A recent article in Christianity Today highlighted the need for men to have a stronger voice and more engagement in the pro-life movement.
Roland Warren, President and CEO of Care Net, was among the prominent national leaders interviewed for the piece, entitled “Most Men Are Pro-Life. Activists Want Them to Speak Up.” Men play a decisive role in pregnancy decisions and must not be passive, both to support women and to embrace their responsibility as fathers, they said.
The article cited a recent poll by Gallup that stated how 54 percent of men identify as pro-life (compared to just 32 percent of women). However, many men are hesitant to express that conviction when confronted with an unplanned pregnancy.
In the article, Roland said the reason for such passivity is due to the pervasive cultural narrative that a man has no right to care about an unborn child until the mother decides not to have an abortion. It’s framed strictly as a woman’s choice.
“Unfortunately, because of what’s happened in the culture, men have been trained that the right thing to say is ‘I support whatever decision you make,’” he said.
Care Net, a network of 1,200 pregnancy centers in the United States, has sought to change that prevailing narrative.
Before coming to Care Net in 2012, Roland’s experience as president of the National Fatherhood Initiative underscored for the ministry how essential it is to involve men. Being raised by a single mom and navigating an unplanned pregnancy with his future wife Yvette while they were students at Princeton also has given him a unique, empathetic perspective.
“When I started at Care Net, less than 10 percent of Care Net-affiliated pregnancy centers had any programs for men. Now we’re close to 65 to 70 percent,” he said in Christianity Today.
Care Net has developed several initiatives that are helping to move the needle. One is a resource designed to help pregnancy centers “welcome men into all your services with the same standard of care.” The publication, Welcoming Him, encourages centers to intentionally invite men (expectant fathers or partners) to be part of appointments and decision-making.
Care Net’s Doctor Dad Course is a key piece in the organization’s Pro Abundant Life Fatherhood Project. In 2023, Care Net offered funding, resources, and training to the fatherhood programs at 19 affiliated pregnancy centers, reaching more than 6,000 fathers in just a year. The Doctor Dad® Course has eight sessions on how dads can support their pregnant partner and infant-toddler. Care Net also offers an expanded Healthy Dad version that addresses personal growth, relationships, finances, and long-term fatherhood responsibilities.
In his latest book, The Alternative to Abortion: Why We Must Be Pro Abundant Life, Roland Warren documents how men can make a world of difference with chapters such as “Why Abortion Is Not Just a Women’s Issue” and “Why Fathers Matter.”
Care Net’s President and CEO laments the current prevailing societal narrative around pregnancy and calls for men to step out of the shadows.
“Our culture touts this as a model for healthy masculinity. But nothing could be further from the truth. ‘Whatever you decide,’ is not masculinity. God made men to take responsibility for their actions.”