Atheist Age

Anti-abortion extremism online

“The final paragraph of the manual states:

“Our most dread sovereign Lord God requires that whosoever sheds man’s blood, by man shall his blood be shed. Not out of hatred for you, but out of love for the persons you exterminate, we are forced to take arms against you. Our life for yours — a simple equation. Dreadful. Sad. Reality, nonetheless. You shall not be tortured at our hands. Vengeance belongs to God only. However execution is rarely gentle.”

From Australian Policy Online

© First Monday Volume 14 Number 11

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This paper presents an overview of anti–abortion extremism online, focusing on the ‘Army of God’ Web site that supports the use of violence to criminalise abortion. Also discussed are some of the dominant figures in this movement and their online presence. The use of the Internet by movements of this nature highlights its function as a powerful propaganda tool that can be used to encourage support for and action in the name of the anti–abortion extremist movement.

Contents – links to publicists site

Introduction
The Army of God
Individual activists and activities
Online activism and violent activity: A connection?
Conclusion

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• Introduction

“While an international body of anti–abortionist extremists exist, violent activities have predominantly remained limited to the United States, where in 1973 the Supreme Court ruled, in the case of Roe v. Wade that constitutional rights apply only after birth; thus abortion does not breach a person’s right to life. Anti–abortion extremism is defined here as violent activity (including vandalism, bombings, arson and murder) orchestrated in support of the criminalisation of abortion. The Internet has become a popular tool in supporting and promoting the ideologies that justify and validate the use of violence to support extremist anti–abortion movements.

Cursory Internet searches indicate that there are a large number of anti–abortion Web sites online. Those that are extreme in nature can be quickly identified by discourses created within that support the use of violent activity to achieve the goals of the movement. This paper presents a review of the ‘Army of God’ site and considers some of the key figures in the anti–abortion extremist movement, both of which are used as powerful propaganda tools to encourage support and action from Internet users.”

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The article mentions Neal Horsley who is an exceptionally relevant case of projection via biblical fundamentalism. Despite coining trendy new terms like “abortuary”, Neal happily admitted* he had intercourse with a mule ["She loved me though"] and a watermelon and… well anything “that’s warm, damp and vibrates”. His reason was because he was running for Governor of Georgia, and was intent to air any skeletons in the closet. Er… job done, but did he inhale?

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Fox News report on his multi-state “abortion cam” sites, aiming to “shame” staff and clients. His ‘hit list’, which I shall not name here, has greyed out for wounded, and strike through font for murdered, doctors. Not one ‘dread G-d’ fearing violent anti-abortionist thug mentions that maternal death or profound foetal disability is the alternative to abortion in many cases. New Age interpretation of archaic scripture – notable in that G-d never mentions abortion – is the lie such cowards hide behind.

* – Thanks to Underground Examiner for a truly riveting article.

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• The Army Of God

“The anti–abortion extremist movement ‘Army of God’ (http://www.armyofgod.com) is one of the primary proponents of the use of violence to support the criminalisation of abortion in the United States. This is a movement that uses ‘leaderless resistance’ [1] as its organising principle. The ‘Army of God’ is represented by a sophisticated Web site that opens with an array of shocking images, mainly detailed and graphic pictures of aborted foetuses. Such images have a high potential impact on viewers and serve the purposes of the movement in a number of ways. Firstly they shock those who may be pro–choice supporters or particularly those who are ‘on the fence’ in relation to this issue; they have a high propaganda value. Additionally, these images can be downloaded and printed to be used in protests or as flyers for distribution by supporters who are willing to become involved in such activities. Along with these highly graphic images are quotes from the Bible, for example: “Yea, they sacrificed their sons and their daughters unto devils / And shed innocent blood, even the blood of their sons and of their daughters. (Psalm 106:37,38)”. There is an option to “click here: to view babies murdered by baby killing abortionists” which links to a page where there is an option to view the images of 15 aborted foetuses. Pro–life videos are also available to download and to purchase. Such graphic images function powerfully as part of the propaganda campaign of the movement.

This Web site also features a tribute to Paul Hill, described on the site as a “hero” of the anti–abortion movement. There is an internal Web link to “The Authorized Paul Hill website” and a message board feature where individuals can post their support for this “hero”. Another internal link provides access to a full online copy of Hill’s book, “Mix my blood with the blood of the unborn”, which was written while Hill was in prison. This inclusion of this material serves to praise the ‘martyrs’ and ‘heroes’ of the movement and can be used to encourage others to take action.”

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Tags: Church/State, Controversy, Crime, Fundamentalism, Human Rights, Research, USA