Most health jurisdictions around the world have legislation that protects vulnerable minors by enacting parental consent for abortion legislation, including 39 of the 51 states just south of us. As stated in our recently released legal opinion:

“Beyond healthcare, age restrictions are used to determine when a person can vote, drive, sell property, stop attending school, consent to sex and marry.  All of these restrictions all have some element of a literal arbitrariness but this does not automatically invalidate them, and in fact, they are a common and necessary was of ordering our society.  Some of these also have a parental consent component.  For example, youth under 18 years of age who wish to marry.    Like abortion, marriage carries with it potentially serious consequences and implications.  Yet choosing to marry is a reversible decision.  Abortion is not.”

Requiring parental consent for abortion is not only good for the health and well-being of adolescents, it also saves the lives of pre-born children. This week marks the 25th anniversary of the U.S. Supreme Court decision upholding Minnesota’s parental notification requirement and in that time period abortions performed on minors has dropped an astounding 79%! See here for more on the impact of Minnesota’s parental laws.

Parental consent does not equal parental control – it is about responsibility and care.  A parental consent law makes it clear that the government supports young women as well as the lives they may carry, and is working to enhance their well-being now and across their lifespan.

A few weeks ago we received an incredibly generous offer that we are excited to share. Five key supporters are willing to donate $8,500 to the cause, and would love to see us grow our donor base by gaining 100 new monthly supporters by June 10th – that’s only SIX DAYS away, but we know we can do it!

Check out Mike’s video message below!

Sincerely,

The WNAL Team

PS – You can join our monthly donor program here.

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In a free and democratic society, organized rallies and protest are part of the political process. In a nation where every citizen has a voice in electing their representative, where every citizen can contribute to the public policy debate, and where every citizen can independently lobby for change, protests play a legitimate role. Protests are not inherently anarchist or anti-government. When done legally, in a peaceful and organized fashion, protests are a means of engaging with the elected leadership on an issue, demonstrating to them that many citizens care deeply about this particular issue and that they expect change.

André goes on to write,

Also, a distinction could be made between protesting for others, over protesting for our own individual interests. There is definitely a Christian obligation for the former over the latter. This is borne out in the command to love one’s neighbour as oneself, and to be our brother’s keeper. Turning the cheek applies to personal insult and persecution, and not to persecution of others. We need to stand up for our neighbours, including the pre-born ones.

And so this week thousands of Christians will be marching with many other concerned citizens in Ottawa and capital cities throughout the country. The 2015 March for Life, like all other years is a peaceful protest to the stark, and vulgar reality that our pre-born neighbours have no legal protection throughout the entire period of pre-natal development. This year there will also be specific focus on the recent legalization of euthanasia and assisted suicide as a result of the Supreme Court ruling a few months ago.

Concerning pre-born human rights Canada’s courts have consistently referred to abortion as medically necessary. But, no court – at any level – has excluded the possibility of governments (provincial or federal) from regulating abortion. In fact, in the most famous case dealing with abortion, R. v. Morgentaler [1988], the Supreme Court was nearly emphatic that while the abortion regulations at the time were found to be unconstitutional, Parliament had a duty to enact new laws that were both constitutional and protected the fetus at some point.

In several provinces there is a specific focus at 2015 March for Life events to build support for parental consent or notification laws. It is unfortunate that many choice-focused individuals and organizations take a fundamentally flawed approach to the issue of parental consent for abortion. They frame the problem as, “Choice and bodily autonomy at all costs and anyone who opposes that opposes women’s rights.” Unfortunately, this “at all costs” approach harms the very women it sets out to protect, especially when it is applied to adolescents making decisions on whether to continue a pregnancy.

Nationally there is a continuing push for laws which address gendercide or sex-selective abortion as well as the more recent building of support for a pre-born victims of crime law. These both will receive attention at the National March for Life in Ottawa.

Canada has a long ways to go in regards to implementing abortion regulations which are already in place in all other democratic nations. The virtue of perseverance is something we pray for daily as we work to advance pre-born human rights both federally and provincially.

The March for Life is an opportunity to respond to the call of Proverbs 24:

“Rescue those being led away to death; hold back those staggering toward the slaughter. If you say, “But we knew nothing about this,” does not he who weighs the heart perceive it? Does not he who guards your life know it? Will he not repay each person according to what he has done?”

We know what abortion is and what it does. For those Christians who are hesitant to join in peaceful protest – or even militantly opposed – it must be said that God is not simply suggesting that we get involved, he is ordering us to do something! If not, we risk serious consequences. Let your March for Life experience be a springboard to year-round activism as, in God’s strength, we do everything possible to protect all those created in His image.

Even in spite of a crowd funding effort that reportedly raised more than $100,000 the clinic will close its doors for the last time at the end of the month.

The province of New Brunswick has become a battleground in recent months with pro-choice advocates demanding the government remove Regulation 84-20 which stipulates that a pre-born child can only be killed with public money if the act is carried out in a hospital and has been approved by two doctors. Meanwhile, pro-life activists have been encouraging Premier Alward and his government not to capitulate to those demands. Provincial governments have the constitutional responsibility to regulate health care, which the courts say includes the regulation of abortion.

It remains to be seen if the clinic’s closure will lower the number of lives ended in New Brunswick, but as the forceps and suction machines are used for the last time today, we celebrate a small achievement.

The above statement was said by a father in Winnipeg (read article here). Do you think he was talking about abortion? No, he was talking about a belly button piercing. This Winnipeg couple is angry that their 16 year old daughter was able to obtain a piercing without their consent and, we believe, rightly so.

The teenager’s father goes on to say “We’re not mad at our daughter. We trust and believe this was a 16-year-old who made a decision. We wanted to be there to help make that decision.”

That is what parenting is about, it’s about helping our children make decisions because they have been entrusted to our care and as parents or legal guardians, we have the responsibility to help them make decisions – whether about a body piercing, or a life-altering decision such as an abortion procedure.

We believe that a parent is in the best position to support their child when facing an unplanned pregnancy and if children are having abortions and being counseled on how keep it a secret from their parents, how do we expect parents to carry out their responsibilities to love, nurture and protect their children?

For more information about our Parental Consent campaign, currently running in Saskatchewan, please visit sk.parentalconsent.ca

The willingness of large organizations to partner together in our efforts to embrace opportunities to save some as we continue working to save all is what is so desperately needed in the pro-life movement.

We are very thankful for what Saskatchewan Pro-Life Association has contributed to this campaign, and what they will continue to put into it.

If you are interested in viewing photos of the launch yesterday they can be seen here.

A video of Director Mike Schouten’s remarks can be found here.

Be sure to let all your Saskatchewan contacts know about this campaign by using Facebook and Twitter or simply sending them links to sk.parentalconsent.ca by email.