I sat in a cushioned chair staring at the colored flowers which peppered the walls and furniture. The idea of a pregnancy center conjured up ideas of a hospital -- antiseptic white walls, examination tables, rows of newly sterilized instruments. This waiting room wasn't what I had imagined at all -- it could have been transplanted from the living room in my parent's house.
"Here's your cup," the counselor from The Pregnancy Center of Charlottesville said, holding out a clear plastic container.
I stared at her for a moment, confused.
"When you're done, just leave it in the bathroom. I'll come get it," she said.
I hid in the bathroom for the next ten minutes, too nervous and embarrassed to walk back out and tell the woman at the counter that my urine was sitting on a tray on the back of the toilet.
A few months ago, The Cavalier Daily received a letter alleging that The Pregnancy Center of Charlottesville, a branch of Pregnancy Centers of Central Virginia, deliberately provides false information on abortion to discourage women from terminating pregnancies.
I had heard of the Pregnancy Center -- their ads, a close-up of a somber-looking woman with the words "Late?" and "Worried?" scrawled across the bottom are almost impossible to miss if you've lived in Charlottesville for any length of time. We could not, however, find anyone who had ever gone to their center for counseling and was willing to discuss the visit. Nor would we be able to realistically call up the Center and ask if they gave out bad information.
If the allegations were true, women in Charlottesville deserved to know prior to visiting the Center. If they were not, The Pregnancy Center needed to have their reputation cleared publicly.
After considering the options, the editors and I eventually decided that I should go to the Center and undergo the counseling process. To compare experiences, I would also visit Planned Parenthood under the same circumstances.
During my visits to the Pregnancy Center and Planned Parenthood, I never provided any false information other than my pregnancy status. I used my real name, my real phone number and address, and described my actual relationship and birth control practices. After the consultation, I took any materials or brochures they had available on abortion, adoption and birth control. All direct quotes come from separate interviews conducted at a different time following my visit.
Testing the centers
I visited the Pregnancy Center early in January. Except for a small sign out front, you would never know the tiny white house squeezed in next to the Greyhound station on West Main St. contains the Pregnancy Center. I had called ahead of time to schedule an appointment, and the woman who answered gave me their hours for the day, and told me come by whenever I wanted. The Pregnancy Center has a private parking lot located behind the building, so no one sees you enter or leave.
The interior was not what I expected. Instead of the white walls and stiff benches of an antiseptic clinic, floral wallpaper, carpeting and comfortable plush couches and chairs filled the waiting area.
A polite, concerned counselor, dressed in a plain black shirt and pants, informed me the Pregnancy Center was a Christian-oriented organization and gave me a sheet with their confidentiality policy.
Then she handed me the cup.
After I had finished in the bathroom, the counselor directed me to a smaller sitting room with more couches. First, she asked me questions about myself
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