Author Archives: maria

Questions I Wish Journalists Would Ask About the Life Issues

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By Maria Gallagher, Legislative Director

When I worked for the mainstream media, I noticed a double standard when it came to covering the core life issues.

Planned Parenthood was considered to be the irrefutable expert in all matters related to abortion. Their assertions were seldom questioned; their pronouncements were accepted uncritically.

Pro-life advocates, on the other hand, were viewed with high skepticism. Anything they said was assumed to come from a place of religious faith and, therefore, suspect. Grilling of pro-lifers was encouraged and, in fact, expected–grilling of abortion advocates frowned upon.

Now, as a pro-life advocate, I find I wish there were questions that the news media would pose to spokespeople for the abortion industry and their allies. The answers to these questions would make for more interesting, more informative articles and broadcast news stories.

I wish reporters would ask the simple question: What is abortion? And not be willing to accept a ridiculous answer such as “the right to choose.”

It would also be helpful if reporters would ask Planned Parenthood why their abortion totals keep rising–even as overall abortion numbers are declining nationwide.

I think it would be beneficial if the media asked the abortion industry what specific help it provided to pregnant women who chose to keep their babies. In addition, inquiring minds want to know what abortion facilities are doing to facilitate adoptions.

I wish reporters would ask what abortion businesses are doing to combat domestic violence–since research shows as many as 60 percent of abortions are coerced.

I would like a reporter to ask an abortionist to describe, in detail, the process of abortion and its aftermath–and not accept euphemisms as valid responses.

A free press is a time-honored way to preserve democracy. For far too long, the free press has given a free pass to the abortion industry. Let’s challenge the news media to take on a watchdog mentality when it comes to abortion. After all, lives are at stake.

Fortresses of Courage in the Wilderness of Mourning

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Woman in wilderness

By Maria Gallagher, Legislative Director

As I write these words, I know of two women who are accompanying loved ones on their final journeys. One is a wife, tending to her dying husband. The other is a daughter, spending the remaining precious moments with her ailing father.

At such times, the crush of emotions can be overwhelming. The torrent of sadness pouring over one’s soul. The deep longing for opportunities missed. The chilling realization that goodbye will come all too soon.

These women are fortresses of courage in the face of death. They deal with its stinging reality everyday, yet they manage to share smiles with friends and co-workers who desperately wish they could relieve them of their current pain.

Yet, at such times, there is also a special grace that shines through the wilderness of mourning. It is the realization of the inherent, unmistakable value of life–that life, in all its complexity, is worth living.There can be gratitude for the celebrations in days past…thankfulness for the memories shared.

These two women are witnesses to their loved ones’ lives. They are the cheering section, even in those final, difficult moments when eternity beckons. They are the caregivers who give their beloved the wings to fly back home to God.

While it is painfully hard to serve as a bystander in such circumstances, it is also ennobling. For in living life to the fullest, these unrepeatable human beings are teaching us all how to live. And they are sharing the lesson with us that each life is to be treasured and protected until the point of natural death.

 

 

Wolf Veto: A Sad Day for PA Women

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HARRISBURG, Pa. –Pennsylvania Governor Tom Wolf has ushered in a policy that will do grave harm to women, as a result of his veto of an important telemedicine bill.

The measure, known as Senate Bill 857, would have banned the telemedicine distribution of dangerous drugs, such as the abortion pill RU-486.

“The women of Pennsylvania deserve to be protected from the harm that can be caused by tele-abortions,” said Maria Gallagher, Legislative Director of the Pennsylvania Pro-Life Federation, an affiliate of National Right to Life.

“This veto sends the disturbing message that women’s health will be compromised in order to placate the abortion industry,” Gallagher added.

RU-486 can cause a number of complications, including excessive bleeding, vomiting, and nausea. Without the restrictions contained in Senate Bill 857, women will be forced to deal with these possible dangerous side-effects on their own, without a physician physically present.

Senate Bill 857 passed the Senate, then passed the House with the insertion of a key amendment halting the dispensing of dangerous drugs by telemedicine. The Senate concurred with the amendment, sending the legislation to the Governor for his review.

“Once again, Governor Wolf has sided with the abortion industry over the interests of the women of Pennsylvania. The veto is appalling and demonstrates how out of touch the Wolf Administration is when it comes to medical care for women,” Gallagher said.   

Philadelphia Abortion Center Fails to Ensure Parental Consent for Abortions

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By Maria Gallagher, Legislative Director

A Philadelphia abortion facility has failed to ensure parental consent for some abortions, a clear violation of the long-standing Pennsylvania Abortion Control Act.

PA Health Department inspectors found that, in half of the ten pediatric medical records reviewed, the Philadelphia Women’s Center neglected to obtain parents’ permission before administering chemical abortions.

The RU-486 abortions took place in February, May, June, July, and November of last year, without the parental oversight required by state law.

The health inspection report states that a “request was made…on February 12, 2020, for a policy that addressed parental consent for medications that are included in the termination of a pregnancy for pediatric patients. None was provided.”

