Cedars, September 2019

by Zach Krauss D uring winter break of 2018, Sue Edwards brainstormed ways to positively impact the conversations about abortion. She developed an idea that is now known on campus and in pro-life commu- nities across the country as the Message Dress. Edwards’ original creation was a dress covered in baby clothes. As the movement has spread, some be- gan wearing an ordinary dress with an arti- cle of baby clothing pinned to the back. Edwards said she wanted something to bring light to the beauty of human life, rath- er than bringing strife to the pro-life versus pro-choice conversation. She got the idea after hearing a presen- tation on campus by the current Students for Life president at Cedarville, Nick Kallis, discussing abortion’s similarity to eugenics. Eugenics involves removing undesir- able characteristics from the human popu- lation. It reminded her of her horror at abor- tion and inspired her to make the dress to visually highlight what she sees as the beau- ty of life. When she wore the dress to the 2019 March for Life in January, she received pos- itive feedback from both individuals and press representatives who were reporting on the march. The March for Life is an annual peace- ful demonstration focused on bringing focus to the beauty of life and pushing for stricter abortion laws. The cascade of news stories and mar- keting of the dress seemed to end after the weekend of the March for Life, and Edwards said she felt the inspiration was over. However, her resolve was sparked once again when New York state legalized full- term abortions on Jan. 22, which was the same day her niece was born. She was moved yet again. This time, the Message Dress involved multiple women on Cedarville’s campus, photoshoots and a documentary. “The Message Dress really has been an awesome responsibility that I’ve been giv- en,” Edwards said. “It really felt like God gave me this idea and told me ‘trust me and have a blast’ and that’s exactly what came of it.” While Edwards has graduated and is moving to China to begin her career as an educator, she said she is excited to see where the Message Dress will go in the next year. She is excited about the group of peo- ple left at Cedarville who are still passionate about the mission and want to see it grow into something even more involved than it has been. Natalia Kirychuk, a Cedarville alumna, was close friends with Edwards when they were both at Cedarville, and a part of that group. When Natalia heard about what Ed- wards had been doing, she pitched the idea to her supervisor in the Public Relations De- partment at Cedarville, where she worked. The story that Natalia wrote, which the PR department published, secured the Message Dress more coverage by news outlets such as the Christian Broadcasting Network. “We were so excited to hear Sue’s brave and extraordinary idea to advocate for a cause were we all passionate about,” Kiry- chuk said. When Edwards, Kirychuk and the rest of the team of students interested in the Message Dress tried to think of ways to bet- ter spread the message, they began putting together a promotional documentary on the movement. Kirychuk said she was thrilled to be involved, especially considering the pas- sion and vigor that Edwards had toward the project. “Being able to share some of the story for the documentary was such a spe- cial opportunity, and I was very honored to be included,” Kirychuk said. “Working with someone as passionate and motivated as Sue is always special. I learned so much from her graceful way of standing up for what she believes in and her courage in do- ing so.” Anna Edwards, a senior Psychology major, first became involved with Students For Life at Cedarville during the March For Life during her first year at Cedarville. She is now a junior and org officer. September 2019 16 ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT Students Dress to Express Beliefs on Abortion The Message Dress movement hopes to shift the abortion conversation from hate to love Photos by Andra Polsdorfer and Tayana Fowler Cedarville women join together in a movement to bring awareness to the unborn and the issue of abortion.