Voices for Life

Monday, July 2, 2018

Baby Pics ‘Too Strong for Facebook’: Social Media Giant Targets Pro-Lifers in New Ad Rules

By Calvin Freiburger
Life Site News

Facebook says its latest rules for advertising what it calls “political” content will promote transparency, but after a month of operation they are effectively handicapping many publishers, including LifeSiteNews.

Last month, the social media giant began requiring publishers to submit identification and mailing addresses in order to run advertisements (promotions to lists) of a “political” nature in the United States. Among the initial list of subjects deemed by Facebook to be “political” and, which will expand over time, are “abortion,” “civil rights,” “health,” and “values.” Facebook says the change is meant to prevent foreign actors from interfering in American elections.

These verification requirements are however causing very lengthy delays for ad approvals and are far more extensive than what is summarized in the announcements. They have also caused many to complain about Facebook's labelling of reporting on non-political issues as "political" and therefore subject to Facebook's onerous new procedures and restrictions.

Rather than simply verifying a representative’s identity and a US-based headquarters or office, Facebook has requested a government-issued identification, personal address, and the last four Social Security Number digits for every member of an ad management team.

The company claims that all of this information is being handled by a third party and will be deleted after six weeks, though it has not provided LifeSiteNews with a means of verifying these assurances.

The new rules also place a special new “paid for” label at the top of "political" promotions, through which users can identify who is responsible for the ad, as well as the campaign budget behind it, the number of people who viewed it, and the age, location, and gender of its audience. Additionally, users will be able to report unlabeled ads they believe should be marked, after which the publisher (pending Facebook’s review of the complaint) will be banned from posting ads until it completes the verification process.

Most ads will be flagged through a combination of employee review and artificial intelligence. All “political” ads on Facebook or Instagram dated May 7, 2018 or later will be stored in a searchable archive for up to seven years.

Facebook product management director Rob Leathern claimed that the company “recognize[s] that news coverage of elections and important issues is distinct from advocacy or electoral ads, even if those news stories receive paid distribution on Facebook.” Despite such reassurances, however, the new system is already having consequences beyond its stated targets.

Facebook has already come under fire for blocking ads by LifeSiteNewsand other pro-lifers, as well as other forms of discrimination against pro-life, Christian, and conservative voices. In recent months Facebook has delayed the average wait time to approve LifeSiteNews ads from 12 hours to 72, and doubled the cost per donation received from ads deemed “political” from an average of $5.95 to $12 per donation click.

Even as little as a year ago, approval for ads (promotions of particular articles) usually took minutes to an hour or two. “Now,” says LifeSite President Steve Jalsevac, “Facebook has made everything ‘political’ whereas we are an entirely issues-focused news service rather than a political one.”

More significantly, starting the week of Ireland’s May 25 abortion referendum, Facebook has rejected most of LifeSiteNews’ ads entirely.

Life Site News article continues here

3 Reproductive-Health Issues NaProTechnology Solves Better Than the Alternatives

by Grace Stark
Natural Womanhood

Got endometriosis? There’s a pill for that! Got PCOS? There’s a pill for that! Painful periods and bad acne? Why—you guessed it—there’s a pill for that, too!

It seems like the solution to a lot of issues in women’s health boils down to the Pill. But the dirty little secret about the Pill, and the IUD, and other forms of hormonal contraception, is that they don’t actually address the root causes of any of these common issues in women’s reproductive health. They also come with a host of health risks and side-effects.

For too long, women who would never think of trying on a pair of one-size-fits-all jeans have been accepting this one-size-fits-all drug, because often, that’s all that’s been offered to them for very serious (and oftentimes very painful) conditions like endometriosis and PCOS.

article continues here

Natural Womanhood is the most far-reaching women’s health literacy program since the Pill. We exist because many women are harmed by or at risk from the use of contraceptives, and most don’t know they have a viable alternative.

Natural Womanhood is a non-profit corporation dedicated to the promotion of fertility charting, as a way to promote disease prevention, self-knowledge, relational intimacy, and effective family planning. Natural Womanhood helps young women and couples regardless of their income, ethnicity, or religion.

