Elyssa DeDios / Unsplash
CV NEWS FEED // Following their pardons by President Donald Trump in January, several pro-life activists have announced plans to continue their advocacy, including renewed efforts to prevent abortions through direct action.
Many of the activists had been convicted under the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances (FACE) Act, a law the Biden administration used to prosecute individuals who protest abortion, often even if they were merely praying or peacefully demonstrating outside a facility.
During a recent online event hosted by Live Action, the activists reflected on their experiences, discussed the impact of their incarceration, and reaffirmed their commitment to the pro-life cause, Politico reported. Several of the pardoned individuals vowed to return to clinics, some using stealth tactics to enter facilities, and others prepared to risk arrest again to continue their advocacy for the unborn.
One of the pardoned activists, Herb Geraghty, a woman identifying as a man who had served 17 months of a 27-month sentence, spoke about the necessity of action, saying that she is still “committed to nonviolent direct action in service of the pro-life cause.”
“Get out there, whether it’s outside the clinic or inside, or wherever you need to be to actually prevent unborn children’s lives from being taken,” she said.
For some activists, like Lauren Handy, who was sentenced to 57 months in prison for her protests, the terms of their sentence would have been barred from coming within 1,000 feet of an abortion facility upon release. Trump’s pardons have lifted that restriction, allowing them greater freedom to continue their work.
“Being able to have freedom of movement, being able to go back and advocate and rescue, and do whatever I need to do that the lord is calling me to — that’s what I’m very thankful for,” Handy said.
Meanwhile, Jason Storms, a leader in the pro-life group Operation Save America, has announced a conference in South Carolina next month aimed at training the next generation of activists. The gathering will focus on strategies for continuing efforts to challenge abortion providers and advocate for the unborn.
“Some see our tactics as aggressive,” he said, “but we don’t believe they are, of course, not anywhere near as aggressive as what is going on inside of the abortion clinic, where little bodies are being torn to pieces.”
Paul Vaughn, a pardoned activist and father of 11, described the Biden administration’s prosecution of pro-life advocates under the FACE Act as a failed attempt to intimidate the movement.
“They wanted to spread fear into the church and people that would dare stand up for the unborn,” he said. “And yet, God had other plans.”
Joan Andrews Bell, 76, a lifelong Catholic and pro-life advocate was also pardoned by Trump. She told CatholicVote in February that she plans to continue her rescue work following her release — along with spending time babysitting her nine grandchildren.
“I’ll also be involved at the abortion mill and will bring the babies there because it’s very effective to have babies there with signs [saying] we will adopt your baby,” she told CatholicVote. “Just being there loving and smiling at them as they go in. We will adopt your baby or help you keep your baby. I’ll always be involved with rescue because God lays it on my heart when it’s time to do it.”
>> Thomas More Society VP demands Congress investigate DOJ’s targeting of pro-lifers <<
