Category: News

By Posted on Posted in Event, Litigation, News

On January 25, our Chapter Treasurer, Hal Harris, presented an update on the status of the suit by AU and the Women’s Law Center against the state of Missouri to the Phelps County Democratic Club.  (AU is a non-partisan educational organization, but we present factual information to the public regardless of political affiliation.) We are suing on the ground that Missouri’s comprehensive and cruel abortion ban infringes on freedom of religion. The Missouri defendants (including the Governor, the Attorney General, and the health-related officers of the State) have tried to claim that the plaintiffs do not have standing and that judge should issue a summary judgement against us.  The claim that we did not have standing was dismissed within two weeks, but the second motion is under consideration.  A ruling was expected “in January”, but has not so far been issued. Any day now …

By Posted on Posted in Event, Litigation, News

On Thursday, November 9, Brian Silva, Vice President of Outreach and Engagement for AU, described the current status of our lawsuit to strike down Missouri’s abortion ban as a clear violation of the Missouri state constitution.  The talk wasco-sponsored by us, Women’s Voices for Social Justice and the National Council of Jewish Women in St. Louis.  It was an excellent illustrated lecture, with many good questions afterward.  A crowd of about 100 attended. The next step is a hearing on November 16 at 11:00 in the Carnahan Municipal Courthouse in St. Louis, where the AG will attempt for the second time to have the suit thrown out. The same judge will be hearing the same arguments again, so we have every expectation of prevailing as we did last summer, but this is Missouri, so you never know.

By Posted on Posted in Legislation, Litigation, News

A persuasive op-ed appeared in the St. Louis Post-Dispatch on July 24, 2023. Its authors are L. Lewis Wall and Douglas Brown, Emeritus Professors in the Washington University School of Medicine. They describe the ways in which the “personhood” claim relative to abortion riights violates the religious liberties of citizens. All of this is relevant to our suit against the state of Missouri. Read (or listen to) the whole essay here.

 

By Posted on Posted in Legislation, News

The St. Louis Post-Dispatch republished on June 5, 2023, an editorial from the Kansas City Star that urged Governor Mike Parson not to sign a bill (SB 34) passed in the most recent legislative session. It would allow public schools to offer elective courses on the Bible.  We have testified against this bill every time it has been proposed over the last few years, and managed to kill it until 2023.  We don’t trust the Christian right nor the legislature to define appropriate boundaries for these courses, which will often be taught in public schools in which a vocal if diminishing Christian majority often dominates. Other religious texts are not included

By Posted on Posted in News, Uncategorized

Our long-time Board member, Rev. Rudy Pulido had his Letter to the Editor published in the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, June 1, 2023:

In a feRudy Pulidow weeks, our nation will celebrate its birthday. America’s foundation is based on the Constitution, which our forefathers refused to accept without the inclusion of the 10 amendments called the Bill of Rights. The first of these rights reads, “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion or prohibit the free exercise thereof”. In a letter written by Thomas Jefferson to a church group, Jefferson saw the phrase as a wall that separates church and state.

The wall is a unique contribution to the welfare of our country.  Without it, people of faith, even those within the Christian faith, could become subject to a particular expression of faith.  Because of deep convictions people of faith have about their particular expression, we can easily imagine the chaos that would result from any law written by and in favor of a specific religious group.

We are grateful our nation’s forefathers knew the history of the sufferings of individuals where the separation of church and state was nonexistent and also knew their Bible. Maybe it’s time for some of our legislators and members of the judiciary to pick up a history book and a Bible and read both.

Rev. Rudy Pulido    St. Louis

By Posted on Posted in Event, Litigation, News

The St. Louis Chapter held its Annual Meeting virtually on April 27, 2023.  We were updated by our guest speakers. Michelle Henry (left), is the lead AU attorney in the lawsuits in Missouri and Kentucky challenging abortion bans on the basis that they violate church-state provisions in the state constitutions. Alex Luchenitser (right), Interim AU Legal Director, reported the status of other AU suits and amicus briefs.

We hope you were able to join us on the 27th!   If you are on our mailing list, you should have already received a message about this, which was to include the Zoom link. Unfortunately, there was a glitch in that process, and we are not able to provide it.

By Posted on Posted in Event, News

On Thursday, January 19, AU and the National Women’s Law Center sued the state of Missouri for infringing religious freedom by banning abortions. St. Louis Chapter Board members joined AU President and CEO Rachel Laser and thirteen clergy from six different religious denominations in filing “Rev Blackmon v State of Missouri” in the Circuit Court for the City of St. Louis, asking that the court enjoin enforcement of Missouri’s comprehensive ban on abortions. If you are a member of AU, you should have already received an email about this historic action. More information about the basis of the suit and what you can do are available on the AU Website. The 83 page text of the suit can be found here. It requests a permanent injunction against enforcement of the abortion ban, and declaration that the law violates the constitution of Missouri.