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Veritas Society Virtual Reception
 Special Guest, Mary FioRito
Were you able to attend the Eau Claire Veritas Society Virtual Reception which was held on June 2nd? If so, thank you for joining us! While we missed seeing you in person, we enjoyed being able to connect with friends like you through our Zoom webinar.
Didn't get to join us? Here's what you missed!
- Steve Werner, our local host for the evening, opened the event with a timely and encouraging prayer.
- Heather Weininger, Wisconsin Right to Life's Executive Director, shared some exciting updates from the Veritas Society with our Polygoning expert, Ed Brzozowski. (Don't know what Polygoning is? Watch the recording below to find out!)
- Mary Hallan FioRito, our keynote speaker, gave an up-to-date look at current events in the pro-life movement - the new Planned Parenthood just across the Illinois border in Waukegan that's luring women from Wisconsin, the David Daleiden lawsuit, and more!
- And, finally, why you are so critical to our lifesaving work!
We encourage you to share the link below with your friends and neighbors!
Watch the Eau Claire Veritas Society Reception!
Your safety, our staff’s safety—and, most importantly--our teens’ safety is our top priority at Wisconsin Right to Life. For the last several months, we have carefully been monitoring the COVID-19 pandemic. Out of an abundance of caution, we have made the tough decision to cancel Life Summer Camp this year. Our staff is greatly saddened by the fact that we will not be able to meet in person; however, they have brainstormed a fun, interactive way that we can still educate teenagers across Wisconsin: our Teen Impact Subscription Boxes!
Our Teen Impact Subscription Boxes will give our teens the resources they need to continue to learn how to express their Pro-Life beliefs, as well as information on how to re-start Teen Groups and participate in training videos. In addition, each box includes more fun surprises--all of which can be enjoyed from the comfort of your home! Each month will focus on a different topic while still including an interactive challenge. This opportunity is offered as a FREE educational tool, so make sure to register!
Supreme Court Strikes Down Louisiana Law On Abortion Clinic Restrictions
On June 29, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that a Louisiana law requiring that individuals who perform abortions at clinics have admitting privileges in a nearby hospital is unconstitutional, as it places an undue burden on women seeking abortions. The court ruled 5-4 in the case, June Medical Services LLC v. Russo, with Chief Justice John Roberts once again casting a deciding vote by siding with the court's liberal justices.
The ruling was met with fierce criticism from conservatives. In dissent, Justice Clarence Thomas wrote, “Today a majority of the Court perpetuates its ill-founded abortion jurisprudence by enjoining a perfectly legitimate state law and doing so without jurisdiction.” He added, “Roe is grievously wrong for many reasons, but the most fundamental is that its core holding – that the Constitution protects a woman’s right to abort her unborn child – finds no support in the text of the Fourteenth Amendment." Justice Thomas stated that the so-called “right to abortion” was “created out of whole cloth, without a shred of support from the Constitution’s text” and he argued that Roe et al. “should be overruled.”
“The idea that the Framers of the Fourteenth Amendment understood the Due Process Clause to protect a right to abortion is farcical,” Thomas wrote. “In 1868, when the Fourteenth Amendment was ratified, a majority of the States and numerous Territories had laws on the books that limited (and in many cases nearly prohibited) abortion. It would no doubt shock the public at that time to learn that one of the new constitutional Amendments contained hidden within the interstices of its text a right to abortion. The fact that it took this Court over a century to find that right all but proves that it was more than hidden – it simply was not (and is not) there,” Thomas wrote.
Jeanne Mancini, president of March for Life, said her organization was "appalled" by the Supreme Court's decision. "The legislation at issue in June Medical Services v. Russo was designed to safeguard women’s health and safety, which the abortion business in Louisiana egregiously sidelined for the sake of profit," Mancini said in a statement. "No abortion facility should receive a free pass to provide substandard care."
When the case was being argued in front of the Supreme Court, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., spoke at a rally hosted by the Center for Reproductive Rights in which he appeared to threaten Justices Neil Gorsuch and Brett Kavanaugh -- conservatives who were appointed by President Trump. "I want to tell you, Gorsuch. I want to tell you, Kavanaugh. You have released the whirlwind and you will pay the price!" Schumer warned. "You won’t know what hit you if you go forward with these awful decisions." Gorsuch and Kavanaugh both opposed the decision, but with Roberts siding with the liberal justices, they had no effect on the outcome.
States Enact Pro-Life Legislation
Oklahoma Governor Signs Pro-Life Bills
On May 21, Oklahoma Governor Kevin Stitt signed into law three pro-life bills. HB 2587, the Nondiscrimination in Health Care Coverage Act, the first of its kind in the nation, prohibits use of Quality-Adjusted Life Years (QALYs) as a measure of whether a health-care service should be covered by insurance or other health reimbursement. Under a QALY system, the lives of persons with disabilities are deemed less valuable, and therefore less worthy of health care, than the lives of nondisabled persons, and thus they are vulnerable to denial of health-care coverage.
HB 2588 guards against depriving vulnerable individuals of life-preserving care in guardianship cases by requiring a separate court hearing and judicial authorization before a guardian may deny life-preserving care to a ward.
Employing Oklahoma’s Wrongful-Death law, SB 1728 provides enhanced legal rights to women who have been misled into having an abortion by increasing the civil liability of abortionists who have deceived such women. The bill also provides legal recourse for women in circumstances where an abortionist has failed to comply with all applicable Oklahoma laws.
Tennessee Passes Heartbeat Bill, Bans Abortions For Babies With Down Syndrome
On June 20, Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee announced that he will sign a bill banning abortions at the detection of a heartbeat, which is around six weeks into the pregnancy. The legislation also prohibits the procedure:
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If the doctor knows the woman is seeking an abortion due to to a diagnosis of Down syndrome
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For juveniles in custody of the Department of Children's Services, including removing the current option to petition a judge for permission
While there is an exception to the restrictions if a woman's life is in danger, there are no exceptions for rape or incest.
The legislation was also amended to require that abortion clinics post a sign in the waiting room and in patient rooms informing people that it may be possible to reverse a chemical abortion, and impose a fine of $10,000 for failing to do so.
Mississippi Governor Signs Pro-Life Law Banning Abortions on Babies With Down Syndrome
On July 1, Mississippi Gov. Tate Reeves signed The Life Equality Act (House Bill 1295) which prohibits abortions because of the unborn baby’s race, sex or genetic abnormality, such as Down syndrome. Now, Mississippi joins nine other states that prohibit sex-selection abortions and two that ban abortions based on the unborn baby’s race or disability.
“Every innocent life is worthy of protection, and no one should be discriminated against because of his or her race, sex, disability, or genetic makeup,” said Alliance Defending Freedom senior counsel Denise Burke. “Children shouldn’t have to pass a genetic test to earn the right to be born.”
A recent Marist poll found that 65% of Americans, including 50% who identify as pro-choice, oppose discrimination abortions because an unborn baby has Down syndrome.
Dr. Freda Bush, a retired OB-GYN, praised lawmakers for working to end discrimination in medicine. “Tragically, one place where discrimination is still widespread is inside the womb, where babies can be targeted for abortion for reasons our society wouldn’t accept anywhere else,” she stated. “Currently in Mississippi, it is legal to have an abortion if the family prefers a boy over a girl. Our state also allows abortion on the basis of race or genetic condition. The Life Equality Act is our state’s effort to end these lethal disparities.”
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