LANGLEY, B.C. (CCN) — For many years, the pro-abortion movement has been successful in convincing men that they need not concern themselves with the “women’s issue” of abortion. Looking at the students attending this year’s Youth 4 Life Expo, that may be starting to change.
Of the 175 students from all nine Catholic high schools (a record-breaking number in its own right) gathered at St. Nicholas in Langley, close to half were young men.
“I think it’s the influence of the girls,” Francisco Alvarado, a Grade 10 student from Saint John Paul II Academy, told The B.C. Catholic in a group interview with other young men from his school.
What started as a few guys listening to their female friends has turned into a greater interest in pro-life issues, now driven by the young men themselves.
“So you have maybe a few guys coming to the event, and then these guys bring other guys,” Alvarado said. His four male classmates all nodded in agreement.
They appreciate that their female classmates made an effort to appeal to what they see as their masculine desire for a more scientific, fact-driven approach to pro-life issues.
“I feel like the guys like more of the facts,” said Grade 11 student Martin Valencia, “and the girls brought the facts to the school [from pro-life events], and then the guys paid attention to the facts and decide to go to [events like the Expo 4 Life].”
There was also agreement among the young men that events like Expo 4 Life help them feel more capable of taking on the issues and of helping people in need.
“It’s good to be knowledgeable about abortion and all the issues that come with it,” said Grade 12 student Charles King. “Because as soon as you have someone in your circle who is struggling, you need to be well equipped to help them—know certain statistics, stuff like that—that could probably help them or change their mind to save a life.”
One benefit Valencia sees is that once they started to engage with the issues, he and his friends became more comfortable with the emotional reality of being pro-life.
“Guys hide what they feel,” he said. The influence of the girls has given them the space to express their feelings and beliefs. “I feel like when you come in here, you can spread your wings a bit more as well,” he said, “which is why I think it’s a good idea to come to these kinds of events.”
There was speculation about why young men haven’t seemed as interested in previous years. “One thing that might have kept guys away from being pro-life is that people are told if you’re a guy you can’t talk about pro-life issues,” King said. “It’s not true—abortion is wrong, no matter if you’re a boy or a girl.”
The Expo is about broadening the conception of what pro-life means. Speakers such as Elizabeth Sutcliffe, who was instrumental in establishing Advokate’s Life and Education Services pregnancy centres in British Columbia, gave an emotional pro-life talk about her experiences healing from an abortion.
Contributing to a widening of the term pro-life were Catholic Charities men’s hostel manager Justin Milad, speaking about homelessness, Raphael Freston from Development and Peace – Caritas Canada presenting on poverty and homelessness, Father Jan Kunes on the Theology of the Body, and Irene Lilyanna from the Canadian Centre for Bioethical Reform speaking about adoption.
The efforts have borne fruit, and the students say they appreciate the larger pro-life umbrella.
“I chose to come because I also believe in the pro-life aspect of everything,” said Cristobal Leal, a Grade 12 student from Saint John Paul II Academy. “I feel like if I come to these events and educate myself about these pro-life activities, I can probably make a difference.”
In a separate interview, a group of the young women who helped organize the Expo made similar observations about the unpopularity of pro-life positions.
“It’s pretty risky telling people [you are pro-life],” said Riya Kumar, a Hindu Grade 11 student from Traditional Learning Academy. She wants to work in health care and sees her pro-life beliefs as central to caring for women. “It’s a really prevalent issue,” she said. “I personally have people in my life who got abortions.”
For many of the students, there is an undeniable element of faith in their concern about pro-life issues. Clara Curman, a Grade 9 student from Archbishop Carney, said that in a secular society it is more important than ever to stand up for one’s beliefs.
“It’s really important not to be afraid to share your views,” she said, “because oftentimes people are kind of neutral, and it’s easy to be neutral.”
Following Christ means accepting one’s crosses, she said. “There’s going to be people who don’t agree with what you’re doing, but that doesn’t mean that you stop. Jesus doesn’t call us to lead an easy life, but he gives us the strength to endure the hardships that we face.”
For Grade 11 TLA student Krystyn Kurzyna, the Expo has a practical aspect, ultimately helping her to live in the real world. “Sometimes there are people that I meet and I want to be friends with and they have questions,” she said. “They don’t understand how marriage is so sacred. They don’t understand why I even bother defending the babies. The Expo helps her get the knowledge and experience to answer those questions.
One feeling that unified the students was the sense that the world around them was inconsistent, that hypocrisy undergirds much of what they see in politics and society. For many, this hypocrisy is crystallized in the abortion debate.
“I also don’t understand how society emphasizes protecting the marginalized and then ignores the most vulnerable of society,” said Camuzzi. “The babies that can’t speak for themselves, can’t even breathe on their own yet and are getting nutrients from their mother and should be [considered] the most innocent and should be the most protected.”
“When we turn away from that and end up killing and murdering them and accepting that and not even thinking twice, it’s terrible to think how society is going away from the world,” she said.
