Pro-life outreach organizations such as the Canadian Centre for Bio-Ethical Reform (where I serve as communications director) have been concerned since last March that the COVID-19 pandemic, due to the economic conditions created by the government response, could be triggering a spike in the abortion rate. Women frequently choose abortion when they feel fiscally trapped, and the number of people feeling the pinch as the pandemic stretches into 2021 is growing.
Canadian media outlets are now confirming our fears, with abortion activists and workers indicating that they believe the abortion rate is rising. According to Winnipeg City News, the National Abortion Federation (NAF), an organization dedicated to helping women procure abortions, revealed that it got four times as many calls in Canada in 2020 compared to 2019. In 2020, the NAF received 110 calls — the year before, it had been merely 30.
