As has been mentioned a few times here on Amplify before, crisis pregnancy centers (CPCs) are fake clinics set up to scare women out of making the decision to get an abortion and even to use birth control. These centers are the same ones that you see advertising “Pregnant and Scared?” and offering free pregnancy tests and “counseling”, and even though they’re set up to look legitimate, are generally not medical offices and typically promote unbiased and medically inaccurate information. One of their favorites is that abortion causes breast cancer, which is absolutely false. Oh yeah – and many CPCs also receive boatloads of our tax dollars. Thanks, government.

 

Luckily, there are amazing activists and organizations out there exposing these fake clinics, and, in the era of the bad economy, calling attention to this ridiculous waste of tax dollars. NARAL Pro-Choice Virginia has a new report, Crisis Pregnancy Centers Revealed, on the deceptive tactics of CPCs operating in Virginia. Women visiting CPCs in Virginia were told egregious and absolutely false information like “most women suffer Post Abortion Stress Disorder, which is the same as Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, after having an abortion,” and “all condoms have flaws or holes…Using a condom does not protect you from AIDS or pregnancy.”

 

NARAL’s site includes a list of CPCs operating in Virginia and a link to take action and support legislation to make sure funds in the Commonwealth are not going to these centers. The other thing you can do is share your story if you’ve ever had an experience with a CPC – either in comments below or by going here.