CU Students for Life Protests Pro-Choice Rally in Cleveland

Pro-life mingles with pro-choice at Cleveland State University’s Wolstein Center to protest the free abortion rights concert on Saturday, Sept. 10.

CU students stand beside Students for Life of America protesters. [Photo courtesy of Adrienne Krater]

Students for Life of America (SFLA) leader Kristan Hawkins fills the 15 CU participants in on the purpose of the protest and the organization. Hawkins was hired in 2006 to lead SFLA, and has been highly influential in the expansion of the organization.

Sophomore Elena Hein, treasurer of the CU Students for Life org, was one of the participants.

Protesters line the sidewalks leading to the center to address those attending the concert as they arrive.

A friendly reminder from the members of Students for Life of America.

Concert ushers wearing neon vests reading “Pro Choice Clinic Escort” intervene, greeting concert attendees before they are greeted by the pro-life protesters.

One Students for Life of America protester demonstrates the power of not only signs, but also prayer.

Kristan Hawkins takes a bolder approach to reaching out to those expressing favor of all-access abortion.

The CU Students for Life crew. [Photo courtesy of Adrienne Krater]

(photos by Naomi Harward)

A group of students from Cedarville’s Students for Life (SFL) organization traveled to Cleveland, Ohio on Saturday, Sept. 10  to protest a pro-choice promotional concert sponsored by the All-Access Coalition.

The Coalition advocates for unrestricted abortion being made available to all American women. For this free concert in Cleveland, the Coalition recruited several celebrities to perform at and to host the event (including the singer Sia) in order to promote reproductive and abortion rights.

“You can’t just let a concert like this happen that supports abortion,” said Annie Nesteroff, a Cedarville student who was among the protestors at the event.  

Cedarville’s Students for Life organization joined hands with Gateway Church Downtown in Cleveland, as well as groups from the Created Equal organization and Students for Life of America (the umbrella organization of Cedarville’s Students for Life) to be a pro-life presence at the concert venue.

Susannah Edwards, president of Cedarville’s Students for Life, said the mission of their presence was to show that the pro-life battle is not already lost.

Students held banners and signs along the sidewalks that lead to the venue and offered pro-life literature to those attending the concert.

“We are not here to villanize anyone,” Edwards said, before she explained to her fellow Cedarville students the importance of acting with gentleness and being a light for Christ.

Students for Life is a relatively new organization on the Cedarville campus. It began in 2015. According to Helena Hein, treasurer of the organization, Students for Life exists on campus for two reasons: to educate students and to be involved in the community.

Hein said that while many Cedarville students identify themselves as pro-life, Students for Life seeks to educate these students about the reasoning behind the pro-life stance, as well how to defend that stance in a Christ-honoring way when confronted by those who take the opposing side.

In addition, Students for Life works with other pro-life organizations out in the community and across the country, such as the Miami Valley Women’s Center that serves women in the greater Dayton area.

Abigail Mouring is a sophomore and campus news reporter for Cedars.