The executive director of Pro-Life Action Ministries (PLAM), Brian Gibson, said he was assaulted Wednesday morning while sidewalk counseling outside of the St. Paul Planned Parenthood.
Gibson said he received six stitches below his eye after a young man punched him in the face while he was offering free assistance to pregnant women outside Planned Parenthood.
“The young man had to walk about 40 feet over to where I was standing to tell me he would hit me if I didn’t quit talking to him,” Gibson wrote in a Facebook post. “So I started talking to the young woman with him who may have just had an abortion.”
Gibson shared with Alpha News that he used to sidewalk counsel outside of the St. Paul location once a week. “I was out there yesterday morning because of a specific need,” he told Alpha News on Thursday. “I’ve been punched at two other times. No harm has ever come from any of them. This one yesterday, because the kid swung at me and hit my sunglasses, that’s why I was bleeding.”
Gibson explained that these types of violent interactions while sidewalk counseling are very rare. “I’ve been doing this for a very long time and there’s a handful of people I can think of that anything has happened to,” he said.
Gibson said the young couple was leaving Planned Parenthood when the altercation happened. “They were walking away instead of driving, which is kind of unusual. The Planned Parenthood volunteer had been talking to the couple in the driveway long before getting close to us on the sidewalk and had actually escorted them to walk across the private property next door.”
Gibson explained that he was just letting them know that there was free help nearby. “The young man was calling back at me, I wasn’t hearing what he was saying, but I just kept telling them where they could go to get help,” Gibson said, explaining that the man walked over to where he was standing to tell him to stop talking.
“He said, ‘If you don’t quit talking to me I’m going to hit you,'” Gibson recounted. “So I started talking to the girl telling her that there was free help available and that’s when he punched me.”
Gibson said he was concerned for the safety of the girl with the man, along with concern for any potential unborn baby. “I’m almost twice the guy’s size. He’s threatening to punch me and making it look like he might do it, so I’m thinking, what’s he doing to the girl? So I’m just trying to let her know there’s help available,” Gibson said.
He said that eventually the police came and took reports, but no one from Planned Parenthood came out to help with the situation. “Which is to be expected,” Gibson said.
“Pray for these guys. Pray for them. If she already had the abortion, she needs healing and help,” Gibson said. “And he needs help, that he would take a swing at someone who’s offering help.”
“I’d love to have an opportunity to talk with them,” Gibson added.
The St. Paul Police Department (SPPD) confirmed with Alpha News that the incident is under investigation. “The male suspect then ran away and was not identified,” SPPD said.
Hayley Feland
Hayley Feland previously worked as a journalist with The Minnesota Sun, The Wisconsin Daily Star, and The College Fix. She is a Minnesota native with a passion for politics and journalism.
