Washington D.C., Jun 26, 2018 / 11:23 am
Pro-life groups applauded the U.S. Supreme Court's 5-4 decision on Tuesday in favor of the free speech rights of crisis pregnancy centers in California.
"No one should be forced by the government to express a message that violates their convictions," said Michael Farris, president and CEO of Alliance Defending Freedom, which argued before the Supreme Court on behalf of NIFLA, a non-profit that provides legal counsel to pro-life pregnancy centers around the country.
"The government used its power to force pro-life pregnancy centers to provide free advertising for abortion. The Supreme Court said that the government can't do that," Farris said in a statement.
The June 26 ruling in National Institute of Family and Life Advocates (NIFLA) v. Becerra involved California's "Reproductive FACT Act," which requires pro-life pregnancy centers to display a notice informing patients about California programs that, among other things, can provide a free or low-cost abortion for eligible women, and phone numbers of places to obtain them.