The emergence of Mildred Jefferson’s life purpose can be traced all the way back to her childhood, in the small town of Pittsburg, Texas during the 1930s.
That’s when her fascination of medicine began, under the wing of the local physician who allowed her to tag along on house calls in his horse-drawn carriage.
One day Mildred announced to him, “When I grow up, I’m going to be a doctor too.”
He could have suggested, “A career in nursing might be another good choice, Millie. It’s not a bit fair, but most medical schools will likely turn you down because you’re a girl, and even in these modern times, most doctors are men.” He might also have mentioned the barriers Mildred would face because she was black.
But the doctor encouraged her to work hard toward her dream. So did her mother and father, a teacher and Methodist minister respectively.
Mildred followed their advice and graduated from high school at age 15 and then college at 18, summa cum laude no less. Too young to enter medical school, Mildred earned her master’s degree in biology while she waited.
Against great odds, Mildred was accepted into medical school–at Harvard–and in 1951 became the first African American woman to graduate from the esteemed institution.
Then she became the first woman to intern at Boston City Hospital and the first female surgeon at Boston University Medical Center, where Mildred eventually served as professor of surgery.
By 1970 the abortion debate had begun to garner much attention. At the time, the American Medical Association was preparing a resolution in favor of abortion rights. Mildred strongly opposed such action, citing the Hippocratic oath and Judeo-Christian values as her defense.
Driven by her strong faith in God and heartfelt patriotism, Mildred began her fight against abortion. She helped found the Massachusetts chapter of Citizens for Life and later co-founded the National Right to Life Committee. Mildred served as president of the latter from 1975-1978.
After forty years of coping with sexism and racism Mildred had developed great strength of character and courage. She did not mince words concerning her conviction that abortion was wrong.
“I became a physician in order to save lives, not to destroy them,” Jefferson said in a 1978 interview. “I will not accept the proposition that the doctor should relinquish the role of healer to become the new social executioner.” [1]
In another interview, Mildred stated: I am at once a physician, a citizen, and a woman, and I am not willing to stand aside and allow the concept of expendable human lives to turn this great land of ours into just another exclusive reservation where only the perfect, the privileged, and the planned have the right to live” (2003, American Feminist Magazine). [2]
Mildred abhorred the fact that women of color aborted at higher rates than white women. Were there racist motives behind the push to publicly fund abortions? Was a purposeful genocide being committed against blacks? It certainly appeared so.[3]
Mildred asserted: “I would guess that the abortionists have done more to get rid of generations and cripple others than all the years of slavery and lynchings.”[4]
The articulate doctor received invitations to speak all over the country. Her logical arguments and impassioned delivery convinced many people that abortion was immoral.
After a television appearance in 1972, Mildred received the following letter:
“Several years ago I was faced with the issue of whether to sign a California abortion bill. . . . I must confess to never having given the matter of abortion any serious thought until that time. No other issue since I have been in office has caused me to do so much study and soul-searching . . . I wish I could have heard your views before our legislation was passed. You made it irrefutably clear that an abortion is the taking of a human life. I’m grateful to you.”
The letter was signed, Governor Ronald Reagan.[5]
For nearly 40 years Mildred continued to fight for the rights of the unborn as she lived up to Jesus’ statement in Matthew 25:40, that whatever we do for the least of those among us, we do it for him.
Sources:
- https://christiannewsjournal.com/one-doctors-prescription-for-life-mildred-fay-jefferson/
- https://www.classicalhistorian.com/johns-blog/mildred-fay-jefferson
- https://cultureoflifestudies.com/newsletter/dr-mildred-fay-jefferson/
- https://kofc.org/en/news-room/columbia/2020/january/passionate-pioneer-remembered.html)
- https://marchforlife.org/dr-mildred-jefferson/
Notes
[1] https://kofc.org;en/news-room/columbia/202/january/passionate-pioneer-rememberd.html
[2] https://marchforlife.org/dr-mildred-jefferson/
[3] op. cit. https://kofc
[4] https://www.classicalhistorian.com/johns-blog/mildred-fay-jefferson
[5] op. cit. https://kofc
Photo credits: http://www.picryl,com; http://www.wikimedia.com; http://www.heartlight.org, Ben Steed; http://www.azquotes.com; http://www.wikimedia.org; http://www.all.org.
From the Inside Out 