Leadership of Capitol Hill Pregnancy Center in Washington, D.C. denounced alleged pro-abortion vandals who attacked the center Friday.
The pregnancy center was covered in red paint, windows were splattered with eggs and the phrase “Jane Says Revenge” was spray-painted on one of the building’s walls, according to the center’s staff, who believe the culprits were pro-choice activists.
“My initial reaction was just sadness,” Capitol Hill Pregnancy Center executive director Janet Durig told The Daily Caller News Foundation. “But, as the day went on we received an outpouring of support, and that sadness turned to strength because I knew there were people in the community who supported us.”
Students and others protest for abortion rights as they march from Union Square, after the leak of a draft majority opinion written by Justice Samuel Alito preparing for a majority of the court to overturn the landmark Roe v. Wade abortion rights decision later this year, in Manhattan in New York City, New York, U.S., May 5, 2022. REUTERS/Mike Segar
The center aids expecting mothers and their families by providing material support such as diapers, counseling services, pregnancy tests and other services, according to Monique Summers, a board member for the center. A majority of the center’s clients are individuals and families who are socioeconomically disadvantaged, according to Summers. (RELATED: WEEKEND OF ‘INTIMIDATION’: Abortion Activists Descend On Justices’ Homes As Vandals Hit Churches, Pro-Life Groups)
“We are 100% pro-life, but we also respect a woman’s choice,” Summers told TheDCNF. “Our mission is to give women the full information to empower themselves to have a choice.”
“This type of intimidation is beneath us as a nation,” Durig told TheDCNF, adding that she would “like to see this never happen again.”
The Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) did a “phenomenal job” when it came to addressing the situation, according to Durig. After evidence was collected, the MPD sent a team to wash the spray paint away and clean up the scene.
Pregnancy centers similar to the one located in Washington, D.C. have seen an increase in attacks, according to the Catholic News Agency. Centers in Seattle and Wisconsin saw similar attacks to the one in Washington, with offices in Wisconsin being attacked with a Molotov cocktail.
Several Catholic churches have also been vandalized or attacked because of the church’s view on abortion.