Human Life International

HLI believes that abortion is homicide, should be illegal and enables sexual abuse and child abuse.

HLI stated that abortion is homicide and “a great moral and social evil.”

“On abortion, HLI states: ‘Human life begins at the instant of conception. The willful taking of innocent human life by any means constitutes homicide and is a great moral and social evil.’” [Catholics For Choice Report Page 17 Accessed 4/02/19]

HLI opposes abortion in all instances and believes that in cases where a pregnancy threatens a woman’s life, the doctor should still avoid abortion.

“Regarding abortion in cases of incest, rape or the endangering of a woman’s life, HLI clearly states that ‘there can never be any justification … even in so-called ‘hard cases’ (rape or incest). In the rare instance where the life of the mother is threatened, a doctor must try to save the life of both mother and child.’” [Catholics For Choice Report Page 17 Accessed 4/02/19]

HLI claimed that abortion in the case of incest enables further incestuous abuse.  

“Additionally, abortion is the ideal cover-up for incest: there have been many instances of abusers taking underage victims to abortion clinics, almost all of whom have a “no questions asked” policy, leaving the abuser free to commit his crimes again and again. Planned Parenthood’s willingness to ignore law and justice in order to forward abortion by showing ostensibly underage and pregnant girls how to circumvent the law is documented at www.liveaction.org.” [HLI.org Accessed 4/04/19]

HLI believes abortion enables “widespread child abuse.”

HLI is also adamant that ‘infanticide is a growing threat once abortion is legalized.’ This specious logic stems, again, from HLI’s definition of when life begins and, thus, the supposed level of moral depravity that can be extrapolated from any abortion performed under any circumstance. ‘Since it is legal in the USA to kill a baby up to the time it is born,’ an HLI document covering position statements conjectures, ‘what then can be the objection to killing children after birth? The cheapening of human life brought about through legalized abortion leads to infanticide and, the group states ‘widespread child abuse’.” [Catholics For Choice Report Page 18 Accessed 4/02/19]

HLI essentially believes abortion is homicide.

HLI claimed abortions leads to “newborns being dumped in trash cans and public restrooms by mothers.”  

“Most people have noticed the increase in the reports of newborns being dumped in trash cans and public restrooms by their mothers.  This kind of murder is a direct result of thinking that only ‘wanted’ children should live, and this mentality begins with the so‑called ‘freedom of choice.’” [HLI.org Accessed 4/04/19]

HLI is “adamant” that “infanticide is a growing threat once abortion is legalized.”

HLI is also adamant that ‘infanticide is a growing threat once abortion is legalized.’ This specious logic stems, again, from HLI’s definition of when life begins and, thus, the supposed level of moral depravity that can be extrapolated from any abortion performed under any circumstance. ‘Since it is legal in the USA to kill a baby up to the time it is born,’ an HLI document covering position statements conjectures, ‘what then can be the objection to killing children after birth? The cheapening of human life brought about through legalized abortion leads to infanticide and, the group states ‘widespread child abuse’.” [Catholics For Choice Report Page 18 Accessed 4/02/19]

HLI opposes abortion even in cases of nonviable pregnancies.

HLI claimed that abortions for nonviable pregnancies is eugenics.  

“Even if a baby will die shortly after she is born, what is a more civilized response — to hold and love her in the short time she has on this earth, or cut her apart with a vacuum curettage machine? Eugenics cannot justify killing imperfect people: the abortion of preborn children who may be disabled is nothing more than eugenics, discrimination of the basest kind. Those who abort a preborn child with genetic abnormalities are saying by their actions that a baby with disabilities has less of a right to live than a baby without such disabilities.” [HLI.org Accessed 4/04/19]

HLI wrote that abortion “could be considered worse” than the Holocaust, and its founder Paul Marx wrote about Jewish abortion advocates, “why are the victims of one Holocaust perpetrating another?”

HLI claimed there are “deep” similarities between the Holocaust and abortion.  

“The similarities between the Nazi and abortion Holocausts go far deeper than a huge body count. There are many points of similarity between the Holocausts: Deceptive language, Ideology formed by doctors, Speed of the murders, Philosophical justification” [HLI.org accessed 4/02/19]

HLI claimed that abortion “could be considered worse than the Nazi Holocaust.”

“The killing still takes place on a massive scale. But instead of the murders being concentrated in just a few places, it is scattered all over the country. In fact, the American Holocaust could be considered worse than the Nazi Holocaust not only in the sheer numbers of deaths, but due to the fact that tens of millions of parents have had their consciences deadened to the point that most of them abort their children for reasons of convenience.” [HLI.org Accessed 4/04/19]

HLI Founder Paul Marx wrote “it is a strange thing how many leaders of the abortion movement are Jewish… why are the victims of one Holocaust perpetrating another?”

