Pro-abortion pushback on a 'Christian' campus led to her pro-life mission

Growing up in a Catholic household, Emily Geiger considered herself pro-life “by default” and never felt convicted to promote pro-life principles actively. She naively believed most Christians were pro-life until she entered St. Olaf College, an institution founded by the Evangelical Lutheran Church.

There, she was startled to discover that many young people held passionate pro-choice views.

Pro-choice views on a Christian college campus

Geiger told Live Action News, “It was my first semester there when I heard about a huge protest organized by the students in response to the local pregnancy resource center hosting a fundraiser on campus. I realized then that this issue mattered.”

Yet Geiger was reluctant to speak out publicly. She was worried about the consequences of expressing her views on such a controversial topic, fearing she might be ostracized by her peers.

Then, during the second semester, her best friend persuaded her to attend a pro-life group meeting. That night, Geiger made the decision to join the campus pro-life club, committing to advancing pro-life principles within the college community.

“At the time, we were just a four-member club trying to host events but failing miserably,” Geiger said. “We designed a display about abortion and installed it in the student union, a prime real estate area where student traffic was high. The display was vandalized 13 times.”

Geiger submitted a bias report to the university administration about these incidents, citing her concerns about discrimination and the suppression of free speech, yet it was met with silence.

That summer, Geiger took over leadership of the pro-life club.

She explained, “I wanted to formulate new strategies to communicate our message with integrity and respect, because our efforts just seemed to be fomenting hostility on campus.”

Abortion apologetics training transforms campus culture

As if in answer to prayer, she received an email from the local pregnancy resource center informing her that their staff was planning to enroll in abortion apologetics training hosted by Equal Rights Institute, an organization that equips pro-life activists with the tools to argue persuasively, and they offered to cover her enrollment fee as well.

The course proved valuable in helping Geiger implement weekly outreach initiatives in the student union, a strategy formulated to promote open and honest debate.

Geiger said, “Now that I knew how to actively engage pro-choice students to change their perspective without generating hostility, these events would prove to be a game changer.”

Over the next three years, Geiger’s pro-life debates simultaneously served to expand the membership of the pro-life club while transforming the culture on the campus by creating a platform that fostered open dialogue among students, professors, and others around a deeply divisive issue, stoking a growing respect among those who were pro-choice.

“The benefits were two-fold,” Geiger said. “Our visibility inspired other students to join the pro-life club, whereas by presenting compelling arguments in the case for life, we began gaining credibility among pro-choice students and the university administration.”

During this time, the vandalism all but ceased, and when one such act did occur, Geiger received an apology from university officials along with a promise to discipline the culprit, who was clearly identified on camera.

Geiger noted, “We had been successful in changing perceptions, which was a huge accomplishment given we had been swimming upstream amid such a previously unreceptive environment.”

In tandem with hosting outreach, Geiger volunteered with Equal Rights Institute throughout her college years. When she graduated with a degree in education, she went to work at the organization full-time, helping to create curriculum and materials that would provide a fresh perspective on pro-life apologetics while addressing common misconceptions about abortion. 

“Our training isn’t just for college students,” Geiger told Live Action News. “We’ve also developed Equipped for Life Academy, which teaches younger students in grades seven through 12 about how to argue convincingly for life. We meet people where they’re at, whether through open dialogue, podcasts, or on campus events.”

College activism leads to a rewarding career

Now five years in, Geiger serves as Director of Education and Outreach. The young woman who was formerly “lukewarm” about pro-life apologetics has a full agenda these days:  speaking at college campuses and churches across the country, overseeing the high school program in collaboration with teachers and school administrators, and advising college pro-life clubs. Additionally, she manages social media initiatives.

Geiger said, “I’m especially proud of the Equipped for Life Academy. It took three years to launch, but it is the only pro-life apologetics curriculum approved by the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB). I love that we provide young people with the tools to effectively speak out for life in a powerful way.”

For TikTok and Instagram, Geiger creates short, compelling videos to help viewers learn how to engage their peers in a productive way. She has amassed more than 50,000 followers on Instagram and 34,000 on TikTok.

She explained, “I switch up the content of the videos to include role playing where I take on two opposing viewpoints and address popular misconceptions about the pro-life stance.”

Activism in today's climate

Geiger notes that in today’s environment, conversations on campuses are easier, yet harder. She has observed a noticeable shift in student attitudes following the overturn of Roe in 2022.

“Since then, young people appear to be more fervent about their pro-choice views,” she noted. “But abortion remains a topic that compels them to engage in meaningful dialogue, and we encourage those exchanges. We’re glad to be part of that discussion and welcome the opportunity to change hearts and minds around abortion.”