Fighting the “hurricane winds” of abortion liberalization: Americans United for life and the struggle for self-definition before Roe v. Wade

In 1971, anti-abortion leaders in the United States came together to establish a new national organization, Americans United for Life (AUL). In its first year, AUL struggled to put ecumenism into practice and deliberated over how best to spread its message. After months of often-bitter debate, right-to-lifers in AUL chose compromise over absolutism and education over protest. They positioned themselves within the secular rather than the theological realm and rejected emotive, ideological, or partisan appeals. They envisaged an anti-abortion activism that could transcend religious and political divisions, believing that only this approach would facilitate the growth of a truly mass right-to-life citizenry.