“Officials from ADL cited Father Paul Marx, founder of Human Life International, as an example. Marx wrote in 1977: ‘…it is a strange thing how many leaders of the abortion movement are Jewish…Today, certain members of this people whose ancient religion and culture managed to survive Auschwitz and Buchenwald are presiding over the greatest Holocaust in the history of the world. American Jews have been leaders in establishing and defending the efficient destruction of more than 30 million preborn children in this country…Why are the victims of one Holocaust perpetrating another?’” [Jewish News Of Northern California 11/6/1998]

HLI and its founder said birth control leads to abortion.

HLI Founder Paul Marx said birth control is the “chief source of baby-killing.” [The Wanderer 3/26/1987]

HLI claimed that Planned Parenthood distributes birth control to “sell abortions.”

“According to former abortion mill owner Carol Everett, contraception failure is part of Planned Parenthood’s strategy to sell abortions. Everett has stated in several interviews that Planned Parenthood sells abortions to young girls by first giving them contraceptives that will eventually fail, such as birth control pills that need to be taken at the same time every day.” [HLI.org 6/26/16]

HLI Director of Worldwide Training Brian Clowes wrote that the birth control pill has caused “hundreds of thousands” of abortions.

“We have seen that the birth control pill is so ineffective that it fails hundreds of thousands of times annually in the United States, leading to hundreds of thousands of surgical abortions.  We have also covered some of the more serious physical side effects inflicted upon women by the Pill, including more than 30,000 deaths and tens of thousands seriously injured since its introduction.” [HLI.org Accessed 4/04/19]

HLI claims that hormonal and emergency birth control like Plan B are the same thing as abortion.

HLI believes hormonal birth control like the pill is the same thing as abortion.

“Hormonal methods of family planning are referred to in almost all instances as ‘abortifacients.’ Former HLI president Tom Euteneuer condemned them by arguing that ‘if we believe life begins at the moment of conception, we have to defend it against [this] chemical attack.’” [Right Wing Watch 9/26/2006]

HLI Director of Worldwide Training Brian Clowes claimed “all forms of emergency contraception are abortifacient in nature.” [HLI.org 2/02/15]

Clowes also claimed birth control pills have caused “more than 30,000 deaths” of women who use them.

“We have seen that the birth control pill is so ineffective that it fails hundreds of thousands of times annually in the United States, leading to hundreds of thousands of surgical abortions.  We have also covered some of the more serious physical side effects inflicted upon women by the Pill, including more than 30,000 deaths and tens of thousands seriously injured since its introduction.” [HLI.org Accessed 4/04/19]

HLI has worked to convince the world that birth control is dangerous.

HLI claims to have fought against the “lie” of “safe contraception” since its founding.

“Human Life International, on the other hand, has been fighting the lie of ‘safe contraception’ since our founding in 1981. When many in the wake of Roe v. Wade were claiming that birth control would decrease abortions, Father Paul Marx, HLI’s founder, was teaching (in agreement with Planned Parenthood’s Malcolm Potts) that increased demand for abortion is the result of the widespread use of contraception.” [HLI.org 6/26/16]

HLI’s website contains a page titled “31+ negative side effects of the pill.” [HLI.org Accessed 4/04/19]

HLI believes condoms lead to reckless behavior and are unsafe, causing HIV and other STIs/STDs.

“The worst thing we can do is accept the “common wisdom” associated with condom use.  As we have seen, using condoms lowers risk in individual cases, but national reliance on them as a solution is disastrous due to the behavior of people who act recklessly in the belief that they are ‘safe.’  Behavior change is the answer.  And when people criticize the Catholic solution of abstinence before marriage and fidelity during, we should ask them how many people would be infected with HIV and other sexually transmitted diseases if everyone followed this formula.” [HLI.org Accessed 4/04/19]

HLI and its leaders blame birth control for everything from AIDS to “homosexuality” to divorce.

HLI founder Paul Marx said contraception “is a pervasive, metastasizing moral cancer…[that is] intrinsically evil” and causes “venereal disease” and AIDS.

“As the founder of HLI and creator of its ideology, Marx asserted that contraception ‘is a pervasive, metastasizing moral cancer that destroys the church, the family, the youth, and the nation … it engenders runaway VD (think of AIDS!); it has no redeeming features whatsoever, being intrinsically evil or dishonest.’” [Catholics For Choice Report Page 17 Accessed 4/02/19]

Marx also said birth control leads to abortion, euthanasia, homosexuality rearing “its ugly head,” teen pregnancies and sterilization.

“Marx…wrote: ‘In every nation, bar none, contraception has led to abortion—and from abortion to infanticide, the prelude to full-blown euthanasia! Once the purposes of sex are torn loose from procreation and the family, the homosexual thrust rears its ugly head, teen pregnancies and abortions skyrocket, VD burgeons out of control, the divorce rate escalates, the birthrate falls, while the barnyard approach to birth control called sterilization becomes commonplace. Soon we see the swift disintegration of the family.’ [Catholics For Choice Report Page 17-18 Accessed 4/02/19]

HLI claimed that birth control leads to “homosexuality” and gender ideology. 

