The Long History of the Anti-Abortion Movement’s Links to White Supremacists

#perspective

White supremacists were already participants in the anti-abortion cause, as Loretta Ross wrote in the 1990s. In 1985, the KKK began creating wanted posters listing personal information for abortion providers (doxing before the Internet age). Randall Terry, founder of the anti-choice group Operation Rescue, and John Burt, regional director of the anti-abortion group Rescue America in the 1990s, adopted this tactic in the 1990s. Terry’s first wanted poster targeted Dr. David Gunn, who was murdered in 1993 in Pensacola, Florida. Gunn’s successor, Dr. John Britton, targeted by a Rescue America wanted poser, was killed in 1994.

The anti-abortion movement in the United States has a complex history intertwined with racism and xenophobia. While the movement has distanced itself from overt white nationalists in recent years, its roots reveal connections to white supremacy. Here are some key points:

1. Historical Context:
   

• In the mid-1800s through the 1900s, Roman Catholic immigration to the US (primarily from countries like Ireland and Italy) sparked fears among white Anglo-Saxon Protestants. They worried about being overtaken demographically and opposed abortion as a means of increasing birthrates among white Protestant women.

• Sociologists noted that laws regulating abortion disproportionately affected middle-class, Anglo-Saxon married women, and physicians argued that their use of abortion threatened the Anglo-Saxon race.

1. Pro-Life Activism and Catholicism:

• Until the 1970s, “pro-life” activism was closely associated with Catholics and the pope. This association deterred many American Protestants from opposing abortion, fearing it was a “papist” issue.

• Over time, the movement broadened beyond Catholic circles, but its origins were deeply tied to religious divisions and racial anxieties.

1. 1990s Collaboration:

• In the 1990s, a wing of the anti-abortion movement collaborated with explicit white nationalist groups. Frustrated by legislative setbacks, they found common ground in their opposition to abortion.

• These connections highlight the movement’s historical entanglement with white supremacy and extremist ideologies.

1. Ongoing Tensions:
   

• While the movement has tried to distance itself from white supremacists, underlying issues persist. Racism, xenophobia, and gender dynamics continue to shape anti-abortion efforts.

In summary, the anti-abortion movement’s past and present reveal complex intersections with white supremacy, reflecting broader societal tensions and historical contexts