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Wisconsin Nonprofit Organization That Opposes Abortion Responds to Molotov Attack on Their Office

Published: May 09, 2022
  |   By Cassandra MacDonald

The Madison office of the Wisconsin Family Action, a nonprofit organization that opposes abortion, was the target of vandalism and arson on Sunday.

The organization issued a statement about the attack on Sunday evening, condemning Governor Tony Evers for not taking a harder line in his response.

According to WFA, the arsonists threw two Molotov cocktails into the office, after breaking windows, and then proceeded to light a fire.

“The arsonists posted graffiti on the outside of the building near the group’s offices. The message was, ‘If abortions aren’t safe, then you aren’t either.’ Anarchy 1312 took responsibility for the attack, leaving its logo on an outside wall,” the organization said in their statement.

Within far-left anarchist circles, “1312” is often used as a stand in for “ACAB” or “All Cops Are Bastards,” based on the letters places in the alphabet. It is often found in vandalism during protests.

While condemning the violence and arson at the nonprofit, Governor Evers said that he will continue to support abortion.

“We condemn violence and hatred in all forms, including the actions at Wisconsin Family Action in Madison last night. We reject violence against any person for disagreeing with another’s view. Violence is not the way forward. Hurting others is never the answer,” Gov. Evers tweeted. “We will work against overturning Roe and attacks on reproductive rights by leading with empathy and compassion. We will defend what we believe in with our words and our voices—in the streets, in halls of government, and at the ballot box. In Wisconsin, we must lead by example.”

In a statement, Julaine Appling, president of Wisconsin Family Action, took aim at Governor Evers — saying that he enabled Sunday’s attack when he “basically looked the other way” during the 2020 Black Lives Matter riots in Kenosha and Madison.

“While this attack was directly provoked by the leaked draft opinion from the US Supreme Court in the Dobbs case earlier this week, this has far broader implication. Apparently, the tolerance that the left demands is truly a one-way street. Violence has become their answer to everything. This is what happens when leadership is missing or when leadership implies that violence is ok. In 2020, Governor Tony Evers basically looked the other way when violence erupted in Kenosha and Madison. That kind of non-response fosters what happened to us this morning, leaving Wisconsin citizens who disagree with his policies extremely vulnerable to similar violence,” Appling said.

Appling continued, “but this attack fails to frighten us, and instead steels the resolve of law-abiding, common-sense, every-day folks to stand up and push back. We know today it is Wisconsin Family Action getting Molotov cocktails tossed through broken windows and fires ignited, but tomorrow it could be anyone in our state or another state who is attacked because we disagree with a policy or action, give voice to the voiceless, or stand up for what’s right.”

“Americans see through the hypocrisy of the left. The violence needs to stop and stop now. It’s not the answer to any question or any problem. Just because the liberals don’t get their way, doesn’t give them license to threaten bodily harm or to burn and destroy,” Appling added. “Wisconsin has had enough of this kind of terror condoned by current state and national leaders. But we are still standing. We still support freedom. We love our republic and care for our neighbors. We will repair our offices, remain on the job, and build an even stronger grassroots effort. We will not back down. We will not stop doing what we are doing. Too much is at stake.”

The organization describes themselves as a “statewide organization engaged in strengthening, preserving, and promoting marriage, family, life, and religious freedom in Wisconsin.”

As Timcast previously reported, the week before the attack on Wisconsin Family Action, crisis pregnancy centers in Maryland and Oregon were both targeted by pro-abortion vandals.

The centers, which are medical clinics staffed with physicians, aim to help and support pregnant women while providing them with information on options other than abortion.

CareNet of Frederick in Maryland was vandalized on Tuesday, following the leaked draft opinion from the Supreme Court that would overturn Roe v. Wade. Two days later, the windows were smashed at First Image’s Southeast Portland Pregnancy Resource Center in Oregon.

Pro-abortion activists claim that the crisis pregnancy centers “trick” women into not aborting their babies because their physicians do not offer the procedure.

CareNet provided Timcast with photos of the damage to their office, including graffiti urging people to go to “PP INSTEAD,” meaning Planned Parenthood.

 

Linda King, Executive Director of CareNet in Frederick, told Timcast that the vandals had spray painted “not real clinic” in red on their door, “end forced motherhood” next to that and “abortion is a human right.” She added that there was an “A” in a circle, which is commonly meant to refer to “anarchy” and used by Antifa and their supporters.

Despite the vandalism, King said that the clinic remained open that day.

“We didn’t shut down. We continued our services. But it was pretty, you know, it’s unnerving to see that kind of vandalism, those kinds of statements. And we are a clinic, a real clinic. So to have the lie posted on our door was, you know, it’s disturbing,” King said. “I do think that our climate is volatile right now. And unfortunately, we’re seeing that here in our little local center. You know, this kind of vandalism, violence is — our community deserves better than this, our center, our clients. So, I don’t feel like that we are going to be unsafe in our services that we offer in our day to day routine. But we are going to be vigilant in making sure that we are aware of our surroundings, we are taking precautions to make sure that we are safe and that our clients are safe.”

In Texas, a pregnancy crisis center was also protested by pro-abortion activists on Tuesday.

Last Monday, a 98-page draft opinion overturning Roe v. Wade leaked and was published by Politico.

Justice Samuel Alito wrote, “Roe was egregiously wrong from the start” and “we hold that Roe and Casey must be overruled.”

“It is time to heed the Constitution and return the issue of abortion to the people’s elected representatives,” the draft, titled “Opinion of the Court” continued.

Roe v. Wade remains in place until the opinion is signed. Votes and drafts may change up until that point. If it is overturned, laws regarding abortion will be left for individual states to decide.

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