Tips from Terrisa: Five Essential Pro-Life Skills

[Today’s article is by Terrisa Bukovinac, a pro-life atheist who serves as the vice president of Secular Pro-Life’s board of directors. She is also the founder and current president of Progressive Anti-Abortion Uprising (PAAU), and founder and former executive director of Pro-Life San Francisco.]

My advice to the next generation of pro-life activists and leaders is to embrace these five identities: An agitator, a philosopher, a politician, a fundraiser, and above all, an artist.

Agitation is the key to successful social change and so we must all be prepared and willing to be hated, laughed at, lose friends, and even lose our freedom.

We must be able to confidently ground our pro-life conclusions in moral philosophy using a secular and shared basis of understanding. Our credibility relies on this foundation.

We must be political. We cannot defeat the abortion industrial complex without seizing their institutional power through the political process. This often requires a more diplomatic and professional approach and we must be able to pivot from agitation when necessary.

Everyone wants a way around having to fundraise but there’s not one. We must all be ready and willing at any moment to ask for the resources needed to protect babies and their parents and to sustain our efforts. It is essential.

But most importantly, we must all connect with our inner artist. If we are not regularly expressing our passion for this cause through some type of creative expression we are betraying ourselves and the movement. It is the recognition of our unique individuality that is the foundation of our pro-life convictions. Whether it’s fine art, music, fashion, culinary, or getting creative in our methods of activism, strategizing, storytelling and more, make it art. These are our greatest gifts to the world, our cause, and each other. When when we fully align our values with our actions we transform as individuals and we will change the world.

So you’re going to need at least five fire outfits and we’re good to go!