A Texas teenager who successfully battled her parents in court for the right to choose life for her baby is being hailed as a hero by the women and men of the Silent No More Awareness Campaign.

“No one – not a husband, not a boyfriend, not even a minor’s parents - has the legal right to force a pregnant woman to have an abortion,” said Campaign co-founders Janet Morana and Georgette Forney. “A woman’s right to choose has to include the right to choose life.”

Many women whose abortion stories are featured on the Silent No More website talk about the ways they were coerced into having an abortion. Threats of violence and abandonment are common, and parents often tell teenage girls they won’t be able to live at home if they continue with their pregnancies.

"The irony is that what is promoted as a woman's choice is all too often forced by a young woman’s parents,” said Father Frank Pavone, National Director of Priests for Life and pastoral adviser for Silent No More. “Abortion is not about freedom of choice. It's about feeling you have no freedom and no choice."

Father Pavone also hailed the victory in Texas.

"Parents who force abortions on their daughters can be charged with multiple violations of the law,” he said. “We will see to it that more parents and their daughters are aware of that."

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Since the launch of the Silent No More Awareness Campaign in 2003, 5,612 women and men have shared their testimonies publicly at over 1,195 gatherings in 48 states and 10 countries. More than 12,865 people representing 77 countries are registered to be Silent No More.  Raising awareness about the hurtful aftermath of abortion and the help that is available to cope with the pain are two of the Campaign’s goals.  The Campaign has over 1,718 testimonies posted here, with over 214 that are shared via video! 

The Silent No More Awareness Campaign is a joint project of Anglicans for Life and Priests for Life.  For more information, please visit our website: 

www.SilentNoMoreAwareness.org