New York City may place more restrictions on crisis-pregnancy centers

October 13, 2010

New York’s City Council is weighing new regulations that would require crisis-pregnancy centers to advertise their pro-life stand, in response to abortionists’ complaints that the centers give misleading information to women.

Abortion advocates complain that crisis-pregnancy centers “deceive women” by offering help to pregnant women, but refusing to provide abortion referrals, and by deliberating locating their offices near abortion clinics.

"I'm outraged at the attacks on free speech rights launched here today," said Chris Slattery, the director of the EMC Frontline Pregnancy Centers. He argued that the EMC centers accurately advertise “abortion alternatives.” Slattery pointed out that whereas his centers will readily admit their stand against abortion, Planned Parenthood clinics never confess their bias in favor of abortion and against adoption. A spectacularly slanted New York Times story on the dispute claimed that Planned Parenthood has “seen some of its chapters recently enhance their own adoption counseling.” In fact, Planned Parenthood’s own statistics show that the group’s centers nationwide arrange about 160 times as many abortions as adoption, and that number is rising.

 

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Further information:

• Clinic ads spark controversy, legislation (ABC)
• The True Mission of ‘Crisis Pregnancy Centers’ (New York Times)
• a picture worth 1,000 abortions (Catholic Culture, "On the News," 9/10)