They wear bright pink hi-vis jackets and talk passionately about human rights. Many of them are young women; some are students in ripped jeans, others professionals in suits. There’s barely a priest in sight.
This is the anti-abortion army out on the streets of Ireland, chasing down every undecided vote in Friday’s referendum on abortion. In the final days of the campaign they were going door-to-door, handing out leaflets at train stations and in shopping centres, touring radio and television studios, and bombarding social media.
They claim to be narrowing the gap, although opinion polls still point to a majority for yes when the votes are counted on Saturday. But crucial in this polarised and sometimes acrimonious campaign are those yet to make up their mind, estimated at between 14% and 20%. The undecideds will decide the outcome, and both camps know it.
Under the umbrella campaign Love Both, the anti-abortion movement has focused its message in two ways. First, it has promoted emotive images of the unborn. A poster shows an ultrasound scan of a foetus accompanied with the words: “I am nine weeks old. I can yawn and kick. Don’t repeal me.” Another has a smiling mother holding a chuckling baby – “Love them both. Abortion: kills one, hurts another,” it says.
People passing street stalls are invited to cradle tiny plastic dolls representing different gestational ages of foetuses. The Pro Life Campaign’s Twitter feed is a constant stream of messages such as: “At 12 weeks the baby can be seen sucking its thumb and wiggling in the womb. Don’t deny the humanity of this baby.”
Second, it has relentlessly pushed the message that repeal of the eighth amendment will lead to “extremist” abortion legislation in Ireland. (In fact, most European countries permit abortion on request up to 12 weeks, as proposed by the Irish government, and some beyond.) “The only way to prevent abortion on demand in Ireland is to vote no,” says Love Both.
Quoting figures hotly disputed by the pro-choice campaign, Love Both points across the Irish sea to the English experience. One poster says: “In England, one in five babies are aborted. Don’t bring this to Ireland. Vote no.” They say this message has particular resonance with undecided voters.
The anti-abortion campaign has not only honed its message; it has rebranded its messengers. The Catholic church, so long a dominant voice in Ireland, has taken a back seat in this campaign.
Although bishops have issued statements and priests have delivered sermons, the public face of the anti-abortion campaign consists of people such as Katie Ascough, 21, who is about to graduate in medicinal chemistry from University College Dublin. A former president of UCD’s student union, she was impeached last year after removing information about abortion from a student magazine.
Ascough told the Guardian: “The closer we get to the referendum, the more we’re seeing an increase in ‘no’ supporters, particularly in the 18-24 category. We shouldn’t assume anyone’s opinion on this issue.
“A lot of students are thanking me for voicing an opinion that they silently agree with. Many have reservations about talking about how they feel because of the backlash. It’s very difficult to voice a pro-life opinion on campuses.”
Ascough said her views were formed after “a shocking but beautiful experience” when she was 15. “My mum had a miscarriage [at 13 weeks gestation]. The baby was delivered at home, and I held my baby brother in my hand. He was fully formed, he had a visible face and fingernails. To me, he was a human being, and he deserved to live.”
She was campaigning from a human rights rather than a religious perspective, she said. “I base my beliefs in science and technological advancement.”
Personally, she believed abortion was wrong in all circumstances, even rape and fatal foetal abnormality. “But it’s important that we don’t focus on the hard cases. We tell people they are being asked to vote for extreme legislation, abortion on demand. In the UK, 97% of cases involve healthy mothers and healthy babies. There are people who are pro-choice in certain circumstances but don’t want abortion on demand.”
Tina Beattie, professor of Catholic studies at the University of Roehampton in London, said there was far more nuance and complexity in the debate than the binary yes/no campaign allowed for. “There are very few people who want abortion to be criminalised, and also very few who want abortion on demand.”
It was unusual for the Catholic church to take such a back seat, she said. “But there is a realisation that the church is lacking credibility in Ireland as a result of the sex abuse scandals. It has destroyed much of its trust and its integral role in Irish society.”
The 2015 referendum, which backed same-sex marriage in Ireland against the church’s exhortations, had also “taught it to be discreet and cautious”, she added. “Catholics are certainly behind the pro-life campaign, but not the institution of the church. Publicly it’s not taking a leading role.”
Anti-abortion campaigners have been bolstered by American volunteers, according to a CNN report. Members of the Colorado-based anti-abortion organisation Let Them Live have travelled to Ireland, it reported, and Love Both brought over American anti-abortion activist Clare Culwell to address rallies.
