Another Bubble Zone Update

We learned on Friday that Mayor Daley intends to sign the free-speech choking Bubble Zone ordinance.

In an attempt to justify his decision, the Mayor remarked, "There has to be some civility left in our society."

How ironic. The mission of sidewalk counselors is to try to prevent mothers from having their children killed — and, in the process, sparing them a lifetime of pain and regret — and they're the ones who are uncivil?

Watch No Greater Joy, our documentary on sidewalk counseling, and judge for yourself:

Bubble Zone Update

The City Council passed the Bubble Zone ordinance yesterday by a vote of 28-13. It will go into effect November 17 unless Mayor Daley vetoes it.

Since last week, we've been encouraging people (regardless of where they live) to call his office and ask him to oppose it. So many people have called that when you call his office now, instead of having a real, live person answer the phone, it goes to an automated menu which asks you to press 1 if you're calling about the Bubble Zone. It then allows you to vote no by pressing 2.

You can — nay, should — make your voice heard by calling 312-744-3300 between 8:00am and 5:00pm CDT.

Here's the video of the press conference at the conclusion of our protest yesterday — at which 150 people showed up:

If You Happen to Be Near Chicago City Hall Tomorrow

Join our Bubble Zone protest!

Chicago City Council Committee Votes to Choke Free Speech

I'm still waiting on details, but I just found out from one of our attorneys that the Chicago City Council's Human Relations Committee passed a "bubble zone" ordinance this morning.

Now it goes to the full City Council next Wednesday. If it passes there, we'll sue.

Here's more background from our press release this morning:

Members of the Pro-Life Action League and attorneys from the Thomas More Society will attend the Human Relations Committee meeting of the Chicago City Council TODAY at 9:00 AM Wednesday, Sept. 30. The Committee is considering an amendment to the Municipal Code to prohibit picketing within 50 feet of any medical clinic. These organizations strongly suspect this amendment is aimed at preventing pro-life people from praying and reaching out to clients of abortion facilities with information on alternatives to abortion.

Pro-life activists routinely stand on the public sidewalk at the entrances to abortion clinics in Chicago to offer information to anyone seeking services at the abortion clinics. The groups know of no incidents of intimidation, harassment or threats as referred to in the amendment introduced on Sept. 9 by Alderman Vi Daley (43rd Ward).

Both the Thomas More Society attorneys and the Pro-Life Action League contend that the amendment is unconstitutional.

Note that the IOC makes its decision in two days. If the city council is taking measures like this now, one can only imagine what sorts of tricks they'll try to pull — under the guise of ensuring "safety" and "security", natch — to restrict demonstrations near Olympic venues come 2016.

Walk Like a Man

I mentioned last week that our recent Face the Truth Tour went swimmingly, and that unlike the previous two years, we had no major run-ins with local police.

Leading up to our recent Tour, we extensively researched the municipal codes of the various communities we would be visiting and assembled copies of the relevant ordinances for each in a binder that we could have on hand to show local law enforcement if we were questioned about our right to conduct such a demonstration. (As it turned out, this binder came in very handy at one site in particular, as it helped to defuse a potentially difficult confrontation with police in south suburban Burbank on 16 July.)

In many communities, the ordinances governing demonstrations like ours — wherein we coordinate groups of people who stand alongside the street holding large, graphic abortion pictures — are in the same section as ordinances governing parades.

In the course of researching these municipal codes, we noted with interest how the village of Chicago Ridge defines a "parade":

Parade means any organized procession or march as for display or to march, or walk through as for display, or to make a display of or to show off, to walk about ostentatiously, or the assembly in formation by any persons upon the public streets, sidewalks or public places in the village. Public assemblages or addresses and meetings shall come within the scope of this definition for purposes and requirements of obtaining a permit or license.

It was the fact that "walk[ing] about ostentatiously" without a permit is actually on the books as verboten that gave us all a good laugh.

This discovery prompted me to recall this:

Graphic Abortion Pictures

I just posted this on the Catholic Dads blog:

I've written here previously about my work at the Pro-Life Action League (where fellow Catholic Dads blogger Matt Yonke also works).

