Washington, D.C. Prohibits Prayer and Free Speech on the Public Sidewalk in Our Nation's Capitol
D.C. police officers have threatened to arrest people praying and counseling on the public sidewalk in front of Planned Parenthood.
WASHINGTON,June 4 /Christian Newswire/ -- For many years, the pro-life community has been allowed to pray, counsel and have a peaceful witness on the public property surrounding the Planned Parenthood Clinic in Washington, D.C.
Photo: Pro-Lifers Peacefully Praying on Public Property Surrounding Planned Parenthood
Several weeks ago Planned Parenthood put up a fence around that public property and police are now threatening to arrest anyone who stands inside that fence.
The Christian Defense Coalition is challenging this unconstitutional crushing of prayer and free speech and has applied for a permit to hold a prayer vigil on the public sidewalk leading up to Planned Parenthood.
That prayer vigil will take place on Tuesday, June 8, at 11:00 A.M. at Planned Parenthood 1108 16th St. NW Washington, D.C.
Faith leaders will risk arrest before they surrender their First Amendment rights or allow prayer to be banned on the public sidewalk in the heart of our nation's capitol.
The Christian Defense Coalition and their supporters are being represented by the American Center for Law and Justice.
Rev. Patrick J. Mahoney, Director of the Christian Defense Coalition, states,
"It is both disturbing and a disgrace that prayer and free speech have been banned and prohibited here in our nation's capitol.
"For many years, peaceful pro-life activists were allowed to pray, counsel and share on the public sidewalk and property in front of Planned Parenthood.
"Now after putting up a fence around that public property, the Washington, D.C. Police Department is threatening to arrest anyone who steps inside that fence to pray and counsel.
"Yet, that sidewalk and property still remain public.
"On Tuesday, June 8, we have applied for a permit to pray on the public sidewalk leading up to Planned Parenthood. Our hope is that the City of Washington, D.C. will honor and respect the First Amendment and allow us to celebrate our free speech rights in the nation's capitol.
"However, even if we are threatened with arrest and taken to jail we will not be bullied or intimidated into silence or surrender. When free speech and public prayer are banned and prohibited, it is the duty of people of faith to peacefully challenge that injustice and boldly take a stand.
"Dr. Martin Luther King stated, 'Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.' If we allow the trampling of the First Amendment here in Washington, D.C., then free speech rights are at risk all across America."
For more information or interviews call: Rev. Patrick J. Mahoney at 540.538.4741 202.547.1735
Faith Leaders Call on Congress to Respect Our Veterans and Their Faith
SAN DIEGO,May 28 /Christian Newswire/ -- Preparing to celebrate Memorial Day, we do so knowing brave veterans and our shared faith have been maliciously attacked, first by thieves and now by our own Federal Government.
The recent theft and desecration of the Mohave Cross, serving as a WWI veterans war memorial since 1934, was more than a symbol of gratitude to our fallen heroes. It's a symbol of the overwhelming majority of our WWI veterans' faith.
After a long and contentious legal battle, the US Supreme Court ruled the Mohave Cross should remain on Sunrise Rock in the Mojave National Preserve. Yet, in order to circumvent a decision they disagreed with, despicable cowards violated the Court's decision and the rule of law. These lawless acts of violence against the faith community, further demonstrated by last week's desecration of the Maywood, CA Catholic Church, have got to cease.
Now, adding insult to injury, the Federal Government won't approve a permit to build another cross exactly like the one that was stolen. This political correctness run amuck has exposed again an ugly, anti-Christian bigotry and intolerance towards veterans by this administration. We call on the US Congress to investigate why the Park Service refuses to allow the cross to be replaced.
The irony is painfully obvious. Generations of Christians and patriots made the ultimate sacrifice giving us a land of freedom and religious tolerance. But now criminals and the government are conspiring to deprive them the honor they are due. This makes Christian Americans into second class citizens in the very country for which our Christian forefathers bled and died.
Americans are tolerant of other people's faith and symbols of their religion. We're asking that Christian Americans are afforded the same respect and tolerance extended to other religions.
This Memorial Day 2010, remember our veterans who laid down their lives for us - from the Revolutionary War of 1776 to Afghanistan and Iraq. In loving memory of these courageous men and women, we urge Congress and this Administration to work with Christian Americans to restore the cross at Mojave National Preserve. Respect our veterans, their faith and our country's heroes. GOD bless our veterans and the USA.
National Right to Life Committee Urges U.S. House to Reject 'Disclose Act' as 'A Corruption of the Lawmaking Power'
WASHINGTON,May 27 /Christian Newswire/ -- The National Right to Life Committee (NRLC), the federation of right-to-life organizations in all 50 states, today urged the U.S. House of Representatives to reject the "DISCLOSE Act" (H.R. 5175), which it called a "bullying political power grab," which is "not a curb on corruption, but itself a type of corruption -- a corruption of the lawmaking process, by which incumbent lawmakers employ the threat of criminal sanctions, among other deterrents, to reduce the amount of private speech regarding the actions of the lawmakers themselves." NRLC said that it would include the dispositive roll calls on the measure in its scorecard of key votes for the current Congress.
The four-page letter, signed by NRLC Executive Director David N. O'Steen and Legislative Director Douglas Johnson, said that the bill "has been carefully crafted to maximize short-term political benefits for the dominant faction of one political party, while running roughshod over the First Amendment protections for political speech that have been clearly and forcefully articulated by the U.S. Supreme Court." The letter discusses a number of ways in which the legislation is designed to "to discourage, as much as possible, disfavored groups (such as NRLC) from communicating about officeholders, by exposing citizens who support such efforts to harassment and intimidation, and by smothering organizations in layer on layer of record keeping and reporting requirements, all backed by the threat of civil and criminal sanctions." The letter suggests that the bill be amended to clarify that "DISCLOSE" actually stands for "Deterring Independent Speech about Congress except by Labor Organizations and Selected Elites."
The House Democratic leadership had apparently intended to bring the bill to the House floor tomorrow (May 28), but -- faced by a rising chorus of protests from a broad array of organizations -- has now postponed floor action until the week of June 7.
NRLC Legislative Director Douglas Johnson and Senior Legislative Counsel Susan T. Muskett, J.D. are available to provide comment and analysis of the "DISCLOSE Act." Please contact the NRLC Communications Department at (202) 626-8825 to arrange an interview.
The National Right to Life Committee is the nation's largest pro-life group, with affiliates in all 50 states and over 3,000 local chapters nationwide.
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