Cincinnati Right to Life founder dies

Dr. John Willke, a well-known leader in the right-to-life movement who lived in Cincinnati, died Friday. He was 89.

Willke was a physician, author and lecturer who founded the Right to Life of Greater Cincinnati in the early 1970s with his wife, Barbara, who died in April 2013. The two also founded Ohio Right to Life.

"Dr. Willke was a true giant in the pro-life movement, yet always warm, always humble, a mentor and a friend," said Jack Hart, president of Right to Life of Greater Cincinnati, in a news release. "We can never replace him."

After founding Cincinnati and Ohio Right to Life, Willke went on to serve as president of the national Life Issues Institute, which is headquartered in Cincinnati. He served 10 years as president of the U.S. National Right to Life Committee, and helped found the International Right to Life Federation.

Willke's views against abortion brought him international recognition. He hosted a five-minute radio program that was broadcasted on almost 400 radio stations for 18 years. He also created one-minute pro-life messages called Life Jewels that were broadcasted in English and Spanish in the U.S., Australia, South Africa and Brazil.

Willke and his wife originally had no intention of leading a national movement, according to Enquirer archives.

"We sort of backed into it," Willke once said.

The young couple married in Cincinnati and became lecturers at Pre-Cana, a course couples complete before they get married in the Catholic church.

"The couple developed a style that would serve them for years to come," according to Enquirer archives. "They shared the microphone, with each one talking for a couple of minutes, then the other, throughout the presentation."

Willke and his wife began lecturing for other organizations and they wrote a book, "The Wonder of Sex: How to Teach Children," which sold more than 300,000 copies.

In the 1970s the national debate began on abortion and the issue "just swept us up," Willke said. After creating Right to Life of Greater Cincinnati, the couple wrote "The Handbook on Abortion," which was published in more than 20 languages.

Willke's view on abortion didn't come without criticism. Willke, who was a retired general physician, believed the stress of rape caused the female body to inhibit conception. Former Missouri congressman Todd Akin also touted that idea, saying victims of "legitimate rape" rarely get pregnant. The 2012 comments caused a media sensation and national debate on the subject.

Willke first put forward that theory over 30 years ago and in 1999 he said rape "can radically upset (a woman's) possibility of ovulation, fertilization, implantation and even nurturing a pregnancy."

"I'm not saying she doesn't get pregnant from assault rape," Willke said. "She can and she does. It's just very rare."

David Grimes, an obstetrician and gynecologist in North Carolina who was a chief of the abortion surveillance branch at the Center for Disease Control, criticized Willke for this.

"For Dr. Willke to say a woman can avoid getting pregnant by squeezing her Fallopian tubes is ridiculous," he told The Enquirer in 2012. "To suggest this doesn't happen is cruel, cruel, cruel. Rape is an ugly and common occurrence."

The Willkes maintained their viewpoints. Their daughter Marie Meyers told The Enquirer in 2013 after Barbara died that the couple felt it was the right thing to do and believed they would be rewarded in heaven.

"They really felt helping the unborn babies was the right thing, and helping the women who were in those troubled pregnancies," she said.

In January, Dr. Willke released an autobiography written by he and his wife titled "Abortion and the Pro-Life Movement: An Inside View."

Willke would have been 90 in a couple months. He and his wife were devoted to their Catholic faith, and had 6 children and over 20 grandchildren and great grandchildren.

Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine issued a statement Saturday morning saying he and his wife, Fran, were saddened by Willke's death.

"He and his wife Barbara brought great passion to their mission to protect the unborn," DeWine said in a news release. "He will be remembered as a great teacher and friend and stalwart leader in giving a voice to the most vulnerable in our society."

Paula Westwood, executive director of the Right to Life of Greater Cincinnati, echoed that sentiment.

"Dr. Willke was the leading statesman addressing the second civil rights struggle of our nation," she said in a news release. "He met with presidents and popes and crossed the globe, but his passion was always to ensure the right to life for helpless unborn children and other vulnerable people."