One of the things we do on a regular basis is to organize demonstrations called Face the Truth Tours, where we line the roads at major intersections with huge graphic signs of aborted babies.

I can't tell you how many times during a Face the Truth day we've heard from people comments along the lines of, "I never knew what abortion was until I saw these pictures..."

One such reaction that sticks out in my mind was from a kid no more than 16 years old, who saw our display in downtown Chicago a few years ago with a group of friends:

Him: "Man, that's what an abortion looks like?!"

Me: Yeah, it is.

Him: (With genuine astonishment) "Damn!"

Other times, people really wish we would just go away. (Like the guy who got arrested for assaulting me on last year's Tour.)

After several years of experience showing graphic abortion pictures out on the streets, we've gotten used to hearing complaints. A while ago, we posted an FAQ page on the PLAL site's Face the Truth section that addresses the most common objections we hear:

• What if children see these graphic abortion pictures?


• What effect do these pictures have on a woman who has had an abortion?


• Doesn't the public display of graphic abortion pictures make the pro-life movement look extreme?


• Doesn't it dishonor the unborn babies in these pictures to show them out on the street?

As usual, following our most recent Face the Truth Tour a few weeks ago, we got a slew of angry e-mails, the vast majority of which came from parents who happened upon our display and who cite the "What about the children?" concern as their chief complaint.

By far, this is the most common objection we get, and that's why it's listed first in our FAQ. (It's also what prompted me to bring forth the issue here in Catholic Dads-Land.)

I've responded to this type of e-mail often enough before that I now have a form letter that I usually need to modify only slightly to reply to incoming messages along these lines.

I'm a big believer in meeting people where they're at, so I place great importance on taking (or at least trying to take) as understanding — and, it goes without saying, non-combative — a tone as possible in replying to this objection, especially since it's one that I can, on one level at least, legitimately
sympathize with.

What I usually write is this:

Dear [Name],

Thank you for taking the time to write to us about your concerns about the use of graphic images in the fight against abortion.

Like you, I too am a parent. In fact, just recently our daughters (ages 2, 4, and 5) helped my wife and their grandma hold one of our signs showing a baby boy who had been aborted at 21 weeks.

Prior to having them join us, we explained to them that we hold these signs "to show people why it's bad to hurt babies." Those, in fact, are the exact words I used when I explained to them why we show these signs.

Like many kids their age, our girls are easily frightened. However, they weren't at all frightened by the sight of the aborted babies on our signs because they understood why we were showing them.

Until someone tries to convince a child that abortion is okay, she will know that it is wrong to take the life of an unborn baby. Since children are naturally pro-life, and since they don't want to see other children get hurt, once they understand that we are showing the signs to protect other children, they will empathize with children who are victimized by abortion.

You may also want to check out the "What if children see these graphic abortion pictures?" from the "Answering Common Objections" page on our website.

Let me just mention here that one of the main reasons we continue to display graphic abortion signs out on the street is that these pictures save lives.

Every year, women and men who are considering abortion see our signs and choose not to go through with it.

On one occasion during our most recent Face the Truth Tour, a pregnant young woman in Mundelein, IL approached one of our volunteers and said that she had actually had an abortion scheduled, but after seeing our signs, she decided instead to keep her baby.

On another occasion in Rockford, IL, a young mother parked her car, got out and came up to a group of the Tour coordinators and began to tell us about her two-year old daughter Ariana. She started to cry as she told us about how she had been planning to get an abortion but then saw an abortion protest like ours. She said she owed the life of Ariana to seeing those graphic abortion pictures. She thanked us for being there to help other moms see the reality of abortion.

It's stories like these that make us return to the streets year after year with our graphic abortion pictures, as troubling as they are to behold not only for children, but for adults.

Thanks again for writing. I hope these remarks and the more extended article linked to above address your concerns at least to some degree.

Now, of course, "What about the children?" is not the only complaint we receive, although I'm increasingly convinced it might be the easiest (and least bothersome) one to respond to.

