A Hollow Win for Hartford Abortionists

We didn’t win the vote. But we won the issue for today.

The Hartford City Council voted 7-2 last night to pass the anti-pregnancy center ordinance requiring such centers to post signs discouraging abortion-minded women from accepting pro-life help and restricting advertising by the centers.

But, in a last-minute change, the Hartford City Council altered the ordinance so that it goes into effect next July, instead of the original language which had it going into effect 30 days from its passage.

That means there is no sign this morning at the Hartford Women’s Center of St. Gerard’s dissuading women with crisis pregnancies from seeking their help. And there won’t be a sign 30 days from now either.

In fact, there may never be such a sign there, if the U.S. Supreme Court rules in favor of California’s pro-life centers on a similar law next June.

This happened thanks to people like you who spoke up, showed up, and emailed the Hartford City Council.

But it is no thanks to the majority of the Hartford City Council, who relented slightly only because pro-lifers showed up at their meeting by the hundreds and sent them over a thousand e-mails. And even then, the Hartford City Council only slightly backed down in a way that actually demonstrated the hypocrisy of their own position.

For if this ordinance is not going into effect until July, why did the Council rush its passage without even a meeting by the committee that was suposed to review it first? Or, if the need for this ordinance was so urgent, why delay its going into effect until July?

The only possible reason for the delay are the threats of a lawsuit put forward by FIC, our members, and the lawyers for St. Gerard’s Hartford Women’s Center who would actually be doing the suing. 

The result is that there will be no sign hanging at St. Gerard’s one month from this morning and there may never be a sign. This is a victory for Hartford women.

And it may yet prove to have been a waste of time for the pro-abortion lobby NARAL and the pro-abortion college students with the misspelled signs. For now, they get nothing except their hollow victory. Nothing will change for women seeking help at the real care center during the next six months except that they will learn of alternatives for their child besides death.

St. Gerard’s gets at least another 6 months of freely talking to, caring for, and providing real care to women and their families. July is very far away and a long time for NARAL to wait for their picky little sign. Plus, we may win again before then and the ordinance may never go into effect.

So until July–and perhaps beyond–FIC, the pro-life movement, the women of Hartford and their unborn children won.

Even NARAL seems to understand this. They are cautious in their statement, saying only that the ordinance has “moved forward.” FIC moved forward too, by defending the center.

In fact, this whole controversy over the ordinance has brought greater public attention to the true women’s care center in Hartford for women in need of it who did not otherwise know about it. Indeed, this has been a great opportunity to spread the word about other pregnancy care centers in general, which outnumber abortion clinics in Connecticut.

Nevertheless, there is still much work to be done. We must be vigilant and proactive pending the possible lawsuit from the attorneys that FIC provided to St. Gerard’s Hartford Women’s Center and for further action in the public square to stand athwart the unholy rage of Connecticut’s pro-abortion lobby.

We thank the two members of the Hartford City Council, TJ Clarke and Glendowlyn Thames, who did not vote for the ordinance. We thank you, our members, for all your incredible hard work on this, your willingness to drive long distances, give up your time, and be available on such short notice.