American Refugee Committee is distributing condoms and abortifacient contraception, lobbies foreign governments to overturn laws restricting access to contraception, and is deeply involved in assisting other agencies spread contraception as well.
In a factsheet on its work in Rwanda in 2012, ARC indicated that it was referring women for the provision of emergency contraception.
In fact, on a page describing its activities in Rwanda, ARC stated that it “offers all modern methods of contraception.”
In 2014, ARC co-authored a white paper outlining its promotion and distribution of contraception in Malakal. It says:
The American Refugee Committee (arc) is an international nonprofit organization that provides life-saving and local capacity-building services to refugees and idps in emergency and post-conflict settings around the world. arc has been working in Malakal since 2006, strengthening reproductive health (rh) services in Malakal Teaching Hospital (mth)—the public referral hospital for Upper Nile State—and Bam Primary Health Care Centre (phcc). In 2009, arc trained health staff in the provision of modern contraceptives (condoms, oral contraceptive pills (ocps), emergency contraception (ec), injectable contraceptives, implants, intrauterine devices, tubal ligation, and vasectomy) and established family planning units in the two facilities. In 2007, contraceptive prevalence among all women in Malakal for any method stood at 3.2 per cent, and for modern methods at 1.9 per cent.16 Data from the two facilities show the most commonly chosen contraceptive method was the ocp.
On the following page, the paper explains how ARC worked to increase the contraceptive prevalence rate in 2010:
ARC began to distribute contraceptives through cbds [community based distribution] in August 2010. Each payam was staffed with two cbd agents, who conducted household visits, provided short-term contraceptive methods—male and female condoms, combined ocps, and ec—and referred clients for injectable contraceptives, implants, intrauterine devices (iuds), and permanent contraceptive methods.
This 2011 brochure, co-produced by ARC and the Women’s Refugee Commission, calls access to all forms of contraception a “right.”
In a training guide regarding Gender Based Violence in Guinea, ARC provided a rape scenario and a series of questions along with an answer key. The answer to one of the questions instructs the trainee to prescribe emergency contraception to the rape victim.
What medications do you prescribe?
STI prevention and/or treatment as describe in the Guidelines
Emergency contraceptive if rape was in prior 72 hours
In its 2007 annual report, ARC says that temporary and long term methods of contraception, including abortifacient emergency contraception, are a part of its “core areas of work.”
In the same annual report from 2007, ARC discussed its work to distribute condoms in Guinea. Page 11 of the newsletter said:
“Through peer educator groups, monthly awareness-raising sessions, and the distribution of printed materials and condoms, ARC gave about 20,000 refugees the resources they needed to reduce their risk of contracting HIV and STIs.”
In this review document, American Refugee Committee acknowledges itself as the lead organization in a project that promotes and distributes condoms in South Sudan.
In a 2010 issue of Forced Migration Review, the authors explain how ARC actively worked with the Sudanese Ministry of Health (MoH) to change the then existent policy which made it illegal to provide or educate on contraceptive implants. The article said:
The Sudanese MoH has strict guidelines outlining which contraceptive methods may be offered in the country. At this time, contraceptive implants are not recognized, making it illegal to provide them or even to educate patients about them. The MoH is collaborating with the ARC Gereida team to advocate for a change in this policy but IDPs in Gereida currently do not have access to this method.
In addition to actively advocating for and participating in the spread of abortifacient contraception and condoms, ARC is also on the steering committee for a solidly pro-abortion organization called “Inter-Agency Working Group on Reproductive Health in Crisis.” (IAWG). IAWG’s stated mission is, “To expand and strengthen access to quality sexual and reproductive health services for people affected by conflict and natural disaster.”
IAWG has a page dedicated to “safe abortion care” wherein it calls safe abortion care “critical” for women raped in conflict.
On that page, under the heading, “Key Messages,” IAWG says:
Access to safe abortion for all women and adolescent girls in crisis is a human right. The right to access a safe and legal abortion is grounded in the realization of other core human rights, including the right to life, health, equality, privacy, self-determination, bodily integrity, and freedom from inhuman or degrading treatment and discrimination, as well as the right to benefit from scientific progress.
In 2004, ARC was a member of the Reproductive Health Response in Conflict Consortium. As a member, ARC helped produce a “learning module” promoting the use of IUDs and emergency contraception in areas torn by conflict.
Conclusion
ARC is not only willing to distribute all forms of contraception and promote its use, but it is working with foreign governments to legalize the spread of hormonal contraception.
Because of ARC’s unwavering promoting of these grave moral evils, no Christian could ever, in good conscience, support, provide funds or a clean image for this organization.