John C. Willke
John C. Willke is an American medical doctor, author, and pro-life activist. Along with his wife Barbara, he is the author of a number of books on abortion and human sexuality.[1][2] He is the founder and president of the International Right to Life Federation and president of the Life Issues Institute. He is a former president of National Right to Life.
Willke earned his M.D. from the University of Cincinnati in 1948, and practiced as a family practitioner for much of his medical career.[citation needed]
Willke is a proponent of the concept that rape victims rarely get pregnant, stating in a 1999 article that "There's no greater emotional trauma that can be experienced by a woman than an assault rape. This can radically upset her possibility of ovulation, fertilization, implantation and even nurturing of a pregnancy" and that by his calculations "assault" rape pregnancy is extremely rare and about four cases per state per year.[3] In an interview on August 20, 2012, following the Todd Akin rape and pregnancy controversy, he said: "This is a traumatic thing — she’s, shall we say, she’s uptight. She is frightened, tight, and so on. And sperm, if deposited in her vagina, are less likely to be able to fertilize. The tubes are spastic." These assertions were disputed by a number of gynecology professors.[4]
A study published in 1996 by the Medical University of South Carolina estimated that there are approximately 32,000 pregnancies from rape in the United States each year, a pregnancy rate of 5% per rape among victims of reproductive age.[5]
Mitt Romney's 2007 campaign embraced Willke as “an important surrogate for Governor Romney's pro-life and pro-family agenda”,[6] and Romney expressed is pride to "have the support of a man who has meant so much to the pro-life movement in our country."[7]
Handbook on Abortion
First published in 1971, the Handbook on Abortion is a pro-life booklet written and published Willke and his wife. The booklet has been widely distributed, republished many times, and translated into a number of languages, according to journalist Linda Greenhouse.[8] The booklet has been influential in shaping pro-life thought in the United States, but is largely unknown in pro-choice circles.[8]
Books
- Abortion and Slavery: History Repeats ISBN 978-0685087824
- How to Teach Children the Wonder of Sex: a guide for parents and teachers ISBN 978-0910728171
- Assisted Suicide & Euthanasia, Past & Present ISBN 978-0910728225
- Abortion, Questions and Answers: Why Can’t We Love Them Both, a successor to earlier books[2] ISBN 978-0318351650
References
- ^ "Board Members". "International Right to Life Federation website. Retrieved 2010-06-30.
- ^ a b "Dr. J.C. Willke". Life Issues Institute website. Retrieved 2010-06-30.
- ^ http://www.christianliferesources.com/article/rape-pregnancies-are-rare-461
- ^ "Health Experts Dismiss Assertions on Rape". The New York Times. 2012-08-21. Retrieved 2012-08-21.
- ^ Holmes, MM; Resnick, HS; Kilpatrick, DG; Best, CL (1996). "Rape-related pregnancy: estimates and descriptive characteristics from a national sample of women". American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology. 175 (2): 320–324. PMID 8765248. Retrieved 2012-08-21.
{{cite journal}}: Unknown parameter|month=ignored (help) - ^ Lee, Kristen (2012-08-21). "Pro-life doctor John Willke, linked to Akin's 'forcible rape' claims, endorsed Romney in 2007". New York Daily News. Retrieved 2012-08-21.
- ^ http://web.archive.org/web/20071227112415/http:/www.mittromney.com/News/Press-Releases/Endorsement_Willke
- ^ a b "The Rhetoric That Shaped The Abortion Debate". National Public Radio. 2010-06-28. Retrieved 2010-06-30.
External links
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