AMERICAN CITIZENS CONCERNED FOR LIFE, INC., RECORDS, (1968) 1974-1982 (1986)

American Citizens Concerned for Life, Inc. (ACCL) was formed and incorporated in 1973 as a national membership association engaged in educational, legislative, research and service activities that promoted respect for human life in contemporary society. Specific issues addressed by the ACCL’s programs included increased legal protection for life, maternal and child health programs, death and dying issues surrounding the elderly; as well as broad issues like health care for the poor, respect for the handicapped, and world hunger. The collection was donated by Joseph Lampe, who served in various roles within the ACCL (becoming president of the organization after the departure of Marjorie Mecklenburg).

Establishment
The ACCL was founded in the wake of the 1973 United States Supreme Court cases of Roe v. Wade and Doe v. Bolton, both of which upheld a woman’s right to an abortion. The core founders of the ACCL lived mainly in Minnesota and were instrumental in raising over $50,000 for the establishment of a national pro-life group. This national group became known as the National Right to Life Committee (NRLC). Core ACCL founders, such as Marjory Mecklenburg, served in various capacities with the NRLC. The ACCL was legally incorporated before the NRLC, but the ACCL was held in abeyance until the NRLC’s policies and direction became more clear.

In its first year of existence, the NRLC attempted to take on all areas of pro-life lobby functions: education, policy, legal, medical, amendment, state organizations and development, intergroup liaison, political, and publishing. At the end of the first year, the funding for the NRLC’s programs proved to be insufficient. In 1974, the NRLC changed its focus to political actions that would result in a Constitutional Amendment banning abortion. It dropped all other programs.

The ACCL picked up several of the NRLC’s dropped initiatives. The main goals of the ACCL in 1974 were to foster the development of the pro-life movement, develop supportive services for women and children, and work towards pro-life issues that were broader than abortion.

Programs and Services
The ACCL developed a strategy of providing information services along with legislative services to the pro-life movement, staying away from direct services and direct political action. Within this “consultant” role, the ACCL focused their services on four main areas; advocacy, instigation of social change, formation of grass-root organizations to further the goals of the cause, and lastly, coordination with other like-minded groups.

Scope and Content of the ACCL Records (currently processed sections only)
While certain items are dated as late as 1986, the bulk of the ACCL records are from 1974-1982. The records cover the establishment of the Minnesota Citizens Concerned for Life, and the growth of American Citizens Concerned for Life. Within the MCCL and ACCL records are the group’s mailings, educational materials and operating records. Also included within the collection is a significant body of materials related to the work of the National Right to Life Committee (1968-1977).

One segment within the collection focuses on Marjorie Mecklenburg’s appointment to the Office of Technology Assessment and the presidential elections of 1976 and 1980. In addition, the ACCL kept a clipping file on several of the key players in the abortion debate. The records are valuable sources about the political climate of abortion in the late 1970’s in America. Coordination with other pro-life groups is noted within the files and is a valuable source for understanding other anti-abortion groups.

Related Materials (February 2001)
The most significant Ford administration materials on abortion appear in White House Central Files category WE3: Family Planning, the Domestic Council Files of Sarah Massengale, and the Counsel’s Office Files of Philip Buchen and Bobbie Kilberg. Information on the abortion issue in the 1976 presidential campaign appears in the President Ford Committee Records.