Kristan Hawkins, president of Students for Life of America and podcast host, visited Grounds Wednesday as a part of her college speaking tour titled “Abortion is Human Sacrifice.” Hawkins hosted a “Change My Mind” booth outside Newcomb Hall in the afternoon, and later delivered a speech followed by a question-and-answer session. Both events were hosted by Hoos For Life — a pro-life student advocacy group on Grounds.
Hawkins hosts a weekly podcast, titled “The Kristan Hawkins Show,” focused on pro-life news. Outside of her media presence, Hawkins tours colleges across the United States and was joined outside Newcomb by Millicent Sedra, a Christian preacher and internet personality. Sedra’s husband, Martin Sedra — a Christian pastor — also joined Hawkins in question-and-answer arguments with students, which often expanded into discussions of Christianity alongside abortion.
“What type of Christian would I be if I didn't come out and speak out against the brutal dismemberment and killing of other image bearers of Christ? That would make me a hypocrite,” Hawkins said.
The “Change My Mind” booth featured a tent where Hawkins and Millicent Sedra stood to answer students’ questions about abortion, although conversations often drifted to discussions about Christianity, human rights or other political issues.
Sona Tomy, third-year Education student and president of Hoos For Life, said that Hawkins is a figure that many on the Hoos For Life executive board look up to because of her “boldness and conviction.” She emphasized that Hawkins’ visit was a good opportunity to engage in controversial dialogue on Grounds.
“I think … being able to talk about these issues and voice them in public is so rare, and universities just have this great opportunity to have events like this and to encourage open dialogue,” Tomy said. “Having a place and an opportunity to go back and forth about a controversial topic, I think, is really beneficial for any university to host.”
Second-year College student Jordan Bernard engaged with Hawkins at the tent, discussing abortion from a scientific perspective. Bernard noted that, from her perspective, the conversation was ultimately unproductive. Bernard said she found that, even while trying to understand Hawkins’ and Millicent Sedra’s points, they were not meaningfully engaging with what Bernard had to say.
“No matter what you say, it's always like they're trying to circle back to embarrass you in a way,” Bernard said. “They're not coming here to have productive conversations. That is not their goal. They're trying to pass it off as that.”
Conversations with students often lasted for over 15 minutes before either Hawkins or the student chose to end the discussion. Many students were lined up to ask questions about the event, and other students would frequently shout comments towards Hawkins during the conversations.
During Bernard’s turn at the microphone, Hawkins called an abortion clinic to set up an appointment, claiming to be pregnant, before telling the person on the phone that abortion is murder to demonstrate how later-term abortions are handled medically.
Second-year College student Sophia Lee approached Hawkins with questions regarding her Christianity, asking how confronting college students in this format aligned with religious values.
“You guys say that you're governed by a Judeo-Christian system of faith,” Lee said. “Why do you think that, as Christians, that this is furthering God's mission to come and harass college students and women on what they want to do with their bodies?”
Lee quoted two Bible verses — Romans 16:17-18, which urge believers to avoid those who teach doctrine contrary to what was learned — prompting Hawkins to invite Martin Sedra to the booth to respond and cite scripture.
“You claim to be a Christian,” Martin Sedra said. “Do you believe that Jesus in Mary's womb was divine and the Son of God, or did he have to wait to come out of the womb?”
Lee expressed discontentment with Martin Sedra, Hawkins and Millicent Sedra’s behavior during the conversation.
“It typically is 2v1, and they brought up a third person to debate me. 3v1 is kind of counterproductive,” Lee said. “They also speak over everyone, and one of them was talking to the crowd and said, ‘Are there any real Christians?,’ which I felt was very disrespectful.”
Hawkins’ first event was scheduled to end at 1 p.m., but continued past that time. She later delivered a speech at Wilson Hall at 7 p.m., discussing her views on abortion and dialogue on college campuses. Afterwards, Hawkins continued to engage with students in a similar format.
Lee acknowledged that while the format of the conversations could feel unfair, with multiple people debating one student, they were still worth having.
“I don't typically like these kinds of things. I think that they are set up in a way that disadvantages the student, and also they're kind of just there to get a reaction,” Lee said. “But at the same time, I think that these are conversations that we should be having, just probably in more controlled spaces.”
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