The president and co-founder of the oldest Catholic grassroots pro-life organization recently reached a milestone birthday, pausing to look back on decades of pro-life advocacy.
The American Life League was founded in 1979 by Judie Brown and her husband Paul to advocate for protecting all human life from conception to natural death. The pro-life organization operates on Catholic values in defense of life and advocates for opposing abortion, euthanasia, and other threats to human life through education, advocacy, and other pro-life initiatives.
Judie Brown has been a key leader in the pro-life movement for over four decades, helping to establish other long-time pro-life organizations. Her leadership has impacted countless others, inspiring many to join the pro-life movement. Her husband Paul passed away in November 2021.
Brown, an author, columnist, and three-time Pontifical Academy for Life appointee, recently celebrated her 80th birthday and reflected on her unwavering faith and dedication to protecting the unborn.
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Brown recounts her long-time advocacy in the cause. Her journey in the pro-life movement began in 1969 when she and her husband participated in a pro-life leaflet campaign in Washington state. This early activism laid the groundwork for her lifelong commitment to the pro-life issue.
Brown noted for Pregnancy Help News the energy, passion, and commitment in the pro-life movement.
“The pro-life movement has gone from a total grassroots effort to a professional, political effort, and now I think we are experiencing a revival in grassroots activism, which is a blessing,” she observed of the movement’s progression.
Under Brown’s guidance, American Life League has been at the forefront of numerous pro-life campaigns and educational efforts.
The organization provides education and training to equip pro-life activists. They also host a variety of events and programs. Their goal is to ‘restore respect for human life in America,’ according to their website. They do this by building coalitions with churches, advocating for personhood, and educating Americans on the dangers of abortion and euthanasia.
Last year under Brown’s leadership American Life League produced a Charity Navigator tool, a database that serves as a watchlist of Christian nonprofit organizations that donate to or support abortions.
As Brown continues to inspire and lead, the American Life League remains laser-focused on its mission. The pro-life organization confronts new challenges in the changing culture but remains committed to its goals of advocating for life and educating the public on the sanctity of human life.
Brown’s faith has been critical to her work. She and her husband spearheaded the founding of the American Life League with nine other pro-life leaders. The organization's mission has always reflected Catholic teachings. This commitment to faith is evident in their daily work and has remained unchanged since the earliest days.
“American Life League exists to serve God by helping to build a society that respects and protects individual innocent human beings from creation to death—without compromise, without exception, without apology,” stated Brown.
One of the biggest misconceptions about the pro-life movement, according to Brown, is the belief that pro-life advocates do not respect women.
This notion has been perpetuated by pro-abortion supporters since her first public debate with NARAL’s Karen Mulhauser in 1981, she said.
“The fact is that pro-life people respect every woman and man from creation to death without exception,” Brown said.
Looking ahead, she sees a future where the American Life League’s mission is fulfilled to the extent that the organization is no longer needed.
“My goal has always been to put the American Life League out of business because we have, as a nation, chosen to defend and protect every human being from creation until death,” Brown said.
“Never compromise the life of a single human being at any stage in her or his life,” she asserted. “Never forget that every human being’s life is a gift from God.”
Brown is extremely committed to her family and her faith.
“Becoming a wife, a mother of three, and now a grandmother of 13,” is what she cites as her greatest personal accomplishment.
The best piece of advice she ever received, she said, was to “keep your priorities in order: faith, family, and then the babies.” These words of wisdom came from Father Denis O’Brien, the first Catholic priest involved with American Life League’s work.
Tweet This: “Keep your priorities in order: faith, family, and then the babies” - advice to and from American life League's Judie Brown
Judie Brown's longtime dedication and leadership have been fundamental in the pro-life movement, impacting countless lives and continuing to guide the American Life League in its mission to protect life at all stages. Her legacy shows the power of unshakable faith and commitment to defend life.
More information on Judie Brown and American Life League can be found HERE.