Another type of objection, however, that I find it far more troubling to reply to is the charge that showing graphic abortion pictures in public is uncharitable—and, indeed, un-Christian.

Personally, I'm not at all surprised when the average secular (or non-practicing Christian) parents work themselves into a lather upon seeing a display of graphic abortion pictures.

But it troubles me greatly when Christians try to claim that showing the victims of abortion in an effort to awaken people's consciences is actually contrary to the Gospel.

I've responded to a couple e-mails recently that have taken this tack, which has prompted me to come up with another form letter for future such e-mails:

Dear [Name],

As one Christian to another, you know as well as I do that Our Lord Jesus Christ allowed Himself to be mercilessly scourged, crowned with thorns, and marched through the streets of Jerusalem before being nailed to the Cross. It's probably safe to assume that there were children among the crowds that day -- these were public streets, after all.

Just as our faith demands that we face squarely the brutality that Jesus underwent for our sake in His Passion and Death, and to share this truth with our children ("Train a child in the way he should go, and even when he is old he will not turn away from it" --Proverbs 22:6), our duty as Christians and as American citizens requires that we face squarely the brutality being done to unborn children.

(For a more thorough response on what children are able to handle regarding discussions of abortion, I'd suggest this article by Fr. Frank Pavone. Although he is writing primarily about talking and preaching to children about abortion, much of what he says is also applicable to displaying graphic abortion pictures.)

The first Christians weren't popular for proclaiming Jesus "and him crucified" (1 Cor. 2:2), nor are we popular for showing what abortion does to unborn babies -- but it has to be done.

You may also want to read our reply to a question we often get, "Doesn't the public display of graphic abortion pictures make the pro-life movement look extreme?"

The first two paragraphs of that response are:

The very reason we are out there on the streets showing abortion pictures is that so many Americans need this reminder. They're not thinking about abortion. Much less are they thinking about the pro-life movement — when they're not thinking of us as extremists, they're not thinking of us at all.

If in the wake of our Truth Tours, a thousand conversations begin with "I saw a bunch of anti-abortion wackos today" and end with a frank, and long overdue, discussion of abortion, we consider our image worth the sacrifice.

The reality is that following Jesus Christ is not easy. In fact, it's extremely demanding, and can be very dangerous ("Behold, I am sending you out as lambs among wolves" --Luke 10:3). And, it always requires sacrifice.

If our intent as Christians who show graphic abortion pictures were rooted in pride and vindictiveness, I'd absolutely agree with you that doing so would turn people off to our mission.

It isn't, however. Rather, our intent is rooted in love: love of God, first of all, and also love of the babies He created who are victimized by abortion, as well as the parents who are considering abortion, as we do not want them to do something wrong that will cause them enormous hardship, and also love of those who have previously been involved in abortion -- that they may seek the mercy and healing that can only come from God.

One woman who has been participating in our Face the Truth Tours for years -- and who is one of the holiest, most loving people I know -- remarked to me on our most recent Tour that she never looks forward to going out on the street and showing graphic abortion signs. In fact, she said, she dreads it.

She dreads it because she hates the fact that we have to do it. She prays for the day that we do won't have to.

It is only when we show the horrific images of what abortion actually is that the abortion issue comes front-and-center in a community. Precisely because abortion is so harmful -- and has touched so very many lives -- nobody wants to talk about it. As the advocates of unborn babies, we have to break that silence.

(I should also make clear: I'm not saying I believe that every Christian must personally take part in a demonstration like one of ours. Clearly, many are not called to do that, as they are called to other apostolic efforts.)

I hope these remarks have clarified our position. May God bless you!

Coming to a Police State Near You

This post has turned out to be much longer than I had originally intended, but in closing, I just want to mention that 18 members of another pro-life group — Baltimore-based Defend Life — were arrested without warning in Bel Air, MD during their own Face the Truth Tour last Friday.

