This old chestnut of a narrative is trotted out in the increasingly rare circumstances when there is some evidence that makes it plausible — and even where there is no evidence at all. The 2011 shooting of Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, for instance, was described by Amanda Marcotte as being straight out of the “anti-choice playbook.”

But reactions to the Colorado Springs shooting which focused on pro-life Christianity, dependent as they are on the above narrative, invariably ended up focusing on the wrong person. We are still learning about the shooter, but his neighbours said he never talked about religion or abortion and the regular pro-life protesters at the abortion clinic said they didn’t know who he was.

Focus instead should have been on the pro-life police officer who was shot and killed at the scene. Officer Garrett Swasey was a Christian pastor who despised Planned Parenthood, but when he got the call from one of their clinics he nevertheless leaped to their defence. He lost his life in the process. He is a true hero.

Focusing on Officer Swasey’s story can help resist the false narrative we have inherited about pro-life Christians and their relationship to violence.

Read the article “Pro-Life Christians and the Colorado Springs Shootings” on abc.net.au.