Would you like to help us accomplish this ambitious goal? Join this movement and become an advocate or volunteer to help spread the word about Natural Womanhood.

For more information on Natural Womanhood or to join this movement, please use this link.

Voices for Life is an e-publication dedicated to informing and educating the public on pro-life and pro-family issues. To read our Mission Statement, use this link. Follow us on Facebook, Google, and Pinterest. Help us spread the pro-life message by sharing our articles on your favorite social networks.

Pregnant, need help or know someone who does?

National Hotline: Call 1-800-712-HELP or Text 'HELPLINE' to 313131.
In Southeast Penna: Call the Community Women's Center at  215-826-8090

If you or someone you know is suffering after abortion, confidential non-judgmental help is available. Call Project Rachel's national toll-free number 888-456-HOPE (4673) or visit hopeafterabortion.org.

Sunday, July 1, 2018

“Pro-Life” Democrat Sen. Bob Casey Rejects a Pro-Life Supreme Court Nominee to Replace Kennedy

He has just a 20% pro-life voting record for the current session, and he has received political donations from...Planned Parenthood.

By Micaiah Bilger
Life News

U.S. Sen. Bob Casey claims to be pro-life but his voting record is tilting further and further pro-abortion.

A Democrat from Pennsylvania, Casey signaled his opposition to President Donald Trump’s next nominee for the U.S. Supreme Court this week – even though Trump has not named anyone yet, Townhall reports.

“If an individual from the list provided to candidate Donald Trump by far-right organizations like the Heritage Foundation and the Federalist Society is nominated, then I am highly unlikely to support that nominee,” Casey wrote on Twitter Wednesday. “This nation deserves a Supreme Court Justice who will be guided by the principle of equal justice under the law for all Americans.”

This means an almost certain no vote from Casey. Earlier this week, Trump promised to choose a nominee from a list of 25 conservative leaders, most of whom already are judges on federal circuit courts and state supreme courts.

Pro-life advocates and other conservatives have praised Trump for the possible Supreme Court nominees on his list. He chose conservative Justice Neil Gorsuch from the list in 2017.

Casey voted against Gorsuch and joined a filibuster against his nomination last year, according to the report.

He has just a 20-percent pro-life voting record for the current session, and he has received political donations from the largest abortion chain in America, Planned Parenthood. Casey also has a 100-percent voting score from NARAL, a radical pro-abortion group that attacks charities that help pregnant and parenting moms and advocates for abortion for any reason up to birth.

The conservative news outlet continued:

While condemning the decisions of the Supreme Court on crucial freedom issues including mandated union dues for American workers, freedom of speech for faith-based, pro-life health clinics and the legality of President Trump’s travel ban, Senator Casey seems to forget that the Supreme Court’s singular job is to uphold the Constitution of the United States of America, the law of the land.

This premature stunt by previously-moderate Senator Bob Casey Jr. is not the first, and likely will not be his last, obstructionist move in attempt to block the advancement of any and all items of President Trump’s agenda.

Life News article continues here

Gosnell Movie Release Set for October, Filmmakers 'Thrilled' Given Timing of Kennedy Retirement

By Brandon Showalter
Christian Post

A motion picture recounting the harrowing story of the trial of a Philadelphia abortionist and his many victims has a distributor and is now set for release later this year.

Gosnell: The Trial of America's Biggest Serial Killer will be released in October in 750 theaters nationwide through GVN Releasing, the Hollywood Reporter said Tuesday.

The movie, which producers and Irish journalists Anne McElhinney and Phelim McAleer made with approximately $2.3 million in a crowdfunding campaign, features actor Dean Cain as the lead detective who chased the case of Kermit Gosnell, the Philadelphia abortionist who is now in prison.

Gosnell is presently serving a life sentence for the murder of three infant babies and the involuntary manslaughter of one of his adult patients, Karnamaya Mongar.

"With the retirement of pro-abortion Kennedy, the release of our movie couldn't be more timely. The movie tells the truth about abortion, something sadly lacking in Hollywood and the mainstream media," said McElhinney in a statement to The Christian Post Wednesday, noting she was "thrilled."

