NEWS PROVIDED BY
Carmel Communications
July 29, 2021
 
TYLER, Texas, July 29, 2021 /Christian Newswire/ -- The Diocese of Tyler, Texas, led by Bishop Joseph E. Strickland, has joined a brief submitted to the U.S. Supreme Court by Amici Curiae ("friends of the court"), urging the justices to overturn the landmark Supreme Court decision Roe v. Wade.

The brief was filed in the case of Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization case, which deals with the constitutionality of a 2018 Mississippi state law that banned abortion operations after the first 15 weeks of pregnancy. The justices are expected to hear the case this fall and could rule on it in the spring of 2022. Activists on both sides of the abortion issue, as well as pundits, believe the court's decision could lead to the overturning of Roe v. Wade.

"I'm honored to join this amicus brief as Bishop of Tyler because preborn black lives matter and every preborn child of any race matters," Strickland said. "It is absolutely critical that we embrace the values of God for the sake of humanity. We are all precious in His sight and He has created us in a marvelous variety. Every preborn person is a unique expression of life and a statement that God is still our loving creator. When we abort a child we abort our future."

The brief argues that abortion grew out of, and remains rooted in, eugenics, with a focus on minority populations, citing the eugenics movement's racist roots and the Supreme Court case Buck v. Bell, which legitimized the movement.

"The Buck decision had a profound impact on the eugenics movement," the brief states. "Within five years, 28 states had adopted compulsory sterilization laws; and between 1907 and 1983, more than 60,000 people were involuntarily sterilized. The Buck decision is also a dark stain on this Court, which has resulted in the forced sterilization of helpless human beings made in the image and likeness of God."

The brief argues further that the eugenics movement continues today in the abortion industry, and, consistent with the constitutional right to life and equal protection guarantees, "states have a compelling interest in preventing eugenic abortions, which thus nullifies any absolute constitutional right to an abortion."

Read the brief in its entirety here.

The brief was filed collectively by the Diocese of Tyler, Dr. Alveda C. King, Deacon Keith Fournier, the National Hispanic Christian Leadership Conference, the Frederick Douglass Foundation, and the Common Good Foundation.

The Diocese of Tyler (legally the Roman Catholic Bishop of Tyler) includes 33 counties and 23,443 square miles of Northeast Texas. Led by Bishop Joseph Edward Strickland, the diocese ministers to 130,000 Catholics in its 52 parishes and 14 missions. Consistent with Catholic teaching, the diocese supports laws that recognize the sanctity of human life, including unborn children's fundamental right to life.

Dr. Alveda C. King, president of Stand for Life, is a pro-life advocate, former Georgia state representative and the niece of Martin Luther King, Jr. Following in her uncle's footsteps, Dr. King is a nationally recognized civil rights leader and embraces the fight against abortion — including its impact on the African American community — as a continuation of her uncle's work. Through her civil rights work for the unborn, Dr. King seeks to reach Black Americans and the general population with the truth about the harmful impact of abortion and its byproducts. Dr. King's mission was featured in the 2009 pro-life documentary, "Maafa 21: Black Genocide in 21st Century America."

Deacon Keith A. Fournier, J.D., M.T.S., M. Phil., is General Legal Counsel and Director of Deacon Formation for the Catholic Diocese of Tyler, Texas. Deacon Fournier advocates for human rights and the recognition of the dignity of human life from conception to natural death. He supports laws that recognize unborn children's fundamental right to life. The Common Good Foundation is a nonprofit educational and ministry organization dedicated to advancing authentic social justice and culture through four pillars of participation: the dignity of human life, the importance of marriage and family, religious freedom, and social solidarity through subsidiarity.

The National Hispanic Christian Leadership Conference (NHCLC) is America's largest Hispanic Christian evangelical organization. Founded in 1995, NHCLC serves as a representative voice for the more than 100 million Hispanic Evangelicals assembled in over 40,000 U.S. churches and hundreds of thousands of additional congregations spread worldwide throughout the Spanish-speaking diaspora. Seeking to reconcile evangelist Billy Graham's message of salvation with Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.'s march of prophetic activism, the NHCLC emphasizes seven directives, one of which is focused on the sanctity of human life. Under that directive, NHCLC members pledge to bring assistance, comfort and care to pregnant women in need and those who have undergone an abortion. NHCLC members are deeply concerned about the abortion industry's eugenic targeting of minority women, including Hispanic women, for abortions.

The Frederick Douglass Foundation is a national grassroots education and public policy organization with local chapters across the United States. The Foundation supports strengthening the Black Family, criminal justice reform and economic opportunity. Led by Dean Nelson, the Foundation is committed to developing innovative and new approaches to today's problems in partnership with elected officials, scholars, ministers, professionals and community advocates. Reflecting its namesake's focus on promoting the long-term interests of African Americans and the equality of all persons, the Frederick Douglass Foundation is pro-life and speaks out against the damage that the abortion epidemic has wreaked on the African American community.

The Common Good Foundation is a nonprofit educational and ministry organization dedicated to advancing authentic social justice and culture through four pillars of participation: the dignity of human life, the importance of marriage and family, religious freedom and social solidarity through subsidiarity.

For more information, or to schedule an interview with Bishop Joseph E. Strickland, please contact Kevin Wandra of Carmel Communications at kwandra@carmelcommunications.com or 404-788-1276.

SOURCE Carmel Communications

CONTACT: Kevin Wandra, 404-788-1276, KWandra@CarmelCommunications.com