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| This is When We Being to Fight by Steve Karlen. |
MADISON — “When abortion ends and it’s in the history books, those history books are going to look back on Madison, Wis., as a turning point.”
Those words are one reason why Steve Karlen chose to share his story and experiences in the new book This is When We Begin to Fight.
The book, written by the Madison resident, tells the story of the fight to stop a late-term abortion center from opening on the University of Wisconsin-Madison campus as well as other challenges his young family faced in life and in love.
The preceding quote was spoken to Karlen during a national pro-life leaders meeting a few years after the Madison Surgery Center dropped its plans to offer late-term abortions more than a decade ago.
“It planted the seeds for a book,” Karlen said, along with marking the 10-year anniversary.
In 2009 and 2010, Karlen helped lead the efforts to hold rallies, marches, and prayerful vigils outside the site where the abortions would have taken place.
“I hope that [the book] will serve as an inspiration for other communities that are fighting abortion at the local level,” said Karlen.
Getting a message out
Karlen said there are “two types of people” that he’s hoping to reach through the book.
One is a “passive pro-lifer” who “doesn’t like abortion, wants it to end, but doesn’t have the confidence to do anything about it himself . . . I hope that this will get people off the couch and out to pray in front of an abortion facility” or involved in the legislative process or other ideas where help is needed.
Karlen said he, himself, was one of these people before he “got off the couch” and got involved.
He added he’s hoping to reach men with the book as well.
“For so long we’ve been told we don’t have a voice on this topic. I hope it will give men a voice.”
He added men have a “rightful role” in standing up for life and in defense of the vulnerable.
“Every child who was conceived, born, miscarried, or aborted has a mother and a father and half of the children who are aborted are male children,” Karlen said.
He added men have a call to “stand up and defend women and children who are vulnerable.”
Personal stories and personalities
Karlen’s book highlights some of the key figures involved in the fight against the surgery center’s abortion plans.
Not the least of these is his wife, Laura, much of whose story is also told in the book, including the miscarriages she and Steve had to deal with.
Karlen said he wanted the story in the book to be “relatable” to others reading it.
He added that his story and that of his family have been public for a while so while the events and details are personal, there is nothing “surprising” in the book about their lives.
Karlen laughed saying that some early feedback from readers is that he was “so open about his failings.”
“I was blessed to be part of his great victory that helped end late-term abortion in our city,” Karlen said.
He added more reaction from others has been that “you don’t need to be some superhero to do this. The Lord can call anybody, perhaps the least equipped and the least likely to succeed because then God gets the glory.”
After serving in various roles in the pro-life movement, Karlen is now the director of North American outreach for 40 Days for Life, the world’s largest grassroots movement to end abortion.
While he says he never looks forward to praying outside an abortion center or giving a talk against abortion, he said he still feels a sense of duty and calling to do the work that needs to be done and encourages others to do the same as meant for them.
“If there’s anything that we can do to pursue sanctity, we should do it.”
Read more
This is When We Begin to Fight is available at https://40daysforlifegear.com along with other items and resources to educate and equip people in the pro-life cause.