Gosnell's abortion facility, which was referred to as a "House of Horrors" when it was finally exposed in 2010 — dozens of aborted babies and body parts were found in jars and the conditions inside were filthy — was allowed to operate because the state government failed to inspect the clinic for over 17 years.

The plot of the movie follows the trial of Gosnell, and includes gruesome details about Baby A, arguably the most famous of Gosnell's victims, the largest baby delivered who was estimated to be around 29 weeks old. Baby A was moving until Gosnell cut his spinal cord with scissors and witnesses testified that he joked that this particular baby was "big enough to walk me to the bus stop."

The movie also touches on the near total journalistic blackout on the story early in the trial. When Gosnell went to trail the press gallery was almost completely empty. Given the scale of the crimes committed the filmmakers maintain it ought to have made national headlines in the secular media but it did not until USA Today columnist Kirsten Powers learned of it and rebuked the mainstream media for deliberately ignoring the story.

Christian Post article continues here

Roe v. Wade

by Bernard J. Byrne

In his June 29th column on "Next Supreme Court appointment could spell doom for Roe v. Wade", Phil Gianficaro shows he knows little of the fact that the majority of Americans are now thought to be more Pro-Life, than Pro-Abortion.

Just as in the days of slavery in our Country, when the majority in the Supreme Court upheld slavery in the horrific "Dred Scott case", Mr. Gianficaro hangs onto the horrific decision made by the Supreme Court, in the 'Roe v. Wade" decision.

Just as the "Dred Scott decision was deemed unconstitutional and later reversed by the Supreme Court, there is no doubt in my mind, the terrible decision in the "Roe v. Wade" case will also be determined to be unconstitutional and overturned. It is just a matter of time.

Just as the Constitution states that everyone has the right to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness, this includes all races and persons, including life from the beginning to the grave. I believe that life begins at conception and ends at death.

For those in the Pro-Abortion camp, who believe that they have the right to decide when life begins, just look at the medical facts. Every year, fetuses have substained life outside the womb, at earlier and earlier months in their development.

Since 1974, over 60 "Million" girls and boys have been aborted due to a horrible decision by our Supreme Court.

Mr. Gianficaro you brag in your article that you are standing up for women and for what you call their right to control their own bodies. Well what about the rights of the over 60 Million girls and boys whose lives were terminated through Abortion. Yes, Abortion, which is described in Webster's Dictionary as 'to terminate or cause to terminate a pregnancy prematurely'.

What is another word for terminating a life? Oh, that's right, that's called Murder. But the likes of this Pro-Abortion journalist and others, took care of this small detail. They simply changed the name of those favoring abortions ,from being Pro-Abortion to being Pro-Choice. Only they leave out the fact, that the girl or boy fetuses have no choice at all.

I'm confident that it will only be a matter of time, when those supporters of Abortion will be confined to the to the dust bins of history, just as those who supported slavery are.

Note: Phil Gianficaro is a columnist for The Intelligencer and Bucks County Courier Times in Pennsylvania, and the Burlington County Times in New Jersey.

Bernard J. Byrne is a pro-life warrior who lives in Doylestown Township in Pennsylvania.

Saturday, June 30, 2018

China Discovers the Value of Children—400 Million Lives Later

The Chinese Communist Party has never been much concerned about the human cost of the massive social engineering programs they have engaged in...

By Steven W. Mosher
National Right to Life

Editor’s note. This is adapted from a talk Mr. Mosher gave Thursday evening at NRLC 2018 convention.

My introduction to the one-child policy came in a dusty rural clinic in South China in 1980. Hundreds of local women had been arrested in the people’s commune I was living in, charged with the crime of being pregnant, then handed over to army doctors for assembly-line abortions. The sight of women 6, 8 and even 9 months pregnant being delivered of dead babies by cesarean-section is one that I—and they—are unlikely ever to forget.

Local officials explained to me that the Chinese Communist Party, then led by Deng Xiaoping, had decided that China was overpopulated. “Use whatever means you must to control China’s population,” Deng had reportedly instructed senior officials. “Just do it. With the support of the Party you have nothing to fear.”

