Pro-Life Global (PLG), the international organization that prides itself on empowering Christian leaders to fight for life, is calling on Congress to immediately repeal the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances (FACE) Act due to the Biden adminstration’s alleged weaponization of the law.
The organization’s call to action came in a press release Tuesday, and it blasted the FACE Act for protecting abortion access.
PLG also argued that the act disproportionately targets pro-life activists, citing 126 charges against them compared to only three for pro-abortion activists.
Some lawmakers are already echoing this outcry, blasting Biden’s DOJ for its handling of pro-life activists in public statements.
One example, not specifically cited by PLG’s statement release, includes pro-life activist Lauren Handy who was sentenced Tuesday to nearly 5 years in prison for an abortion clinic blockage.
The DOJ requested that the judge sentence Handy to 6.5 years, while her attorneys requested only one year.
Handy received her sentence after a jury convicted her last year of two charges under the FACE Act.
Resist the Mainstream reported that the story sparked a firestorm on social media, with X users calling out the blatant double standard on display under Biden’s DOJ with the treatment of pro-life activists compared to pro-abortionists.
PLG echoed a similar frustration with the DOJ in its own statement.
“This law, purportedly designed to safeguard abortion access and religious freedom, is fundamentally discriminatory, cruel, and an affront to justice,” the statement read.
“The Act imposes severe penalties, including 11 years in prison, and fines of up to $250k, on those who engage in peaceful counseling,” it continued.
PLG President Bethany Janzen said, “The FACE Act has been disproportionately and unjustly weaponized to target pro-life advocates.”
She continued, “Meanwhile, the Department of Justice has failed to address the increasing violence and intimidation against pregnancy centers and churches, something the law was originally intended to do.”
Assailants have targeted over 400 churches since the leaked Dobbs decision in May of 2020, PLG argued, noting that despite these vicious attacks, authorities have not prosecuted a single case under the FACE Act.
“This blatant double standard is unacceptable,” Janzen said. “The FACE Act is not only being misapplied, it is also being used to stifle the vital work of those seeking to save lives.”
PLG called for the repeal of the FACE Act in closing, urging lawmakers to halt the DOJ’s weaponization against the American people.
It added that true justice is safeguarding the rights of all, including the preborn and their advocates.
The Daily Signal reported Tuesday that Utah Senator Mike Lee ripped President Biden’s DOJ for “unjustly” persecuting pro-life activists, exposing the “horrors of abortion.”
“The Biden administration is using the FACE Act to give pro-life activists and senior citizens lengthy prison terms for non-violent offenses and protests—all while turning a blind eye to the violence, arson, and riots conducted on behalf of ‘approved’ leftist causes,” Lee told the outlet.
“Unequal enforcement of the law is a violation of the law, and men and women who try to expose the horrors of abortion are being unjustly persecuted for their motivations,” he added.
Texas Representative Chip Roy also called for a repeal of the FACE Act following the sentencing of Handy.
“Today’s outrageous 57-month sentence for a progressive pro-life activist is a stark reminder: Biden’s DOJ is fully weaponized against pro-life American citizens, and they are using the FACE Act to do it,” he said.
“House Republicans should defund the DOJ weaponization, repeal the FACE Act, and stand up for the freedoms that we campaign on,” he continued.