In case after case, the health department documents that “there was no parental or legal guardian consent” for the use of Mifepristone and Misoprostol, the drugs used in RU-486 abortions.

Lack of parental consent for abortions in Pennsylvania is egregious under any circumstances and violates a key provision of the 1989 Pennsylvania Abortion Control Act, which was the basis of the U.S. Supreme Court ruling known as Planned Parenthood v. Casey. Other provisions of the landmark law include a 24-hour waiting period for abortions and informed consent, meaning that a woman must be told the risks of abortion and alternatives to abortion prior to an abortion taking place.

Ironically, the Health Department report also shows that the Philadelphia Women’s Center “failed to establish a patient safety committee, as required by the Medical Care Availability and Reduction of Error Act of 2002.”

In addition, Health Department inspectors found in February that the abortion center “failed to establish an infection control committee.”

Given the crisis ultimately created by the COVID-19 pandemic, this omission is all the more alarming—especially in Philadelphia, which is now considered a Coronavirus hot spot.

Emergency Alert: Planned Parenthood Open for Abortion Business During Coronavirus Crisis

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Emergency Alert: While Businesses Throughout PA Shut Their Doors, Planned Parenthood is Open for Abortion Business

In the wake of the coronavirus crisis, Pennsylvania Governor Tom Wolf has ordered businesses throughout the Commonwealth to close.

Yet, Planned Parenthood remains open—for abortion business only.

 “At this time, Planned Parenthood Keystone is serving patients in Allentown, Wilkes-Barre, Warminster, Reading, York, and Harrisburg for abortion services only,” reads the Coronavirus update message on the Planned Parenthood Keystone website (https://www.plannedparenthood.org/planned-parenthood-keystone/covid-19-info ).

Please join us in calling on Gov. Wolf to order Planned Parenthood to stop performing abortions during the coronavirus outbreak.

You can show your support by signing the petition here:  https://www.paprolife.org/petition .

For more on Planned Parenthood performing abortions during a national health emergency, click here: https://www.nationalrighttolifenews.org/2020/03/pa-gov-shuts-down-businesses-but-not-planned-parenthood/ .

Please share our inspirational Open Letter to a Pregnant Woman During the Coronavirus Crisis, found here: https://www.nationalrighttolifenews.org/2020/03/open-letter-to-a-pregnant-woman-during-the-coronavirus-crisis/

Together, we can stop pregnant women and preborn children from being harmed by abortion during the coronavirus pandemic.

How the Pro-Life Movement Can Achieve Real Consensus

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By Maria V. Gallagher, Legislative Director

 As we approach the 47th anniversary of the tragic U.S. Supreme Court ruling Roe v. Wade, some may be wondering why we persist to try to protect every human life, from conception to natural death. Wouldn’t it be better, these individuals say, to just draw a line at abortions after the first trimester of pregnancy?

In fact, some people wrongly believe that Roe itself bans abortions after 12 weeks gestation. But when Roe is considered with its companion case, Doe v. Bolton, the ruling actually allows for abortions for any reason or no reason during all nine months of pregnancy. That is how we have ended up with states such as New York passing bills lifting all restrictions on abortion.

There is no doubt that second and third trimester abortions are especially heinous, given what we know about the development of the preborn child. But every abortion ends an innocent, irreplaceable human life.

If we were to pass a law banning abortions after the first trimester in most of the states, chances are that that would effectively end the national dialogue on abortion. We would be closing the door to future abortion restrictions.

What’s more, the majority of preborn babies would not be protected, since most abortions occur in the first trimester. For instance, in Pennsylvania, of the 30,364 abortions which occurred in the Commonwealth in 2018, 26,404 occurred at less than 13 weeks gestation.

Imagine passing a law against abortion—and still, 26,404 children would lose their precious lives!

It is true that the pro-life movement has been successful in an incremental, or step by step, approach to restricting abortion. For instance, laws requiring informed consent, parental consent, and 24-hour-waiting periods have decreased in abortions. In Pennsylvania, the Abortion Control Act, which contained such restrictions, succeeded in cutting the abortion rate in half.

Our goal as a pro-life movement is not to end abortions after the first trimester. Our goal is to ensure that each individual child is welcomed in life and protected under the law. When it comes to common ground or consensus, the point of agreement we should be aiming for is to help people see the humanity of the preborn child at all its stages of development. We should also work to assist people to understand the vast help and resources that are available to pregnant women in difficult circumstances.

Helping all preborn children and helping all pregnant women—that’s where our consensus should lie.

 

Breaking News–Down Syndrome Protection Act Passes PA Senate

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Down syndrome picture with our sign

By Maria V. Gallagher, Legislative Director

The Pennsylvania Senate has approved the Down Syndrome Protection Act, House Bill 321, by a vote of 27-22.

The bill bans abortion for the sole reason of a prenatal diagnosis of Down syndrome. The PA House previously passed the measure by an overwhelming, bipartisan margin.

The bill now heads to the Governor’s desk.

Senator Kristin Phillips-Hill noted it was appropriate to consider the bill on National Child Day, calling it a common sense piece of legislation.