This outrageous violation of basic rights guaranteed by the First Amendment should gravely concern all of us. You'll notice in this picture taken by Defend Life staff member Joe Healy that the pro-lifer getting arrested is wearing a shirt that says, "Pope Benedict XVI says: DEFEND LIFE":



Something tells me, though, that Defend Life isn't going to take this sitting down.

The Police State of Maryland

Our office got a call over the weekend from Jack Ames of Defend Life, who told us about how he and seventeen other pro-life activists got arrested at their Face the Truth Tour in Bel Air, MD on Friday.

Joe Healy of the Defend Life blog links to more articles (read this one in particular) about the incident. Healy was there on Friday — but wasn't arrested — and got some pictures:



Methinks they'll sue, and methinks they'll win.

Juxtaposed

In light of all the recent goofiness in the Anglican Church, it was with wry glee that I was able to position this sign-holding volunteer thusly in famously liberal Evanston during our Face the Truth Tour a few weeks back:



Shortly afterward, a priestess—wearing a Roman collar and shorts—came out of the church and calmly asked if the sign could be moved off "our property". I responded in equally calm fashion, as I have many times before in this situation, that this was actually public property.

She then asked, "The street is public property?" This was odd, as I'd never before had anyone ask me whether a street was public property. Not to mention that our signholder and the sign were not in the street, as you can see.

I simply said that the street, the sidewalk, and the boulevard were all public property. Saying nothing in reply, she turned and walked away.

Our exchange prompted me to recall Oscar Wilde's quip:

"The Catholic Church is for saints and sinners alone. For respectable people, the Anglican Church will do."

Tour Recap

I've been spending the morning and expect to spend the rest of the day slogging through emails, but for now I just wanted to say that our Face the Truth Tour last week went great.

We had the best showings we've seen in years. At three sites in particular—including one where it rained almost the entire time—we had enough volunteers to hold all 84 of our large signs.

We handed out so much literature we nearly ran out halfway through the Tour and had to have another 10,000 copies printed.

Most police we dealt with were very cooperative, with but a few exceptions, just like last year.

We returned to Libertyville, where the infamous "Libertyville Abortion Demonstration" video was filmed three years ago (and which was referred to in an Anna Quindlen Newsweek column last year) and got footage for a long overdue video response.

Most importantly, though, countless hearts were changed, and in some cases, scheduled abortions were cancelled.

We hope to have a full report on this year's Tour on the Pro-Life Action League site soon.

Showing the Truth

I posted this entry this morning on the Generations for Life blog:

Since their school year was already finished, a group of local pro-life teens, including Dolores and Patty Weber and Nate and Sam Scheidler decided last week to take graphic abortion pictures and stand outside one of their local public high schools (Batavia High School in Batavia, IL) on its last day of school.

As soon as they set up their signs, a security guard from the school told them that they would have to move across the street, or else he would call the police. Since these pro-life teens had attended many pro-life demonstrations in the past, they knew they had the right to stand on a public sidewalk, so they didn't move.

Soon more security guards came, and eventually so did the school's principal, who told Nate Scheidler that the public sidewalk in front of this public school was not public property.

Nate disagreed, and said that the First Amendment guaranteed their right to be there.

Then, the police came, and they too, like the school's principal, didn't believe the public sidewalk in front of a public school was public property.

After more back and forth, the pro-life teens continued to stand their ground, and stayed as long as they had planned to. (My co-worker Matt Yonke has more details on the Families Against Planned Parenthood blog.)

I have to give them credit: They knew their rights, and they weren't about to let anyone take them away.

Most of the time when we deal with police officers while doing pro-life demonstrations, we have no problems at all, but we certainly have dealt with our share of uncooperative police.

That's why for our Face the Truth Tour next month, we're working with our attorneys to write a professional brochure to give to police officers in the various cities we visit to explain that we're well aware of our rights and that what we're doing is perfectly legal.

Going Before the Judge

My co-worker Eric Scheidler sent this e-mail a few hours ago to our supporters in our ongoing fight against the Abortion Fortress of Aurora:

This morning I am heading into downtown Chicago to confer with our attorneys before a "Settlement Conference" this afternoon with lawyers for the City of Aurora and federal Judge Virginia Kendall.

