Anti-abortion activists rally> Bangor picketers unmoved by clinic fund-raising ploy

Debbie Lockman took time out from her lunch hour Wednesday to give money to a controversial cause that she deemed important. Braving subzero temperatures, Lockman of Seboeis Plantation walked past pictures of aborted fetuses and signs that proclaimed “Babies Killed Here,” and handed an envelope to Elizabeth Harden. Harden was among a handful of anti-abortion protesters picketing outside Bangor’s Mabel Wadsworth Women’s Health Center on Harlow Street.

The envelope contained a check for an undisclosed amount of money. Incensed by the health center’s new fund-raising campaign called “Pledge a Picket,” Lockman said she planned to donate money more frequently to the anti-abortion movement.

“It’s a joke,” said Harden of the health center’s new program whereby the facility receives donations every time picketers show up. “We’re here to save babies’ lives. A campaign like this won’t stop us.”

The target of increased anti-abortion activity, the women’s health center recently announced its plan to use the anti-abortion protesters who picket outside the building to raise money for the center.

Based on a program used across the country, the health center started “Pledge a Picket,” to capitalize on picketers showing up. In Bangor, that happens about twice a week.

Describing herself as a pro-life advocate, Lockman, a mother of four children, said she was angered by the pledge program. She termed her action “a kind of reverse psychology. I’m going to adopt the picketers by coming down here on Wednesdays and making a donation directly to them,” Lockman said.

In contrast to Lockman’s action, about 40 people have supported the pledge program and the women’s health center in general since enhanced anti-abortion activity began last fall outside the facility.

The specter of violence, including four murders at abortion clinics nationwide, has prompted law officials to pay closer attention to security at abortion facilities, including the Mabel Wadsworth Women’s Health Clinic.

Bangor police visited the facility after the recent clinic slayings in Brookline, Mass., and provided security tips for staff and clients.

Ruth Lockhart, the Mabel Wadsworth center’s executive director, received a letter of support including security tips from the United States Marshal’s Office in Portland.

Lockhart has consulted a security expert about ways to protect patrons of the facility, which has performed about six abortions a month since last February.

“We don’t want to be a fortress but we are interested in increased security,” Lockhart said.

Security measures already taken include:

A December training session for clinic staff and volunteers who were coached in techniques to protect themselves if the center is threatened with violence.

A permanent locked-door policy at the center since last July. Clients and others are asked to provide identification to gain entrance.

The principle of the “Pledge a Picket” idea is simple. Every time protesters show up, the center gets money. Supporters may choose to pay the center a specified dollar amount for every day of protest or pay for each person who shows up at any given protest.

Donations also may be made each time a certain protester shows up.

About 100 feet from the center, Terence Hughes, a well-known local anti-abortion activist, leaned into a sign that proclaimed the health center was “Bangor’s Auschwitz. Babies Killed Here.” Holding a red rosary in his hands, Hughes said he was conducting a “Novena for Life” prayer.

Inside the health center, signs urged women to share health care knowledge and power. Margaret Sanger, a women’s reproductive rights expert who died in 1966, is pictured on the wall with a quote that states “No woman can call herself free who does not own and control her body.”

Despite the controversy, the women’s health center will not be deterred from its mission, said Lockhart.

“We have so much community support. We don’t feel as vulnerable. This is a women’s health organization. This (potential for conflict) was part of our thinking early on. They’re not distracting us in unusual ways,” Lockhart said.