Speaking to people with Down syndrome, the Senator said,  “We believe you have the right to be born and the right to enjoy a full and productive life.”

Another of the bill’s supporters, Senator Scott Martin said, “Disability rights begin in the womb.”

The bill is a response to the sky-high abortion rate for babies with Down syndrome. It has been estimated that the vast majority of children in the womb who are diagnosed with an extra chromosome are aborted.

“Progressive” Governor Stalls Progress on Life Issues

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Baby with block  By Maria Gallagher, Legislative Director

He might call himself a progressive, but the Governor of Pennsylvania is standing directly in the way of progress, when it comes to pro-life advances in the Commonwealth.

Democrat Tom Wolf has staked out a position at odds with the state’s mainstream, when it comes to the life issues. He opposes any and all restrictions on abortion, towing the Planned Parenthood line time and time again.

He vetoed a common sense bill that would have banned brutal dismemberment abortions, where babies are torn limb by limb from their mothers’ wombs. The former volunteer clinic escort for Planned Parenthood opposes a ban on taxpayer funding of abortion, even though such a measure is supported by the vast majority of Americans.

He has gone so far as to pledge to veto any pro-life bill that comes to his desk. Undaunted, the Pennsylvania House of Representatives this past spring passed House Bill 321, which would ban abortion for the sole reason of a prenatal diagnosis of Down syndrome. The House approved the bill by a large, bipartisan majority. The measure is now awaiting action in the Pennsylvania Senate.

If the Senate follows the lead of the House and OK’s the bill, would Wolf stand in the way of people with disabilities being protected? Or would he at least acknowledge that children with special needs deserve special legal protection? Time will tell.

But all indications are that, if Wolf had his way, Pennsylvania would become another New York, legalizing abortions up to the moment of birth, while offering no care and consideration for babies born as a result of “botched” abortions.

Pennsylvania’s House and Senate retain pro-life majorities, so Wolf is clearly out of step with the state legislature. He has also distanced himself ideologically from the majority of the populace, who oppose most abortions, according to public opinion polls.

I know of people who are hoping and praying for a conversion of the Governor’s heart. Unless and until that happens, the state legislature is providing a critical firewall against radically pro-abortion policies.

But with another election, that firewall could easily melt away. That is why it is critical that, come 2020, pro-lifers become engaged and informed. Retaining pro-life majorities in the General Assembly is crucial to ensuring that Pennsylvania’s common sense limits on abortion, such as parental consent, informed consent, and 24-hour waiting periods, are maintained.

Without them, PA will lose the legislative ground we’ve gained…not to mention untold numbers of precious lives.

PA Girl with Down Syndrome to be Featured in Times Square

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ChloeKondrich By Maria V. Gallagher, Legislative Director

One of Pennsylvania’s own will soon be gracing the big screen at Times Square in New York.

Sixteen-year-old Chloe Kondrich, a vivacious student who happens to have Down syndrome, will be featured on the big double screen September 14th. Her captivating photo will be part of a presentation by the National Down Syndrome Society.

Chloe’s photo has been displayed in Times Square before–but each time is a thrill for her and her family. In her young life, Chloe has already accomplished a great deal–from meeting the President and Vice-President to hobnobbing with sports figures and musical stars.

Chloe demonstrates quite clearly the amazing capabilities of children with Down syndrome. She is also the face behind Chloe’s Law–a Pennsylvania measure which ensures that parents whose babies have received a prenatal diagnosis of Down syndrome receive access to educational resources and support for the journey ahead.

Chloe has been lobbying for a new bill–House Bill 321–which would ban abortion for the sole reason of a prenatal Down syndrome diagnosis. The bill has passed the PA House of Representatives by a resounding margin and is now pending in the PA Senate.

If you live in Pennsylvania, please consider calling and emailing your state Senator and urging him or her to support HB 321. Let them know that children with Down syndrome deserve our protection, our respect, and equal rights under the law.

 

Empty Desks at Back to School Time

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Empty desk By Maria V. Gallagher, Legislative Director

As children around the U.S. head back to school, I think about the children who are missing because of legal abortion.

It is not a small number. Figures from the Guttmacher Institute, the former research arm of Planned Parenthood, indicate nearly one million abortions occur each year.

That means millions of children will never get a chance to pose for a first-day-of-school photo. They will never experience the joy of learning, or the freedom and frivolity which come with daily recess.

They will never score a soccer goal or play the flute in the school orchestra. They will never have the opportunity to sing in the school choir, perform in a play, or earn the winning touchdown on the football playing field.

Think about it. If we were to memorialize each baby killed by abortion with a single student desk, how empty are classrooms would be.

How many women in the U.S. are silently grieving the children who will never bring home a report card, or a construction paper surprise for their mothers? How many men are suffering from lost fatherhood as a result of abortion?

The babies who were aborted were real people, real children who deserved respect, compassion, and love. Instead, their lives were ended before they could ever step foot on school grounds.

Back-to-school days are just another reminder of how impoverished our society is because of legal abortion.

May today’s schoolchildren, as they grow and develop, come to recognize that truth, and end legal abortion once and for all.