We will be addressing the serious violations of pro-lifers' First Amendment rights during our protest at Planned Parenthood. The conference will be at 2:00 p.m. in Judge Kendall's chambers.

PLEASE PRAY for me and our attorneys today, and for Judge Kendall and the other parties in the conference as well.

Perhaps we will be able to secure greater respect from the City of
Aurora for our constitutional rights today. If not, our case will
proceed to trial.

I echo Eric's request for prayers for our attorneys as we seek redress of violations of our rights (see here, here, here, and here for but a few examples).

Fighting for Our First Amendment Rights

Last month, we — that is, the Pro-Life Action League, the organization I work for — decided we needed to start holding monthly protests outside the recently opened Planned Parenthood abortion clinic in Aurora, IL. (As I have remarked previously, since this facility is the largest abortion clinic in the U. S., we have taken to calling it the "Abortion Fortress of Aurora".)

In the course of exercising our First Amendment rights by organizing prayer vigils, rallies, protests, and the like outside the facility's site these past several months, we've encountered not a few difficulties from the City of Aurora's powers that be.


We've already sued the city once, and will likely have to do so again.

Why, you may ask? For a whole host of reasons, really.

For starters, pro-life blogger Jill Stanek explains:

With no plan in sight to pour sidewalks so those citizens can safely protest according to their First Amendment rights, or even so the poor women of America can safely trudge barefoot and accidentally pregnant to Planned Parenthood's largest abortion mill in the U.S., Aurora city officials have instead erected nonsensical signs to nowhere banning pro-life presense from anywhere across the street from PP (click to enlarge)....

My friend and co-worker Eric Scheidler, who has been spearheading our multi-faceted activism campaign in Aurora, comments on these signs:

The "beyond this point" one is funny. There isn't any "point" there. It's just in the middle of Oakhurst, sort of facing the south, as if to say you can't protest north of this sign. But the other one, that just says "no protesting," is actually SOUTH of the "beyond this point" sign. It's nonsense. Typical Aurora incompetence.

There are a similar pair of signs farther south. One faces west, out into the street, and says "beyond this point." But there's no logical "point" the sign could be referring to. Across the street is a regular "no protesting" sign. But that's the one place where a "beyond this point" sign might make a little sense. Heigh ho.

During our protest last month, Aurora police approached a fellow I know named Roger Earl, who was walking with his five-month old daughter on the only public sidewalk in the vicinity of Planned Parenthood. (His wife, meanwhile, was sidewalk counseling.)

Here's how a reporter from the Chicago Tribune described the events that transpired:

Police threatened to arrest a man praying and walking with his infant along the east side of Oakhurst, near a residential community.

"I wasn't planning to be part of the protest today," said Aurora resident Roger Earl. "I didn't realize that I was breaking any law by walking along the sidewalk praying."

Earl said he was near the protest because his wife was participating, and he was watching their infant. He said police approached him and asked him whether he was part of the protest, warned him twice and then threatened to arrest him.

Police spokesman Dan Ferrelli said Earl was praying and wearing an insignia indicating he opposed abortion.

[Aurora Police Chief William] Powell defended the police enforcement.

"If he's praying here, he's here because of the building. He can pray at home or anywhere," he said.

Believe it or not, in light of comments made by Chief Powell at an Aurora City Council meeting earlier that week, what he said here is not out of character for him.

Another friend of mine, JT Eschbach, just posted video he took of Roger talking about the incident with the Chicago Tribune reporter — and, it appears, at least one other reporter as well. (Note also: The fellow in the red hat, standing behind Roger, is Jason Craddock, one of our attorneys from the Thomas More Society Pro-Life Law Center.)

Here's the video:



For our part, we remain undeterred. Our next protest is this Saturday.

Pray for us. And, more importantly, pray for an end to abortion — an especially fitting petition as we prepare to celebrate tomorrow the feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe, who is the Patroness of the Unborn.

[Cross-posted at Catholic Dads]