AMAC Exclusive - By Andrew Abbott
Despite being on the precipice of perhaps its most monumental legal victory ever, the pro-life movement in the United States is under threat like never before. As the Supreme Court is set to release its decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization that will in effect overturn Roe v. Wade, pro-abortion advocates have ramped up their rhetorical and physical attacks on both pro-life centers and Supreme Court Justices, marking a dangerous new precedent in the abortion debate. At the same time, President Joe Biden and elected Democrats have done nothing to stop or even discourage the violence.
Since the draft Dobbs decision was leaked in early May, the conservative Supreme Court Justices who signed on to the decision and pro-life centers have been targeted with a relentless barrage of attacks from radical pro-abortion activists, who have made clear that they don’t intend to let Roe die without a fight. According to a report released by the pro-life organization Susan B Anthony List, there have been 49 incidents of “violence, vandalism, and harassment committed by pro-abortion activists since the May 2 leak. At least 47 of those incidents included targeting pro-life individuals, events, organizations, pregnancy centers, and churches.”
Left-wing activists have also targeted and protested outside the houses of Supreme Court Justices, in many cases threatening their families as well. Most alarmingly, a progressive activist was arrested for the attempted assassination of Justice Brett Kavanaugh – a crime that received shockingly little coverage from the mainstream media.
Notably, while these protesters are within their right to assemble in public areas and even at the residences of public officials, doing so at a judicial residence is entirely different. According to a statute enacted in 1950, it is illegal, no matter how peacefully, to protest “with the intent of influencing any judge…in or near a building or residence occupied or used by such judge, juror, witness, or court officer.” Yet Democratic leadership, from Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi to President Joe Biden, have either been silent or actively encouraged the protests. When pressed on the safety and efficacy of the protests, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said, “There are protests three, four times a week outside my house…The American way to peacefully protest is okay.” The White House, meanwhile, has offered no explicit condemnation of either the attacks on pro-life centers or Supreme Court Justices, appearing to tacitly endorse the tactics.
Making matters worse, Democratic leadership in Congress has continued to drag their feet for over a month on legislation providing enhanced security for Justices. The Senate, by unanimous consent, approved funding for increased security within days of the leak of the Dobbs decision. Yet the House of Representatives, at the direction of Speaker Pelosi, intentionally waited over a month to vote on the measure. She claimed the delay was aimed at expanding protection to include judicial “clerks” – an excuse critics say should not have held up passage of the bill for so long.
After intense backlash, the House passed the bill last week. Yet 27 Democrats in the House still voted against the bipartisan bill. Most notably, several members of the so-called “squad,” including Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, voted no, citing a lack of protections for “everyday people.”
Even with the bill passed, threats of violence over the Supreme Court decision are only continuing to escalate. For example, a radical pro-abortion group called “Jane’s Revenge” has distributed pamphlets in multiple major cities, calling for a “day of rage” when the final Dobbs decision comes down. According to The Intercept, Jane’s Revenge – which many conservative commentators have not without reason labeled a domestic terrorist group – has touted its success in firebombing “anti-abortion ‘crisis pregnancy centers’ in Madison, Wisconsin, Des Moines, Iowa, and other locations from Washington state to Washington, D.C.”
Multiple Republican legislators and several prominent publications, including the Wall Street Journal, have called upon Attorney General Merrick Garland and the Department of Justice to investigate the organization. Several publications and legislators have also asked why the Department was so swift in labeling parents speaking out at school board meetings as “domestic terrorists,” but has yet to issue a similar designation for a fringe abortion group nakedly celebrating its crimes and calling for further violence. As of publication, President Biden has yet to denounce Jane’s Revenge or call for any sort of law enforcement response to their crimes.
The end of Roe will mean that tens of thousands of unborn babies will have greater protections in the womb. But unless Biden and Congressional Democrats reverse course, those defending the right to life for the unborn may be in greater danger than ever.
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