'Sky daddy': Abortion clinic volunteer's take-down of protester goes viral

An abortion clinic volunteer's rant at a pro-life protester in the US has gone viral.

Wendy Counts, 26, is a volunteer at an abortion clinic in Charlotte, North Carolina.

When a pro-life protester screamed at a patient, Counts was quick to shut them down - and footage of the exchange has gone viral on TikTok.

Speaking to Buzzfeed, Counts explained that, as a "defender", she and others hold up parking signs and talk over the protesters "in hopes that the patients don't hear them".

"When I'm an escort, we help patients from their cars to the door with an umbrella to shield them from seeing/hearing the protesters," she added.

In the viral incident last week, she was working as a defender when one of the protesters called a patient a "coward".

"You can shut the f**k up, because they're making the best decision that they can in their situation, and you're trying to make them feel bad about it," Counts tells the protester. "So go off, Jennifer. Is that the validation you want from sky daddy? Calling people a coward?"

'Is that the validation you want from sky daddy?' Photo / TikTok

Another volunteer filmed the scene and uploaded it to TikTok, where it has had more than nine million views.

To Buzzfeed, Counts explained that the protester is part of an organisation called Love Life.

"The organisation she's with doesn't condone them degrading patients, as they always say they're there to change people's hearts. It got me so heated because if I were in a patient's position, why would I come to someone like Jennifer who called me a coward in my most vulnerable state?" she said.

"I had to say something," she added. "You're supposed to be spreading love and light, yet you are tearing down a person who is dealing with so much already. These patients are scared when they see people like Jennifer."

The video also went viral on Twitter where the term "sky daddy" - a popular term among atheists to refer to "god" - began trending.

The volunteer and the protester reportedly ended up sitting down for lunch. Counts told Buzzfeed they managed to remain civil.