Unplanned: A Review

by Bernadette Smith

Abby Johnson was a true believer in the pro-choice cause.  A psychology major, Abby was in her junior year at Texas A&M when she met a persuasive Planned Parenthood representative at a career fair. The friendly and confident woman appealed to Abby, feeding her desire to combine her leadership skills with her compassion for people.
 
By the end of that meeting, Abby was hooked.  “I can help prevent pregnancies, make abortion rare, and make a difference in the lives of women who need help. This is good for women, good for the community and perfect for me.”

Passionate about the cause, Abby soon rose to a Planned Parenthood clinic director.  In Abby’s mind, helping to navigate women through the abortion process, although heartbreaking at times, was a necessary and righteous endeavor. 
 
Why then, did Abby have fits of conscience?  Why did she have trouble telling people what she did for a living, and at first even hid her career decision from her own mother?  Especially irksome were the pesky pro-lifers who marched peacefully and prayed, not only for the women who entered the clinic, but also for abortion providers.
 
One day, when the clinic was shorthanded, Abby was asked to help in an ultrasound-guided abortion procedure. Holding a medical instrument, Abby saw the baby back away as the probe drew near. The baby struggled in distress.  It twisted, turned and then “crumpled” as the abortionist sucked the baby out of its mother’s womb. 
 
Witnessing for herself the baby’s last moments as it struggled for life was Abby’s moment of truth.  The scales were removed, and she saw abortion for what it is.  She could no longer deny that the murder of innocents was not just wrong, but a heinous crime, not only against women and unborn children, but also against all that is holy.  
 
Abby broke ranks with Planned Parenthood and sought assistance from her former opponents, the pro-life believers who warmly welcomed her into their fold.
 
In Unplanned, Abby recounts her experiences from the time she signed on to Planned Parenthood to the day she was “Suddenly overcome with sorrow.”  Thinking about her role in leading women to discard their unborn babies “like trash,” Abby said, “I fell to my knees and wept.”
 
Abby has used her knowledge and insight as a former Planned Parenthood director to forge a new beginning.  In her characteristic bold and courageous style, she is now telling the truth about Planned Parenthood. She reveals the industry as the profit-driven, deceptive and destructive enterprise that it is.