Blogger's Baby was a Hoax
Story by Kim Janssen:
The unmarried mother's story about giving birth to a child diagnosed as terminally ill in the womb hit a major nerve on the Internet.
Every night for the last two months, thousands of abortion opponents across the nation logged on to a blog run by the suburban Chicago woman who identified herself only as "B" or "April's Mom."
People said they prayed that God would save her pregnancy. They e-mailed her photos of their children dressed in pink, bought campaign T-shirts, shared tales of personal heartache and redemption, and sent letters and gifts to an Oak Lawn P.O. box in support.
As more and more people were drawn to her compelling tale, eager advertisers were lining up. And established parenting Web sites that oppose abortion were promoting her blog -- which included biblical quotes, anti-abortion messages and a soundtrack of inspirational Christian pop songs.
By Sunday night, when "April's Mom" claimed to have given birth to her "miracle baby" -- blogging that April Rose had survived a home birth only to die hours later -- her Web site had nearly a million hits.
There was only one problem with the unfolding tragedy: None of it was true.
The author of the hoax - a social worker - said that the story was a fictionalized version of her own beliefs. The people who followed her blog and became emotionally involved are feeling betrayed.
And that's the trouble with the anti-abortion movement. The people involved at the grassroots level are easily manipulated, and the manipulators play them with lies. The lies get them all ginned up and self righteous - and they cannot and will not hear the truth.
The truth is that late abortions are seldom done. Maybe 100 a year. Women do not carry to near term and decide to abort. The decisions made to abort in the third trimester are indescribably painful.
Screenshot of the hoax blog
Facts about late abortions
Kansas Stories
I Am Dr. Tiller
This is amazing Susan. April's Mom fabrication is pathetic. The problem that anti-abortionists may very possibly now face is that regardless of how negatively people may feel about abortion, the behavior of the anti-abortion movement will allow the pro-choice movement to look victimized. Their movement is so frought with hypocrisy and whining faux biblical rhetoric, in my eyes, it long lost any credibility it may have had. Why does the anti-abortion movement remind me so much of the KKK?
ReplyDeleteLiberal compassion. 50 million babies dead in the last 20 years due to abortion. How does anyone defend that behavior? We've discounts on condoms at CVS, multiple forms of birth control for women, discount vasectomies why do we need abortions? If we say an abortion is women's right why not make it legal for woman to shoot the man who got her pregant in the first place? You'ld like that wouldn't you Susan?
ReplyDeleteHow many babies have you adopted in your lifetime, Robert? If you weren't so painfully stupid and uneducated, you'd be aware that there is such a thing as birth control failure. The pill is 99% effective, which is how my daughter got here.
ReplyDeleteGood Christians like you advocate against abortions for women who have been raped - how 'bout that, Robert?
Did you know that 2/3 of the underage girls who get pregnant are impregnated by adult men? Instead of carping at me - why don't you go do something about the behavior of men?
By the way, Robert - I moderate the comments here, and I don't publish the rude and obnoxious. That's the only warning you get.