Posted on 04/09/2010 4:44:16 PM PDT by wagglebee
AUSTIN, Texas, April 9, 2010 (LifeSiteNews.com) - Austin's city council on Thursday voted unanimously to become the second city in America to force pregnancy resource centers to post signs saying that they do not provide or refer for abortions or emergency birth control. The other city is Baltimore, Maryland, which passed a similar ordinance last year.
Austin Council Member Bill Spelman proposed the ordinance, along with Council Members Laura Morrison and Mike Martinez.
Pro-abortion lobbyists urged the council to adopt the mandate because they say pregnancy centers should be clear that they only offer assistance helping women to keep their unborn baby, and not to kill them, and that they do not offer birth control.
“Many (centers) are using deceptive and manipulative tactics that prevent women from making fully informed choices about their reproductive health," said Sarah Cleveland, the executive director of NARAL Pro-choice Texas.
Violators of the law would be cited for a Class C misdemeanor, and face charges of up to $450.
Pro-life advocates, however, are incensed at the new regulation, which they say unfairly targets one type of charitable organization for no apparent reason.
Lori DeVillez, the Executive Director of the Austin Pregnancy Resource Center, told LifeSiteNews.com (LSN) in an interview Friday that her organization was taken completely off guard by the new law.
“I’m still surprised at what happened here. We had no idea. There was no warning or information given to us,” she said.
DeVillez responded to pro-abortion critics who have accused pregnancy resource centers of false advertising, saying, “We are as honest as honest can be. We let people know exactly who we are. Anyone who calls, and they’re requesting an abortion, we let them know that that’s not what we do. We’re certainly very up front with what we do.”
The director said that her organization’s mission is simply to provide free resources to pregnant women. “We have a clothing boutique. We partner with medical care in the community so we can get her a good doctor in the community. She’s scared, so she doesn’t know what to do, and we help her with that.”
“We are a pregnancy resource center. That’s what we do. We provide resources for pregnancy. How much clearer can you be? I don’t understand it.”
Jonathan Saenz, director of legislative affairs at Liberty Institute, said, "This pro-abortion, political effort by the City Council and NARAL is an outrageous example of out of control government."
"Why is the City of Austin so hostile to the needs of pregnant women served by charitable pregnancy centers?"
Liberty Institute also pointed out that “there is no corresponding requirement that abortion facilities post signs about the services they do not provide.”
DeVillez echoed a similar sentiment, saying, “I don’t know of any other group, non-profit or not, that has to put on their building what they don’t do. That doesn’t make any sense.”
Last year, when Baltimore passed its own law about pregnancy resource centers, Care Net President Melinda Delahoyde denounced the law as “nonsensical,” “unwarranted,” and “unconstitutional.”
"It is nonsensical for the Baltimore City Council to undermine local efforts to provide free support to pregnant women in their city, but that’s exactly what they’ve accomplished with this legislation," said Delahoyde. "It's particularly alarming when abortions are decreasing nationwide, but increasing in the state of Maryland.”
The Archdiocese of Baltimore is challenging the city's law with a lawsuit. DeVillez told LSN that her organization has not yet determined what its response to Austin's new law will be.
See related LifeSiteNews.com coverage:
Archdiocese Fights Baltimore Over City’s Pregnancy Center Restrictions
http://www.lifesitenews.com/ldn/2010/mar/10033005.html
And then let them take me to court if they wanted.
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Uh, First Amendment?
That's good! But...
WE WON'T MURDER YOUR BABY! is better.
Make the others post a sign saying the only option they offer results in at least one death.
Its strange that someone should think it necessary notify people that they won’t kill your baby. You would think that would go without saying. “We promise not to kill your baby”.
This is garbage. If I ran a pregnancy resource center and was required to post a “No Abortion” sign, I’d comply only when the PP clincs are required to post an “Abortions done here” sign.
LOVE YOUR BABY?
THIS IS THE RIGHT PLACE.
WANT TO KILL YOUR CHILD?
SEE A LIBERAL.
And the abortion clinics can post:
“This clinic will not give you prenatal care, help with your pregnancy, or help with your child before or after birth. We will not help arrange labor and delivery or post partum care. The only choices we support here is the choice of abortion, the prescription/delivery of birth control supplies, and limited STD diagnosis and care. If you choose to carry this pregnancy to term, you must go elsewhere for medical attention and moral and practical support.”
If the left accuses you of doing something, it's because they are already doing it. The above statement is an admission that pro-abortion clinics such as those of Planned Parenthood only offer assistance helping women get abortions.
I agree.
I’d comply with the law and then post a sign next to it:
“WE OFFER LOVE TO PREGNANT WOMEN.
THEY OFFER YOU MURDER
AND A LIFETIME OF GUILT.
WHICH WOULD YOU PREFER?”
Then I’d post a photo of a sonogram.
Okay, then abortuaries need to post signs:
WE MURDER BABIES (AND SOMETIMES MOTHERS TOO)!
Good one.
Let me get this straight... planned PARENTHOOD isn’t false advertising?
I’m catching up on pings after being gone for the weekend. Is this only temporary closure/posting of sign?
You need to read the article. Pregnancy crisis centers that counsel AGAINST abortions are being forced to put up signs saying they don’t kill babies. It seems that Big Murder found out that some women were going into crisis centers and being told that they didn’t have to murder their babies.
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