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(Photo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20081009/CLTH020 )
As the election cycle heats up, so does the political rhetoric surroundingabortion. Labels, judgment, and debate may bring up a range of emotions forthe millions of men, women, family members and friends touched by abortion.One new outreach is taking a different approach.
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"The political language surrounding abortion can pick at tender wounds,"says Michaelene Fredenburg, author of Changed: Making Sense of Your Own or aLoved One's Abortion Experience, "It can be an extremely difficult time forsomeone like myself who has been there."
Fredenburg created the Abortion Changes You outreach as a safe place awayfrom politics, labels and debate to meet the needs of men and women who haveshared their abortion stories, and their frustration with the culturalclimate, with her. "One young man named Zach told me 'I can't talk to thosewho are liberal because abortion is supposed to be okay. And the people on theRight are scary,'" says Fredenburg. "I kept thinking, what is there for peoplelike Zach?"
Eye-catching transit ads will appear today throughout the New York Citysubway system. The ads were unveiled last month at Fordham University.Recognizing that the New York City population largely uses mass transit fortransportation, Fredenburg hopes these ads will resonate with those who havebeen touched by abortion -- either their own or that of someone close to them.
The Abortion Changes You national outreach is an invitation for men,women, grandparents, siblings, other family members and friends to know thatthey are not alone and that healing resources are available. The 22-inchsubway placards feature images of men and women and their "voices," inspiredby real, personal abortion experiences. An Asian female shares, "I thoughtlife would be the way it was before," while a tattooed male inspired by Zachsays, "I often wonder if there was something I could have done to help her."
One thousand subway cards featuring these voices will run for four weeksbeginning October 9, 2008 and will direct people to the Abortion Changes YouWeb site. On AbortionChangesYou.com visitors will be able to participate ininteractive content where they can learn how to build a support system,explore a range of emotions, identify unhealthy behaviors, and anonymouslyshare about their experiences through stories, artwork, poetry, and songs.
"We know how to shout about abortion, but we don't know how to have acompassionate conversation," says Fredenburg, "It is my hope that in the midstof this volatile political season we might hear something different."
For more information or to schedule an interview with MichaeleneFredenburg please contact Ashley Walker or Christine Schicker at 678-990-9032,both with The Maximus Group.
SOURCE AbortionChangesYou.com