Party officials have been “just doing it” to women ever since. Each year for the past 38 years—in the longest running political campaign in PRC history—they have arrested, fined, aborted, and sterilized millions of women for violating the rules governing childbearing.

The policy is known in China as “Planned Birth,” which every Chinese woman alive understands to mean … the Party, not you, will decide how many children you have and when you will have them. And each of the Party leaders that followed Deng, from Jiang Zemin to Hu Jintao and now Xi Jinping, likewise believed that China’s path to greatness depended upon keeping the wombs of Chinese women empty. Up to recently, they even bragged about having eliminated 400 million people from their population.

Now comes word that the Party is poised to abandon birth restrictions. Perhaps as early as the end of the year, Beijing will announce that Chinese women are free to have as many children as they wish.

Why is President for Life Xi Jinping doing this? Has he heard, as I did, the cries of China’s women? Is he appalled by the slaughter of tens of millions of infant girls by infanticide and abortion? Is he disturbed by the sight of the resulting “excess” men, 30 million strong, roaming China’s cities and towns, and the explosion of sex trafficking and other crimes that have followed?

I suspect that the answer is, “none of the above.” The Chinese Communist Party has never been much concerned about the human cost of the massive social engineering programs they have engaged in, from the Great Leap Forward to the One Child Policy.

The consequence of the Great Leap Forward was the death by starvation of 42 million people. The consequences of the One Child Policy are an order of magnitude larger. That policy has eliminated, by forced abortion and infanticide, of 400 million children.

China, you see, has turned Malthus’ “dismal theorem” on its head. Instead of population growth outpacing food production, as Malthus predicted, in China we see the opposite. There, it is population control that is undermining the economy.

What happens when you eliminate 400 million of the most productive, enterprising people in the world? Nothing good.

National Right to Life continues here

Jahi McMath Dies, Years After Doctors Called Her “Brain Dead” and Refused to Treat Her

Jahi McMath

By Micaiah Bilger
Life News

Jahi McMath, the young California teen who lived for five years after doctors called her “brain dead,” died on June 22 from liver failure.

McMath’s story rose to national attention almost five years ago after she suffered complications during a routine surgery in December 2013. Doctors declared Jahi brain dead, but her family fought to keep the hospital from taking the then-13-year-old off a ventilator. After a public battle ensued, the family moved Jahi to another hospital where three doctors signed declarations stating that she was not brain dead.

The young woman’s family announced her death this week. Her mother, Nailah Winkfield, said Jahi died of excessive bleeding and liver failure after she had an operation for an intestinal problem, CBS News reports.

Bobby Schindler, president of the Terri Schiavo Life & Hope Network, expressed his condolences.

“We fought for Jahi, her family, and her rights ever since her 2013 brain injury,” Schindler said. “Jahi lived for nearly five years after being declared dead thanks to the love and care of her mother. The way that Jahi, Nailah, and her family were treated by some physicians since 2013 has been a scandal; a case study in the human cost of elitist and bureaucratic disregard for a patient who needed care.”

Schindler, whose sister Terri Schiavo was at the center of a similar debate more than a decade ago, said the brain death criteria for death was formulated 50 years ago, but it still is being debated today.

His organization advocates for revisions that allow for patients who may be experiencing severe coma, minimal consciousness, or other extraordinary behavior to still have a chance at treatment and care.

“After Jahi was ruled to be brain dead, she and her family found themselves in an incredible situation wherein Jahi was considered legally dead in California, but legally alive in New Jersey … Nailah Winkfield and Jahi’s entire family fought for nearly five years on the grounds that Jahi exhibited behavior inconsistent with the brain death diagnosis. Jahi was not only still alive, but may have benefited from treatment and rehabilitative care,” Schindler said.

“We will continue to advocate in Jahi’s memory for revisions to the ‘brain death’ criteria to ensure that patients who don’t meet the criteria in the future won’t be denied all care,” he continued.

Winkfield said she believes her daughter was still alive for those five years that they fought for her. She said she watched Jahi wiggle her fingers and toes.

