Actress Jennifer O’Neill will be the keynote speaker at the Diocese of Camden’s Fourth Annual “Culture of Life Dinner” November 19. With the theme, “You’re Not Alone: My Personal Journey to Post-Abortion Healing.”
Ms. O’Neill will call attention to the ways that women suffer in the aftermath of abortion and the healing and support that are available for those who are seeking help. Citing figures from Planned Parenthood that estimate that 10 percent of women who have had an abortion experience lingering depression and other psychological or emotional complications, Ms. O’Neill says there are at least 100,000 women per year who suffer in this way, and as many as three million since abortion was legalized in 1973.
In addition to depression, O’Neill says women suffer post-abortion eating disorders and are at an increased risk of suicide. She also cites the medical complications of those who have had an abortion and their increased risk of other kinds of illness, including breast cancer, cervical and ovarian cancer, infertility, and complications in future pregnancies. Ms. O’Neill has publicly discussed how she herself has coped with and overcome past difficulties in her private life, including the trauma of abortion and failed marriages.
As a national spokesperson for a campaign entitled “Silent No More,” Ms. O’Neill hopes to make the public aware that abortion is harmful emotionally, physically and spiritually to women and to others, through her own experience and by inviting women to speak the truth about their own experiences.
The campaign also seeks to reach out to women who are hurting from an abortion and to let them know help is available. The “Culture of Life Dinner,” which will be held at Auletto Caterers in Deptford, is sponsored by the Diocese of Camden’s Family Life/Pro-Life Office.
In addition to remarks by Ms. O’Neill, the event will feature an invocation and opening remarks by Most Reverend Joseph Galante, Bishop of Camden, and a preview of an advertising campaign calling attention to post-abortion trauma and the availability of Project Rachel, a local initiative which seeks to bring healing and support to those who have suffered because of abortion.