Editor’s note. Many of our readers have volunteered in one capacity or another for the Right to Life Movement. One of the great experiences is working at a county or state fair. The following story, written by Minnesota Citizens Concerned for Life (NRLC’s state affiliate), does a wonderful job conveying what happens when visitors see fetal models. As such it is a perfect addition to our year-long “Roe at 40” series which posts some of the best and most representative stories that have appeared in National Right to Life News going back to 1973.
If you’ve volunteered at a well-equipped pro-life fair booth, you’ve seen the amazement in visitors’ eyes. People of all ages - - but especially children - - are especially drawn to life-size models of unborn babies. Depicted at different stages of development, these fetal models, curled snugly inside models of the womb, can be picked up and held in the palm of even a small child’s hand.
Pregnant women gaze longingly at the fetal models. A woman will zero in on the model that represents her stage of pregnancy, often saying something like, “Mine seems bigger than that.” Then she grabs her husband and pulls him in for a closer look.
And the children - - they love the fetal models! So many put their noses right up next to the babies and inspect every detail. Children have multiple questions about how babies develop, and they’re always stunned to learn that they, too, were once that small.
Time and again, these little ambassadors of life have demonstrated their power to teach. Minnesota Citizens Concerned for Life (MCCL) has been effectively displaying pro-life educational material, such as fetal models, at Minnesota county fairs and at the State Fair for decades. These MCCL fair booths have reached out to hundreds of thousands of people with the pro-life message every year. In addition to fetal models, MCCL fair booths feature video sonograms of unborn babies and a wide array of literature regarding abortion, fetal pain, infanticide, euthanasia, and pregnancy care centers.
Fetal models influence pregnant women considering abortion. After visiting an MCCL booth, women have canceled appointments at abortion clinics, saved themselves from physical and emotional scarring and preserved their babies’ lives.
At one MCCL county fair booth, a seven-year-old boy came running up to the booth to look at the fetal models. He said that his mother had been pregnant the year before and was going to have an abortion but changed her mind after viewing the fetal models. “And there she is!” he exclaimed, pointing to his baby sister in a stroller.
Fetal models spread the pro-life message. Wouldn’t it be wonderful if each local community had these life-like models teaching about the humanity of the unborn child? Fetal development models are powerful and effective tools to use at fair displays, during speech presentations, school visits, and other community events. Even without saying a word, the models would enable us to reach thousands of people.
The visual-impact value of the medical school-quality fetal models is priceless.