The Next Generation
Why does Abolish Abortion Australia prioritise university campuses? Because if abortion is to be abolished in Australia in our lifetime, Gen Z must rise and take a stand. Moreover, when it comes to the abortion debate, the university has become more than just a marketplace of ideas. It has become a place where abortion is increasingly normalised and, in some cases, taught and provided.
A good example is Curtin University, the largest university in Western Australia. Since Western Australia's Abortion Legislation Reform Act 2023, which removed abortion from the criminal code and permitted endorsed midwives to prescribe MS-2 Step medications within their scope of practice, Curtin University has introduced clinical opportunities for students in its midwifery program related to providing medical abortions [1].
To the best of our knowledge, Curtin appears to be among the first Australian universities whose Midwifery Clinic offers medical abortions on campus delivered by qualified midwives and supported by trainee midwifery students [2]. The university advertises the availability of these abortion services on its website and makes medical abortion readily available to pregnant mothers, with consultations provided at the affordable bulk-billed cost of just $30 [3].
As one 2025 study put it, as a result of these legislative changes in WA we are indeed in a “new era in abortion care” [4].
WHY DOES IT MATTER?
Abortion is one of the most common medical procedures in Australia. Approximately one in four Australian women will experience an abortion during their lifetime [5], and nearly 90,000 abortions are performed in Australia each year [6]. With abortion killing more human beings in Australia each year than every other cause of death combined, we stand at the edge of an even greater massacre as access is expanded through endorsed midwives , who are now able to function as practical abortionists in several jurisdictions across Australia.
Yet only a few years ago, many practising midwives graduated from university without the word ‘abortion’ ever being mentioned in their training. Today, universities like Curtin are beginning to incorporate clinical teaching relating to medical abortion provision and medication safety into multiple units of the midwifery curriculum.
The pro-choice movement has advanced rapidly in recent years. Meanwhile, the pro-life side, pursuing pragmatic incremental steps, is not keeping up with the pace as the political landscape hardens. Further, pro-life groups remain rare on campus and are often denied official status on the grounds that teaching the sanctity of life from conception is ‘divisive and harmful.’[7]. I will let the reader decide for themselves who really is being harmed by that decision – especially considering the recognised reality that the lack of pregnancy care and support for international students studying in Australia has been shown to lead to ‘reluctant abortions’ [8].
Universities are becoming a strategic battleground because abortion is increasingly being embedded within higher education, and therefore Gen Z Christians have a unique responsibility.
THE MIDWIVES OF EXODUS
Moreover, scripture records another moment when midwives stood at the centre of a culture of death. For our particular moment in history, we see a parallel in Exodus chapter 1:15 where "the king of Egypt spake to the Hebrew midwives, of which the name of the one was Shiphrah, and the name of the other Puah: And he said, When ye do the office of a midwife to the Hebrew women… if it be a son, then ye shall kill him".
We are not in ancient Egypt. We are in Australia in 2026. It’s not just baby boys being killed. It's not just Hebrew children being targeted. It's not just a few Hebrew midwives being pressured. It’s systemic. It’s legislative. And it’s bleeding over and into the university campuses. It is being incorporated into midwifery student training. A profession dedicated to caring for mothers and babies is now being pressured to participate in ending unborn human life.
During a street conversation while evangelising with Abolish Abortion Australia in Western Australia, one practising midwife described the growing professional pressure she felt to participate in abortion services or risk adverse consequences for her career. It seems likely that student midwives may face similar pressures as abortion provision becomes more integrated into their education.
The Egyptian “midwives feared God and did not as the king of Egypt commanded them, but saved the men children alive," and because of their actions, "Therefore God dealt well with the midwives: and the people multiplied and waxed very mighty". Notice how the Scripture doesn’t say the midwives feared contravening the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. No, they feared God. "Thou shalt not kill" (Exodus 20:13) is the moral law of God, written on our hearts and we know intrinsically within our conscience that it is wrong to take the life of an innocent human being. Contrary to what pro-life advocates like Dr Joanna Howe might suggest, abortion is not solely a human right’s issue, it IS a religious issue. The Sixth Commandment is a tenet of the Christian faith and what it means to obey God.
“Deliver those who are drawn toward death, And hold back those stumbling to the slaughter. If you say, “Surely we did not know this,” Does not He who weighs the hearts consider it? He who keeps your soul, does He not know it? And will He not render to each man according to his deeds?” (Proverbs 24:11-12).
Early medical abortion now accounts for around half of all abortions in Australia [9], and there is a growing movement in the medical field to expand access to match international rates [9]. These developments reinforce the urgency for Christians to fear God and not man, just as the Hebrew midwives did.
Subsequently, what is happening at Curtin University today could very well soon become commonplace at universities across Australia as training in medical abortion becomes more normalised for midwifery students. If abortion is ever to be abolished, Christians, especially young Gen Z Christians, must be willing to stand for truth in those same institutions. Throughout history, great social evils have often been challenged by Christians willing to stand where others remained silent. The only ones who have an excuse of being silent are our unborn neighbours who do not have a voice.
"Open thy mouth, judge righteously, and plead the cause of the poor and needy" (Proverbs 31:9)
Universities have long been places where ideas shape nations. They can also be places where truth is courageously defended. What universities need is not merely more pro-life clubs, but Christian students willing to live out their faith with courage and conviction. If you are a young person at university in Australia, your involvement is vital in the movement to abolish abortion. Whether your skill set is evangelism or video editing or prayer or simply telling a university friend in need about a local pregnancy help centre, the body of Christ needs you. Those being murdered in the womb need you. Gen Z must speak up for the next generation who can’t.
Demand an end to student midwife assisted abortions at Curtin University: https://citizengo.org/en-row/oth/18977
Join AAA today: https://www.abolishabortionaustralia.com/join-us
AMBA
Sources:
[3] https://www.curtin.edu.au/about/learning-teaching/health-sciences/about/clinics/midwifery-clinic/
[4] https://obgyn.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1111/ajo.70102
[5] https://obgyn.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/ajo.13501
[6] https://www.mja.com.au/system/files/issues/215_08/mja251217.pdf
[8] https://www.mcwh.com.au/reproductive-justice-a-right-not-a-product/
[9] https://www1.racgp.org.au/newsgp/professional/location-a-key-barrier-to-medical-abortion-study