Finding Her Voice: Despite threats, one young pro-life woman won't stay silent

A recent high school graduate unsure of what God was calling her to do next, Madeline "Maddie" Hargis began posting non-controversial videos on TikTok — but God soon convicted her to start posting content that would glorify Him. And yet, as many young activists soon realize, it can come at a cost.

Hargis noticed that intense debates were taking place around the issue of abortion. While she grew up in a conservative Christian household, she wasn’t quite sure what abortion entailed – other than ending a pregnancy. So she began to educate herself — and it changed everything.

Eyes Open to the Truth

“We didn’t really discuss abortion at home," Hargis told Live Action News. "But God laid it on my heart to defend the preborn, so I started doing some research to become better informed. I watched Live Action videos depicting abortion procedures, investigated human development and saw pictures of aborted baby parts.”

When she saw the movie, “Unplanned,” Hargis cried, wondering why it would ever be acceptable to kill babies in the womb.

“Seeing imagery is so powerful,” Hargis said. “I began to understand that Planned Parenthood wanted people to stay ignorant about the horrors of abortion. God gave me the passion for this issue but initially, I wasn’t sure what avenue to pursue.”

Abortion Doctors Share How The Most Common Abortion Procedures Take Place

She started debating online in a small way, “dipping her toe in the water” because she was afraid to post anything controversial. Then Proverbs 31:8-9 came to mind. The passage emphasizes the responsibility of speaking out on behalf of those who cannot speak for themselves.

Hargis said, “I was always such a people pleaser, but now, I was convicted to use my voice in a bold way.”

Pushback

Recalling Esther 4:14, one of her favorite Bible verses, Hargis understood that she had a purpose for “such a time as this.” But she was hesitant about expanding her videos to Instagram because she was concerned about others seeing her content there, especially now that she was in college.

“When I did start posting on Instagram, people who knew I was posting the content started to unfollow my private account,” Hargis said. “Others started talking about what I was doing online, and it was awkward at first.”

By February 2025, she had amassed about 20k followers, just five months after she started posting on Instagram. But then, her TikTok account was deactivated after she reposted a threat she had received.

For Hargis, receiving threats had become common, given the highly charged nature of the abortion topic. 

Hargis said, “I was so discouraged by the inability to reach new people and to continue engaging with my followers. I thought this is what God wanted me to do.”

Refusing to be Silenced

After her original account was removed, Hargis decided to create a new account as a backup to continue her online activism. Just two weeks after launching this account, she posted a video asking whether people were unfollowing her because of her pro-life stance. The video quickly gained traction, attracting a million views.

Hargis said that after this, she posted a picture of herself with a "pro-choice" friend because she “wanted to show that two people with opposite viewpoints can still disagree on a topic such as abortion and yet be respectful. You can’t try to convince people to see your perspective unless you act in a respectful way.”

She’s now been advocating for life on social media for more than two years, yet her self-supported work hasn’t been without challenges, as she deals with constant threats.

Her TikTok and Instagram accounts have been deactivated and restricted, and at one point, her videos were not viewable, but she’s been able to eventually get back up again.

“A lot of people have been reporting my accounts so I’m coming under much scrutiny,” she explained.

She believes, despite the concerning threats, that God has given her a calling and trusts in His protection – however, she has sent a couple of the malicious messages she has received to law enforcement.

“These messages stated that deep porn videos were going to be made of me and sent to birth fetish chat rooms,” Hargis said. “There were others threatening to rape and kill me. Some of the threats do bother me, but I also receive many encouraging messages.”

Her online presence has been making an impact on young people, and she was recently invited to be a part of Live Action's Young Leaders Summit, where a young man revealed he was now more inclined to speak out about abortion.

“He realized that as a man, he too, can have a voice,” Hargis said.

The Spiritual Battle

Hargis hasn't just discussed abortion on social media.

She experienced a "heaviness in [her] chest" when she participated in sidewalk counseling at the Washington Surgi-Clinic in D.C., where the controversial Dr. Cesare Santangelo committed late-term abortions until September 2025.

"It broke my heart to see women walking in and out of that building," Hargis said. "I was both praying and crying at the same time. Once a woman is pregnant, she’s already a mother and always will be.”

Hargis has become increasingly frustrated at the reticence of Christian churches to address the abortion issue, verbally or otherwise. She sees abortion as demonic and contends that it’s a spiritual battle.

“God’s children are being murdered, and, in some cases, fetal organs are being harvested for profit," she said. "I think many church leaders are afraid to wade into a controversial topic such as abortion, but Satan attacks what’s closest to God’s heart — which is why it’s not acceptable to be silent.”

Hargis hopes one day to contribute to the broader conversation on family values and also to work with women at pregnancy support centers. “I hope to secure a position where I can play a role in advancing policies that strengthen families and address the issues they face in today’s climate,” she said.

Ultimately, Hargis' goal is one that we can all share as pro-life individuals: “to speak truth in a loving way" and "to honor God" with our activism on behalf of the most vulnerable.