I know that very many have commented on the shootings in Colorado. I confess, though, that I was and remain stunned by this in my inbox from Cecile Richards:
Dear Kathryn,
It is heartbreaking. Our thoughts are with the families of the three people whose lives were lost in yesterday’s attack at the Planned Parenthood health center in Colorado Springs. We wish those who were injured a quick and complete recovery.
And, we are deeply grateful to the law enforcement officers who responded with courage to protect Planned Parenthood staff, patients, and community members.
I want every Planned Parenthood patient to know: your safety is our top priority. Planned Parenthood health centers have extensive security measures in place, work closely with law enforcement agencies, and have a very strong safety record.
Planned Parenthood health centers opened their doors again today, in Colorado and across the country. As always, patients were welcomed by extraordinary doctors, nurses, and staff. We willnever, ever back away from providing safe, reliable care to the millions of patients who are counting on us to be there.
These doors stay open, no matter what.
It’s still too soon to know what exactly motivated this attack. We share the concerns of many Americans that extremists are creating a poisonous environment that feeds domestic terrorism in this country. In the days and weeks ahead, we will continue to stand up for Planned Parenthood patients, staff, and the communities they serve — and it means so much to know that you stand with us, ready for whatever comes next.
Like you, I am full of sadness for the people who were harmed in Colorado. I am also full of admiration for what every member of Planned Parenthood’s staff do every day — to ensure that people can get the health care they need, and to work toward a day when we no longer see this kind of violence.
At this moment, our hearts are broken, but our commitment is unchanged. Care, no matter what.
Thank you for standing with Planned Parenthood.
I was also stunned by the statement from NOW’s Terry O’Neill:
Washington, DC - NOW extends our heartfelt condolences to the families of those killed, and our wishes for the healing and well-being of those wounded in the assault on the Planned Parenthood clinic in Colorado Springs.
Let’s be clear: this was an act of domestic terrorism. NOW calls for a full federal investigation into the shooter and any others who may be connected with his act. Terrorists do not act alone. Everyone implicated in this vicious crime — not just the gunman — must be rooted out and held accountable for their acts.
Since last summer, phony videos have circulated, falsely accusing Planned Parenthood of illegal actions. Those videos crossed the line of decency, humanity and legality. But instead of renouncing them, extremist members of Congress, their staffers, operatives and even a Supreme Court justice’s wife relentlessly promoted the videos to whip up a frenzy of hate against women’s health providers.
And now we have a fanatic with a gun rampaging in a Planned Parenthood clinic, killing three people and wounding many others.
We must call this what it is — domestic terrorism — and prosecute it as such. And we must reject the use of deception and hate to further a political ideological agenda.
NOW is proud to #StandWithPlannedParenthood, whose courageous staff provide excellent health care and make women’s lives better every day.
Congressmen not renouncing undercover videos killed three people and wounded nine others?
This kind of reaction helps no one, helps nothing. It hardens hearts further.
And whatever you think of the undisclosed camera, etc., investigative approach the Center for Medical Progress chose, those videos reveal a miserable reality behind the rhetoric about women’s health care and freedom. Statements such as these only add to the misery.
I was proud to read our editorial today: This is a time for grieving, not demagoguery.
In her book about her former days as a Planned Parenthood clinic director, Abby Johnson wrote about a nun who was weeping one day outside her clinic. I thought of her when I heard about the shooting. Pope Francis always talks about the need to weep for the suffering. Here we are. At a moment for weeping. I imagine that nun looking on now, in tears, at the whole miserable scene and reactions that don’t bring anyone back to life or save lives. Abortion is a most intimate violence, and so is murder by shooting. They robs families and communities of precious loved ones.
It’s also a time for celebrating the gift of lives lived well, people such as Officer Garrett Swasey, who worked to make lives better. (Link to his memorial fund is here.)
Can we pray together? Pro-life and pro-choice — however you describe yourself? However you feel about various gun-control laws and proposals?
Whenever there is a shooting, our media and culture seem to go on some kind of autopilot. I remember it from the night I found myself in lockdown in a mall with a gunman, though that night only the gunman would die. TV producers emphasized the importance of putting me on air to describe the situation during and after. Actually, no, I really needed to stay alert and pray. Especially once the situation was under control and a young man had shot himself dead. A life had ended and family and friends were grieving. Stunned by the life of a man whom I never spoke to, I joined in their weeping. There’s a solidarity there in suffering that’s important. It might just have the power to transform us and our approach to politics and culture and daily life.
Lives end, and grieving, praying, and offering human assistance seem much healthier responses than talking, especially when the talking involves girding ideological silos.
And even more long-term and consistently, instead of doubling down on rhetoric, can we pray for a better way?