The CEO of a pro-life group pregnancy center that was firebombed on Tuesday gave an impassioned speech standing outside the damaged center, demanding justice, vowing his team would continue “the Lord’s work,” calling out Democratic Governor Kathy Hochul (NY), and offering prayer and conversion for the group’s attackers.
The Daily Wire reported Tuesday that a CompassCare in Buffalo, New York, was firebombed and vandalized at around 3 a.m., adding to a growing number of attacks following the leak of a Supreme Court opinion that would overturn landmark abortion case Roe v. Wade.
Windows were broken, the structure’s medical office was set ablaze, and the vandals added graffiti that said “Jane Was Here,” a phrase used by a violent pro-abortion group called Jane’s Revenge.
CompassCare’s Buffalo Office Firebombed by Abortion Activists https://t.co/lML4Bvm8Q1 pic.twitter.com/t8SRGpEV6j
— Jim Harden (@compasscare) June 7, 2022
“They broke glass in the middle of the night, under the cover of darkness, to keep us from doing the work of the Lord, from being the light of the world,” CEO Jim Harden said (video below). “And we’re not gonna stop.”
By Wednesday, Harden vowed, services for vulnerable women would be back, though from a smaller venue. The CEO estimated that it would take “months” before the CompassCare center could be restored and up and running.
“These criminals … these abortion activists need to be investigated… These people need to be brought to justice. And they will,” he vowed.
Harden then set his sights on Hochul. “Demand Kathy Hochul, the governor, who sent $35 million to protect abortionists, denounce this violence against pregnancy centers,” he urged.
Hochul last month announced a $35 million “investment” to abortion providers “in anticipation of the Supreme Court overturning Roe v. Wade.”
“Governor Hochul directed the Department of Health to create a $25 million Abortion Provider Support Fund for abortion providers in order to both expand capacity and ensure access for patients seeking abortion care in New York,” a news release from the governor said. “The Governor also announced $10 million for reproductive health care centers to access security grants through the Division of Criminal Justice Services to help ensure the safety of the providers performing this vital care.”
“New York has always been at the forefront of the fight for abortion rights, and as the first female Governor of New York, I will not let us go backwards,” Hochul said. “I will never stop fighting to make New York a safe harbor for all who need care and a blueprint for other states to follow. To truly guarantee that everyone who needs an abortion can get one in New York State, we must ensure that providers have the resources, capacity, and protections they need. This landmark funding will get resources into the hands of clinics who need our help — safeguarding access to abortion in our state and setting an example for the rest of the nation to follow.”
“I wonder if Gov. Hochul will veto the Pregnancy Center Investigation Bill? I wonder if Attorney General Letitia James will investigate these cowardly criminals? CompassCare will rebuild because women deserve better. CompassCare will not stop serving because pre-born boys and girls deserve protection,” Harden added in a statement addressing the attack.
Harden also said in the video that his attackers are “deserving of blessing,” and offered prayer that they “come to Christ.”
“This is the work of the Church, this is the work of the Lord,” the CEO said. “Everyone is equally valuable, from the womb to the tomb, because we’re made in the image of God, without qualification, no matter who it is — even the people who performed this terrorist attack of arson. They, too, are deserving of blessing. We pray that they come to Christ.”
Related: Pro-Life Group Says Abortion Activists Firebombed New York Location