In 2016, her family said Jahi’s body had not deteriorated as is typical with brain dead patients on life support, and she was able to breathe on her own. A video showed her taking 14 to 15 breaths on her own in one minute at the prompting of her mother.

“Jahi wasn’t brain dead or any kind of dead,” Winkfield said. “She was a girl with a brain injury and she deserved to be cared for like any other child who had a brain injury.”

In 2014 and again in 2017, world-renowned neurologist Dr. Alan Shewmon also testifiedthat McMath was not brain dead.

Though they are mourning, Winkfield said she feels contented knowing that she did everything she could to fight for Jahi’s life.

“These last four-and-a-half years have not been easy,” she said. “I can go to sleep knowing I did everything possible for my kid and no one can take that away from me.”

Website: Life News

When the 26-Week Abortion Failed the Abortionist Left Her for Dead. But She Survived.

By Dave Andrusko
Life News

Hats off to the planners of the opening two general sessions of NRLC 2018, the three-day convention that kicks off today just outside of Kansas City, Kansas. Each session reinforced the already considerable power of the other.

As we discussed elsewhere today, in the first General Session, Dr. George Delgado explained in easily accessible language how “APR” (Abortion Pill Reversal) works to give women a second chance should they decide in mid-stream not to complete a chemical abortion. Hundreds of babies have already been saved because their mothers did not take the second of two drugs and instead were administered progesterone.

These are “abortion survivors.”

So, too, in a different way are Sarah Zagorski, Dan Compton, and Melissa Ohden, who spoke at “The Human Face of Abortion” General Session. Their stories are riveting and illustrate that while not common, there are abortion survivors whose living testimonies often leave pro-abortionists speechless.

Melissa survived a saline abortion in 1977. Her mother was told she was 20 weeks along when the truth was she was more like 30 weeks. Melissa pointed out that just last weekend she’d been interviewed by a pro-choice feminist historian at a woman’s conference.

During the conversation, the idea that abortion was, or can be, “merciful” was floated. But what could the historian say when Melissa pointed to the nurses and others in the NICU who refused to allow her to be neglected—that was merciful, not attempting to kill her. Or to the husband and children Melissa had that she wouldn’t, had the abortionist not “failed”?

Dan’s “abortion survivor” story is so complicated he only had time to touch on a few twists and turns. Raised in a Godly family, Dan chose to rebel and wasted a decade in alcohol and drug abuse.

His spiritual transformation is, in many ways, no less miraculous than the “rest of the story” about his birth that he did not learn about until he was an adult. For whatever reason, one of the most notorious late-term abortionists in the world, the late George Tiller, would not abort Dan’s mother. Not only did Tiller allow Dan’s mother to stay at his home until it was time, he delivered Dan!

Of course, Dan said he could not reconcile that action with Tiller’s 50,000 abortions or “why me?” and not all the others. But he is alive, a husband and a father and “because I was given life there is a whole line of people who will exist as a result.”

Sarah Zagorski —another abortion survivor. Her mother was mentally ill and already had seven children when she became pregnant with Sarah. At 26 weeks she went to an abortionist who “unsuccessfully” aborted Sarah.

As she explained to the audience, she was delivered alive and the abortionist encouraged her mother to leave her for dead (she was not breathing when she was born). But her mother refused and instead fought for her life.

Her story of her chaotic upbringing, her years in the foster care system, fortunately ended in adoption. Sarah lives a purposeful life, with a husband and children, and Special Projects Director for Louisiana Right to Life. As Sarah told the audience, all this was made possible because of the “gift” her mother gave her, a mother who lived in poverty and who battled mental illness.

Life News article continues here

National Hotline: Call 1-800-712-HELP or Text 'HELPLINE' to 313131.
In Southeast Penna: Call the Community Women's Center at 215-826-8090

If you or someone you know is suffering after abortion, confidential non-judgmental help is available. Call Project Rachel's national toll-free number 888-456-HOPE (4673) or visit hopeafterabortion.org.

Friday, June 29, 2018

President Donald Trump: Unborn Babies Have a “Basic and Fundamental Human Right, the Right to Life”

By Steven Ertelt
Life News

President Donald Trump today issued a letter to the National to Life Committee as hundreds of pro-life advocates gather to open its national convention today in Kansas City.

