foundation to Abolish Abortion for her views. The primary difference between anti-abortion pregnancy centers and the Foundation to Abolish Abortion is not whether they’re willing to criminalize abortion seekers, but how long they’re willing to wait until criminalization is made a reality. Organizations targeting abortion seekers are generally willing to take a slower, “incrementalist” approach, starting with targeted abortion bans and TRAP laws, while groups like the Foundation to Abolish Abortion view anything short of immediate criminalization as an unethical compromise.

While Heartbeat International may put on a façade of compassion and claim to oppose criminalization, the Foundation to Abolish Abortion’s presence at their conference is a disturbing reminder that the anti-abortion movement, regardless of their claims to the contrary, ultimately supports criminalization.

Reproaction has long worked to raise awareness on the harms caused by anti-abortion pregnancy centers — deceptive clinics that prey on people experiencing unplanned pregnancies (and sometimes violate their privacy), all in the name of dissuading people from choosing abortion. While these anti-abortion pregnancy centers attempt to frame themselves as protectors of women, anti-abortion “compassion” will not stop the inevitable march of the anti-