ARTICLES

Screaming, Hitting Spitting

'Do you Understand What Murder Is?'

By Allyson Smith

Students and parents at Granite Hills High School in El Cajon spat upon and assaulted pro-lifers on Thursday afternoon, October 5, as school officials stood by without intervening. Assailants objected to graphic abortion posters displayed by California Life Coalition members on the public sidewalk in front of the school as classes ended for the day.

The incidents at Granite Hills, which resulted in two police reports being filed but no arrests, mirror similar incidents at Santana High School in Santee on September 21. Both schools are part of the Grossmont Union High School District.

Standing near the school bus boarding zone, as a member of the coalition (I also happened to be an alumna of the high school), I was assaulted by a pair of students. The female hit me in the face and spit on me, while the male attempted to destroy my sign. Another boy spit on me from a departing school bus.

One woman approached me on foot, attempting to begin an argument; another yelled at me from a parked vehicle across the street. Two women driving SUVs pulled over next to the curb to scream at me, one yelling, I'm Catholic, and God is going to judge you in hell for doing this, and the other yelling, I'm a Christian and what you are doing is wrong."

Students told me, "You're disgusting," and "You're f*****." When I pointed to the poster, saying "This is what happens in an abortion: a baby is killed," students said, "No, it doesn't" and "That's not true."

No Granite Hills officials or police officers were in the vicinity when I was attacked. Assistant principal Brian Wilbur witnessed the assault from a distance but arrived too late to prevent it. He was able to identify the female attacker. Another school official told me that I should expect such violent reactions from high school students to the graphic posters.

Pro-lifers Ron Brock and Cheryl Sullenger were attacked as they were leaving the school. According to Brock, "I was picking up the posters when a 4-wheel-drive recreation vehicle pulled up in a red zone behind me. The driver got out, went up to my van and tried to rip the signs off the sides, but they're plywood so she was unable to destroy them.

"I started taking her picture, so she decided to come after me. She came at me with both arms swinging. She grabbed my smock and hit me on the back. Cheryl started taking pictures of her attacking me; then she came after Cheryl. She threw Cheryl's camera into the parking lot and hit her in the mouth. At that point we heard the sirens coming, and the police pulled up. They took a police report, and I placed her under citizens arrest.

"The school employees just looked on. Everybody [the pro-lifers] was experiencing hostile kids, but none of the school employees did anything about it."

I telephoned Granite Hills principal Georgette Torres on October 10 to ask what disciplinary actions she planned to take against the attacking students. Torres referred me to the El Cajon Police Department and said that under federal law she could not divulge what actions she planned to take.

Shamgar Jabez, director of Christian Men United, and three other pro-lifers were attacked in front of Santana High School on September 21. Jabez said, "One mother grabbed our pro-life newspaper from one of our members and had to be restrained by the police. I was surrounded by about 15 angry boys and girls who blurted out amongst their gutter language that the unborn were no different than a chicken egg. Just a chicken.

"I asked them, 'Do you understand what murder is?' The kids seemed to slow down a bit and answered, 'That's killing someone.' I answered, 'No, murder is killing someone without due process. Have these little ones had due process? What have they done that makes it a capital offense to kill them?'

"The kids were puzzled. Then they said the standard, 'What about rape or incest?' I answered, 'The child is innocent. Won't you offer him due process before you take his life?'

"One girl said, 'Life sucks. My mom and dad got divorced because I was born.' Another boy said that life is so awful that we're sparing the little unborn kids from a horrible life. I asked, 'What about the child? Shouldn't he be allowed to answer for himself if he wants to live or not?'

"The kids tried one last tactic. They stepped in front of the sign and tried to cover the picture. One kid blurted out, 'Uh, uh...I know, WWJD, what would Jesus do?' I said, 'He'd come hold up the signs with us, because he was a sign how much God his Father hates sin. Jesus was a living sign to guide us from our sins.'

"I said, 'You know, kids, when I was 18 I was in Viet Nam, and I put my life on the line. Here I am amongst you and I am willing to die for these unborn kids.'

"These kids had come in roaring like angry lions, like the Sadducees and Pharisees who brought the adulteress before Jesus. But when they saw the commitment of just four people willing to stand up for the truth of God, they wilted and singly dispersed, heads down, shuffling away, like little lambs without a shepherd."

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