In his letter to the pro-life advocates, President Trump made it clear that he believes unborn children have a fundamental right to life.

“We all have a duty to defend the most basic and fundamental human right — the right to life. As President I am dedicated to protecting the lives of every American including the unborn,” Trump wrote.

The President also defended his pro-life record talking about the accomplishments he has made sense being elected president. Some of those accomplishments include defunding the international Planned Parenthood abortion business as well as signing legislation to make it easier for states to defund the abortion giant. He has also redirected taxpayer funds from the abortion company’s sex-ed programs to legitimate women’s health centers.

“Since my first day in office I have taken concrete actions to defend the right to life. One of the first actions I took as President was to reinstate the Mexico City policy to ensure the taxpayer dollars are not used to fund organizations that perform abortions in foreign countries. I also signed into law legislation that allows states to prioritize how they spend their family planning grant money, giving States the choice to withhold taxpayer funding from organizations that perform abortions.

Further, last month my Administration proposed updates to the regulations governing the Title X Family Planning program in order to improve Women’s Health and ensure that federal funds are not used to fund the abortion industry in violation of law.”

The president concluded by thanking the hundreds of pro-life advocates gathered at the National Right to Life convention for their efforts protecting babies from abortion.

He wrote:

“The National Right to Life Committee’s work is critical to protecting our nation’s most vulnerable. Since 1968 you have provided a voice to the voiceless. Each day you help spread compassion and promote the dignity of every human person. I am truly grateful for your efforts and I remain committed to continue working with you as we cultivate a world that values and regards every human life.”

Website: Life News

1,500 Canadian Organizations Have Been Denied Grants for Refusing to Support Abortion

By Nancy Flanders
Live Action News

A new requirement from the Canadian government mandating support for abortion is causing countless organizations to find alternative ways to hire summer employees or shut down altogether. The Canada Summer Jobs Program has long been the way that many organizations across Canada have been able to create summer jobs for Canadian teenagers.

Museums, churches, and camps have all enjoyed the benefit of hiring summer help that the grant money allowed them. Now, however, more than 1,500 of those organizations have been denied their funding for refusing to check off a box on the application that says they support abortion. If the box is left unchecked, the application will be considered incomplete, and therefore, automatically denied funding.

“The government is saying, ‘We’re right and you’re wrong and that’s that. Believe what we believe or don’t bother to apply for money,” Daniel Peacock of Camp Jordan in Nova Scotia, a Baptist-run camp that has relied on $4,000 in federal grant money to hire a student camp counselor for the last four years, told CBC News. “Our Baptist foundation told us that unless we check the box off, we would be ignored.”

At least 50 organizations in Nova Scotia alone were denied their funding because they didn’t check off the box. CBC News is reporting that across Canada, over 1,500 organizations have lost funding to hire summer employees because they won’t agree to the assertation.

READ: Canadian Prime Minister Trudeau: Pro-life views ‘not in line’ with society

Community Pentecostal Church in Orléans hires students each summer to run programs including an arts camp, a Bible school, and a free barbecue and block party for more than 1,500 people.

“We couldn’t hold our integrity and check off the box about the reproductive rights,” said Jeff Hillier, lead pastor at the church. “[…] The fact that monies would be withheld from us based upon not agreeing with our prime minister’s position to me is appalling. I’m quite concerned about the freedom of religion and where this will lead us.”

Lawyer and director of legal affairs at the Canadian Council of Christian Charities, Barry Bussey told CBC News that the government’s mandate is unconstitutional and violates Section 2a of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms which protects freedom of conscience and religion, as well as Section 2b, which protects freedom of belief and expression and Section 15, the equality right.

“We have received literally hundreds of messages from our membership who are very upset about the treatment they’ve received from the government with respect to this,” he said. “Many of them want to pursue a court action.”

In addition to faith-based camps, the Bruno Cherry Sunday set for August 12 was affected by the new rule, canceling the annual event directly because of the new government rule to pledge support for abortion.

Live Action News article continues here