Several weeks ago, through The Interim mail, I was surprised to learn from supporters in Manitoba that their group was praying for us. Well, we need all the prayers we can get, but the reason given was that they had heard we were going out of business.
Not long after that, a friend in B.C. reported that a similar announcement had been made at a local pro-life meeting. She, bless her, replied that it was just a rumour and that we are doing very well, thank you.
Well the news isn’t that good – but it’s not that bad either! We are short of money (although I don’t know of any pro-life group that isn’t). Somehow, all the bills still get paid. Although we’d often like to go out of business, we can’t. Some of you who read the first issue of The Interim (March 1983) may recall our first editorial which explained our name and out purpose.
We said then – and we have had no reason to change our policy – that out intention is to remain faithful always to the principle that the unborn have a right to life.
When this principle is enshrined in our law, then our job will be done. Our purpose is to give pro-lifers an up-to-date, accurate account of events of importance to them. Indeed, we have tried to give out readers the ammunition they need to take action.
A stranger
To win this war (and it is a war, although some dislike such terms), it is not enough to believe that we are right. We also need to have the ammunition to put our beliefs into action. To combat the deceitful slogans (“a lump of tissue”, “pro-choice”, “a woman’s right to control her body”), to refute the derogatory word-portraits painted of pro-lifers (“religious fanatics”, “bigots”, “fascists”), we all need to learn accurate terminology, to understand the latest scientific advances, and to read about what actually happened at a rally, demonstration or a conference. Equally important, we believe, is access to information that is framed from a pro-life point of view. The popular press is, let’s face it, biased against us – and most of us don’t have the time, the energy or the background to sort it out.
Publishing any monthly newspaper is an ambitious and expensive undertaking. There are printing, typesetting, and mailing costs. Then the costs of photocopying, of subscriptions to other publications, of telephone, and office space and supplies have to be added into the budget. We rent “space” on a computer in an attempt to keep our mailing list under control: we sometimes dream of having our own computer, one with word-processing and typesetting capabilities, which would actually save money in the long run. It’s a grand dream.
Many people simply donate their time and energy. In fact, the few salaries that are paid hardly reflect the time spent, the work done or the commitment gladly given. Having told you that our bills do get paid eventually, and that salaries are a small and an insignificant part of our needs, why, you may ask, am I rambling on in this fashion?
To put it bluntly, if we could raise the monthly income of The Interim, I think we could do a much better job. We could afford to give a modest salary to those who would like to work with us but whose circumstances don’t allow volunteer work. Not only would that relieve the pressure on us, it would enable us to give you much of the information we currently omit due to lack of time to research and write. We could publish so much more: a series of pamphlets, reprints of some of our more important articles, more in-depth research on particular topics that are too long for the newspaper format, and so on. The ideas are there; the financial resources are lacking.
In order to help
Profit-making newspapers and magazines don’t rely on subscriptions to balance the account books: more of their revenue derives from advertising. While we are deeply grateful to all of our advertisers and constantly solicit new ads, we know we cannot hope to attract the volume of advertising that would meet our needs. (But, let me hasten to add, if there is a reader who can organize such advertising support, please don’t delay – call today!)
Many years ago, when I was single and living in London, England, I worked for a theatrical management company. In theatre circles the expression “an angel” (used gleefully if you have one, wistfully if you’re still hoping to find one) refers to a financial backer. “The angel” donates money, often with no reasonable hope of ever seeing it again, in order to help a worthwhile production reach the public.
Subscribe to the Interim
In case you’ve missed my hardly-subtle point: we need an angel. Come to think of it, what could be a more appropriate name for someone who would help a publication such as ours! More accurately, perhaps, we need several angels. We need your financial support and, although we cannot give charitable receipts, advertising is a legitimate business expense. We need you to talk about us to your friends and relations and urge them to subscribe to The Interim. We need you to approach your local priest or minister and ask him if he would consider buying a number of copies each month to give out to his congregation. Those few suggestions come immediately to mind: you may have more ideas to increase our income and circulation, and I’d be glad to hear them.
We’ve come a along way since March 1983, and we still have a long way to go. All of us at The Interim are ready for the challenge ahead; we hope you will support us.
