Vandals target anti-abortion crisis pregnancy centers in Worcester, scrawl ‘Jane’s Revenge’ on sidewalks

By Web staff

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    WORCESTER, Massachusetts (WCVB) — Police are investigating after vandals damaged two controversial, anti-abortion organizations known as crisis pregnancy centers in Worcester, Massachusetts, including one that is located across the street from a Planned Parenthood clinic.

“Jane’s Revenge” was written on the sidewalk outside both Problem Pregnancy, at 495 Pleasant St., and Clearway Clinic, at 358 Shrewsbury St. Gold and blue paint was splattered on the Pleasant Street building and several windows were boarded up at the Shrewsbury Street location.

The same phrase, associated with an extremist abortion-rights movement, has recently appeared at similar vandalism scenes in other cities, including Miami and Minneapolis.

“These are abortion extremists. I don’t think all people who support abortion would do such extremist acts, but these are clearly a domestic terrorist organization,” said Kelly Wilcox of the Clearway Clinic.

Staff inside Problem Pregnancy declined to comment on the vandalism. Worcester police confirmed the two incidents were under investigation.

The vandalism comes less than two weeks after the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, the 1973 landmark ruling that established the constitutional right to abortion. It also follows scrutiny from state leaders, including Sen. Elizabeth Warren, who said crisis pregnancy centers deceive women.

“Here in Massachusetts, these so-called crisis pregnancy centers outnumber genuine abortion clinics by three to one,” Warren said last month. “They are giving it over to people who wish them harm and that has to stop. We need to put a stop to that in Massachusetts, right now.”

Websites for both of the vandalized Worcester clinics say they offer pregnancy services, including free ultrasounds, but both are religiously motivated and anti-abortion.

Problem Pregnancy is located just a few hundred feet from a Planned Parenthood clinic in Worcester and its website suggests women should choose its services instead of Planned Parenthood.

In a Thanksgiving fundraising letter from 2020, which was posted on Facebook, the organization talked about Planned Parenthood as their “competition.”

Clearway Clinic is registered with the Massachusetts Corporations Division as a religious entity. Problem Pregnancy is registered as a nonprofit.

“Jane’s Revenge” is written on the sidewalk along Pleasant Street in Worcester. On Wednesday, Massachusetts Attorney General Maura Healey issued an advisory to women warning about coercive tactics used by crisis pregnancy centers. Healey, a gubernatorial candidate, has said she views abortion as a fundamental right that should be codified at the federal level.

“We condemn all forms of violence and destruction of property within our communities,” Healey’s office wrote in a statement on Thursday. “Our office will continue to focus on ensuring that patients seeking abortion care are safe and well-informed about their options.”

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