Denver Catholic

4 JULY 14-27, 2018 | DENVER CATHOLIC O n June 26, the U.S. Supreme Court blocked enforcement of a California law that requires pro-life pregnancy centers to provide information to women about state- funded abortions. In a 5-4 ruling, the justices said Cal- ifornia's 2015 Reproductive FACT Act likely violates the First Amendment. Both sides said the decision on National Institutes of Family and Life Advocates (NIFLA) v. Becerra essen- tially strikes down the law. NIFLA, a nonprofi t organization that supports pro-life centers, had challenged the FACT Act, saying it violated the centers' First Amendment free speech rights. The state said the law was neces- sary to let women know their options. The Supreme Court heard oral arguments March 20. Justice Clarence Thomas wrote the majority decision. "Licensed clinics must provide a gov- ernment-drafted script about the avail- ability of state-sponsored services, as well as contact information for how to obtain them. One of those services is abortion — the very practice that petitioners are devoted to opposing," Thomas wrote about the California act. "By requiring petitioners to inform women how they can obtain state-sub- sidized abortions — at the same time petitioners try to dissuade women from choosing that option — …plainly 'alters the content' of petitioners' speech. "California cannot co-opt the licensed facilities to deliver its message for it." Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. and Justices Anthony M. Kennedy, Samuel A. Alito Jr. and Neil M. Gorsuch joined Thomas to form the majority opinion. Dissenting were Justices Stephen G. Breyer, Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Sonia Sotomayor and Elena Kagan. The winners were elated. "No one should be forced by the government to express a message that violates their convictions, especially on deeply divisive subjects such as abortion," Michael Farris, a lawyer and leader of the Alliance Defending Free- dom, who argued on behalf of NIFLA before the Supreme Court in March, said in a statement. "In this case, the government used its power to force pro-life pregnancy centers to provide free advertising for abortion. The Supreme Court said that the government can't do that, and that it must respect pro-life beliefs." California Attorney General Xavier Becerra described the Supreme Court ruling as "unfortunate." LOCAL REACTION Jan McIntosh, Vice President of Catholic Charities' Marisol Health, which runs clinics o‡ ering licensed, comprehensive health care services to women in Denver and Lafayette, Colo., praised the ruling. "We applaud the Supreme Court's decision to uphold our free speech right to provide the best possible medical care with compassion and respect — the kind that women deserve," McIntosh told the Denver Catholic. "This is a victory for women. Our medical clinics provide women in our community with life-aª rming health care, and their response has been overwhelming." Since its inception two years ago, Marisol Health has provided care to more than 1,800 patients — 70 percent of whom had incomes under $30,000, McIntosh said. Some 47 percent of cli- ents also received counseling or social casework services. The victory comes at a time when pro-abortion groups are using propa- ganda billboards and video to undermine the work of pro-life pregnancy centers. In May, Marisol Health threatened legal action against ProgressNow Colo- rado, a liberal advocacy group, demand- ing that Marisol's image and name be removed from a social media video by the group that mischaracterizes Mari- sol's health care and implies it to be a "fake clinic." "When our work is misrepresented in the media, we want to do what we can to correct those misperceptions," McIntosh said. "That's the best thing we can do for the women who can benefi t from the unique model of service we provide with the medical care and the social and human services so closely integrated with one another." The Associated Press, The Washington Post and the Los Angeles Times contrib- uted to this story. Cover Story MARK YOUR CALENDARS! Christ the King's ANNUAL GARAGE SALE July 21 8am-2pm For more information or to donate items, please call 303.674.3155. ctkevergreen.com 4291 EVERGREEN PKWY 303.674.3155 www.proximotravel.com 508-340-9370 Hablamos Español 855-842-8001 anthony@proximotravel.com Call us 24/7 Several trips to different destinations: the Holy Land; Italy; France, Portugal, & Spain; Poland; Medjugorje, Lourdes, & Fatima; Ireland & Scotland; England; Austria, Germany, & Switzerland; Greece & Turkey; Budapest; Prague; Our Lady of Guadalupe; Colombia; Brazil; Argentina; Domestic Destinations; etc… We also specialize in custom trips for Bishops, Priests and Deacons We also offer other trips with prices starting at $2,499 ~ Prices are ALL-INCLUSIVE with Airfare from anywhere in the USA BY ROXANNE KING editor_king@icloud.com @RoxanneIKing June 26 ruling says pro-life pregnancy centers not required to advertise abortion The fi rst amendment rights of pro-life pregnancy centers such as Marisol Health in Denver remain protected due to the June 26 decision. 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