Virginia Attorney General Jason Miyares on Monday decried vandalism at the Life First pregnancy resource center in Manassas, Virginia.
Slogans of “Fake Clinic,” “Liars” and “Abortion Is A Right” were painted on walls and doors at the group’s office building. Workers discovered the vandalism Monday morning.
The damage comes in the wake of a weekend of nationwide protests against pro-life groups over the Supreme Court’s leaked draft ruling that would overturn Roe v. Wade. On Sunday, the Wisconsin Family Action’s offices in Madison were firebombed and vandalized with pro-abortion graffiti.
“It’s unfortunate that this charity has been targeted,” Mr. Miyares, a Republican, told The Washington Times in a statement. “It is never acceptable to resort to intimidation, vandalism, or destruction in our political discourse. This is what makes America so unique – we should embrace diversity of opinion and civil dialogue and debate.”
A source in Mr. Miyares’s office said he is monitoring the investigation “very closely.”
Manassas City Police responded to a call from Life First and investigated Monday, said Becky Sheetz, the group’s chief executive officer, in a telephone interview.
“They were right here immediately,” Ms. Sheetz said. “They came out and they took a look. And they walked around with us in the office and sat in our conference room and listened to our concerns.”
A Manassas City Police spokesman said the department will “vigorously investigate” the vandalism, and that such reports are “taken seriously and all leads are followed up.”
Ms. Sheetz said the group has notified its branch office in Woodbridge, as well as the Prince William County Police Department, of the Manassas attack. She said there has been one bomb threat to Life First in her nearly five years with the group, and no other protests or vandalism.
She said she had “already forgiven” the vandals, and wished they “understood the work of pregnancy centers and our compassion and our love.”
Ms. Sheetz said, “One of the things that the person [painted] there was, ‘Liars.’ That’s the opposite of what we do. We provide all the information that [a woman] needs to make a fully informed choice and no matter what she does, we love her anyway.”
• Mark A. Kellner can be reached at mkellner@washingtontimes.com.
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