By EmmaLee Italia | Correspondent

In response to the recent undercover videos revealing illegal trafficking of fetal tissue by Planned Parenthood employees, a National Day of Protest campaign has been scheduled for Aug. 22 from 9 – 11 a.m.

Two local prayer protests will be at these New Jersey Planned Parenthood facilities: 69 E. Newman Springs Road, Shrewsbury; and in the Golden Crest Corporate Center, 2279 Highway 33, Hamilton Square. Additionally, over 200 protests will take place at Planned Parenthood locations across the country during the campaign.

ProtestPP, an ecumenical coalition of pro-life groups, has orchestrated the simultaneous demonstrations at Planned Parenthood centers to protest their harvesting and selling the organs of aborted babies. The protests are co-sponsored by Created Equal, the Pro-Life Action League, 40 Days for Life and Citizens for a Pro-Life Society.

Father Michael McClane, pastor of St. Gregory the Great Parish, Hamilton – directly across from the Hamilton Planned Parenthood location – gave his unwavering support to those who plan to make peaceful witness.

“I’m so happy this will occur on Aug. 22,” Father McClane wrote in an email to Bob Pawson, director of Pro-Life Educators of America, who registered the Hamilton location with ProtestPP. “We have our regularly scheduled Mass on Saturday morning at 8:30... Pro-lifers who come are welcome to start the day in our Chapel beforehand with prayer and the Eucharist.”

The Hamilton protest will take place on the sidewalks and grassy areas in the public right-of-way outside the Planned Parenthood facility.

Catholic pro-life advocates from around the country joined in peaceful rallies in more than 65 cities in July, giving public witness to their opposition to Planned Parenthood. Protesters in Sioux City, Iowa, included Bishop R. Walker Nickless, who led rally-goers in prayer.

“I hope that in my time as bishop, and our time here, this building next to us will be closed,” Bishop Nickless said.

The Sioux City rally called upon state governments to investigate and defund Planned Parenthood, according to Fred Shellabarger, assistant director of adult catechesis and family life for the Sioux City diocese. “The recent revelations of their illegal sales of body parts of aborted babies have opened the door for all to see the depravity of the Planned Parenthood business,” he said.

Priests for Life, another Catholic pro-life group, will be dedicating a week of prayer Aug. 22-29 to “end the evils of Planned Parenthood,” as part of a coalition of Catholic, Christian and non-sectarian pro-life groups.

Pawson, a pro-life advocate for nearly 30 years, likened the current revelations of Planned Parenthood’s actions to a turning point on a field of battle.

“We pro-lifers have been battling for decades, oftentimes feeling quite frustrated. [The publishing of the videos] was almost like the breakthrough at Normandy,” Pawson said, “with soldiers trapped on the beach and taking a beating – but through the initiative of a small number of soldiers, they were able to break through, and it was time for everyone to act.”

“Not just peoples’ eyes, but also their hearts and minds are being opened,” Pawson continued. “These are not just blobs of tissue; you can’t get organs from a blob of tissue.”

For more information, contact Donna Goodwin, diocesan coordinator for Respect Life Ministry, at 609-403-7192. Additional protest sites are listed at http://protestpp.com/protests.

Christine Young, Catholic News Service, contributed to this article.