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News and commentary from the Pro-Life Action League
News and commentary from the Pro-Life Action League
You are currently browsing the Pro-Life Hotline blog archives for the year 2009.
The Pro-Life Action League will hold its seventh annual “Empty Manger” Christmas Caroling Day on Saturday, December 19.
Two caroling tours will take place, one visiting four abortion mills in DuPage County and one visiting five Chicago abortion facilities, including a new stop this year at the All Women’s Health center on Armitage.
The League has saved babies from abortion in past years when their mothers heard the caroling. “One mother told our counselor that hearing ‘Silent Night’ made her think about how Mary said yes to God—and then she couldn’t go through with the abortion,” said League Executive Director Eric Scheidler.
SpeakOut Illinois is a joint project of over thirty pro-life organizations in northern Illinois to commemorate the tragic Supreme Court ruling in Roe v. Wade.
Each year near the anniversary of Roe v. Wade SpeakOut Illinois presents a conference, including several speakers on life issues, a memorial service for the unborn whose lives are cut short by abortion, and the presentation of the Henry Hyde Life Leadership Award to an individual whose commitment to the fight for life is recognized as outstanding.
Wednesday, December 2 the pro-aborts will host a “National Day of Action.”
They hope to descend upon Capitol Hill en masse to protest the Stupak Amendment and a potential similar amendment in the Senate version of the Health care bill.
Planned Parenthood of Maryland is trying to push through a new bill in Baltimore that would require pregnancy centers to post signs saying the do not provide or make referrals for abortion or birth control.
According to the Baltimore Sun, Keiren Havens, Vice President of Planned Parenthood of Maryland, “says the local effort could serve as a national model.” She continues, “We’ve been very concerned about crisis pregnancy centers for quite a while,” she said. “There’s a growing national network of crisis pregnancy centers that are specifically designed to target what they call abortion-vulnerable women and deny them full medical information about abortion and contraception, including referrals for those services. And that’s of great concern to us just as a public health issue.”
What a sad state of affairs when even the people who write a city ordinance don’t know what it means. That makes it almost impossible for anyone else to have a clue, so the alternative is to give it ones own interpretation based on one’s preferences.
At issue is the new so-called “bubble zone” invented to try to keep pro-life sidewalk counselors from talking abortion-bound women out of killing their offspring. The ordinance apparently went into effect Nov. 16 when it got published.
Chicago Police stand near Albany abortuary entrance after forcing pro-life counselor Ann Scheidler to move 50 feet away [Photo by Ann Scheidler]
Two days after the enactment of a Bubble Zone designed to restrict the pro-life outreach of sidewalk counselors, Chicago police are enforcing the new law erroneously, illustrating how wrong-headed and unjust this law really is.
On the morning of November 19, League Vice President Ann Scheidler was sidewalk counseling at the Albany Surgical-Medical Center when clinic director Diana Lamon arrived. Lamon approached Ann, disrupting a dialog she was having with an abortion-bound woman, and told her she cannot come within 50 feet of the entrance.
Ann explained that this is not what the Bubble Zone law says, but Lamon walked off, saying she was going to call the police. Shortly thereafter three squad cars arrive and three officers and entered the facility. [Continue reading ...]
Sidewalk counselor Cathy Mieding addresses the press outside Planned Parenthood [Photo by John Jansen]
On Tuesday, November 16, dozens of pro-lifers gathered on the windy corner of LaSalle and Division on Chicago’s north side to protest the city’s new “Bubble Zone” ordinance which went into effect that day. The Pro-Life Action League had organized a press conference and protest to voice pro-lifers objections to the new law.
The ordinance requires that, within 50 feet of the entrance of an abortion clinic, a person cannot approach within 8 feet of a person attempting to enter the facility without their consent. The law is specifically aimed to hinder pro-lifers as they pray, sidewalk counsel and distribute literature outside abortion facilities.
Representatives from many of Chicago’s major media outlets attended the press conference as speakers including the League’s Joe and Ann Scheidler and sidewalk counselors Cathy Mieding and Julie Grisolano. They told the crowd about the life-saving options they had to offer and about their peaceful, prayerful approach they take to reaching out to abortion-bound women.
The League held a press conference to protest the new Chicago Bubble Zone on Tuesday. Forty pro-lifers came to show that they were upset about their first amendment rights being trampled by Planned Parenthood and the pro-aborts.
Many reporters came as well, including CBS, ABC 7, WGN, WMBI, the Chicago Tribune, and more. See our homepage story on the protest for links to those stories. The reporters were surprisingly friendly with us, some of them even saying they were glad we were there. I think reporters are probably very displeased about any infringements upon the First Amendment.
Chicago,—Pro-Life Action League announces a press conference and protest in front of the Planned Parenthood on 1200 N LaSalle Dr in Chicago, at 10 a.m., Tuesday, November 17, 2009.
When: Tuesday, November 17, 2009, 10:00 a.m.
Tom Brejcha’s talk on the new Chicago bubble zone is now available to view on Youtube. Get the full story and watch the video here.
Attorney Tom Brejcha addresses pro-lifers on the new Chicago “Bubble Zone” ordinance [Photo by Ann Scheidler]
The Pro-Life Action League hosted a very successful Sidewalk Counseling Training Session on Saturday, November 14. Fifty pro-lifers turned out to learn more about being effective counselors and about dealing with the new Chicago Bubble Zone ordinance.
Ann Scheidler began with some general tips that all sidewalk counselors should know. She briefly explained milestones of fetal development as well as standard abortion methods. She explained that counselors need to know this information in order to effectively engage women entering the clinics. Using the example of the movie Juno, Ann reminded counselors of the importance small details can have in saving a life.