“The ideology of ‘gender’ and homosexuality are, then, the logical result of the deliberate separation of the procreation of sexual relations and the consequent degradation of the institution of marriage in the collective consciousness. All this has been the bitter fruit of contraception.” [HLI.org Accessed 4/04/19]

HLI’s Director of Worldwide Training, Brian Clowes: birth control has led to an increase in divorce rates and premarital sex.

“As a result, nearly half of all couples in the United States now live together before marriage.[xxiii]  This in turn causes great problems because more than 75% of all couples who lived together before marriage eventually divorce.[xxiv]  The Pill has also contributed greatly to our country’s exploding divorce rate, which was about 18% in 1965 and now stands at about 50 percent.[xxv] Predictably, the innocent children of divorced couples are always those who suffer the most.” [HLI.org Accessed 4/04/19]

HLI wrote that birth control has “done incalculable damage to marriage and the correct vision of the human sexuality.”

“The most significant part of Sanger’s activism in favor of contraception was the birth of the contraceptive pill, to which she contributed millions of dollars. The appearance of this drug prompted a sexual revolution and the idea that procreation can be separated at will from sexual relations. That aberrant concept has done incalculable damage to marriage and the correct vision of the human sexuality.” [HLI.org Accessed 4/04/19]

HLI leaders have argued that Catholic hospitals should not provide emergency birth control to women — including survivors of sexual assault.

HLI Director of Worldwide Training Brian Clowes argued that Catholic hospitals should not provide emergency contraception.  

“Should EC be Administered to Rape Victims in Catholic Hospitals?…Therefore, we should treat the abortifacient Plan B “morning-after pill” and so-called “emergency contraception” in the same manner as we would handle Depo-Provera, the birth control pill (OC), Norplant and the intrauterine device (IUD).  All of these work a certain percentage of the time to end the life of the early developing human being and are therefore inadmissible.” [HLI.org 2/02/15]

• Clowes wrote that survivors of sexual assault should not have access to emergency birth control.

“Here we have considered the use of a contraceptive following the unjust act of rape. We must, however, also reaffirm the Church’s unchanged and unchangeable doctrine on both abortion and the contraception of the marital act – both remain morally illicit without exception…We hope that the urgency of revisiting the approval of Plan B for treatment of women who have been raped will be recognized. These women deserve the absolute best life-affirming care possible, and this care should not include drugs that may compound the violence already suffered.” [HLI.org Accessed 4/2013]

HLI opposes sex education, believing it leads to abortion, “venereal disease” and divorce.

“As may be surmised by HLI’s views on abortion and contraception, the group’s views on sexuality education are solidly negative. Paul Marx was an early opponent, writing in an edition of HLI Special Report: ‘Purely biological, value-free sex education only increases the problems it is supposed to solve. In every country, humanistic, ‘organ recital’ sex education has been followed by ever-more sexual irresponsibility among teens, ever-more teen pregnancies, ever-more illegitimate births, evermore abortions, ever-more VD, evermore ‘living together’ and ever-more ruined future marriages….’ ‘No. No to sex education,’ stated former president Richard Welch. ‘Human Life International does not endorse any formal, explicit sex education as a separate entity of the curriculum.’” [Catholics For Choice Report Page 18 Accessed 4/02/19]

HLI President Shenan Boquet wrote that sex education promotes abortion and “homosexuality.”  

“Globally, families are confronted with state educational systems determined to impose their curricula of sex education and gender ideology while also endorsing homosexuality, sexual promiscuity, contraception, and abortion. Our children are being viciously attacked through these sex education programs, and parents have the right and moral responsibility to protect their children from such assaults. It is equally true that parents deserve absolutely clear support from the Church on this crucial point.” [HLI.org 10/29/15]

HLI leaders and official positions espouse hatred and lies about the LGBTQ community.

HLI declares that “homosexuality is deviant behavior that is socially, and personally, destructive.’” [Catholics For Choice Report Page 22 Accessed 4/02/19]

HLI Founder Paul Marx said that “as long as homosexuals travel, we can look forward to an unremitting stream of plagues stemming from these disgusting practices.”

Marx stated, ‘Collectively, homosexuals are acting as a gigantic biological vacuum cleaner scouring the earth for germs—and the collecting bag is the United States. AIDS is the first fruit of this ugly process, but we can be certain that it will not be the last. As long as homosexuals travel, we can look forward to an unremitting stream of plagues stemming from these disgusting practices. Homosexuality is the number-one public health problem of our times.’” [Catholics For Choice Report Page 22 Accessed 4/02/19]

Former HLI public relations director: “homosexuals reproduce sexually by molesting children. This creates a cycle of violence and disordered behavior that creates future generations of abusers and predators.” [Standard Newswire 10/04/2010]

HLI Director of Worldwide Training Brian Clowes falsely claimed there is a “well-documented and strong correlation between male homosexuality and child sexual abuse.”

“Opponents of the church know that there is a well-documented and strong correlation between male homosexuality and child sexual abuse, but claim that there is no evidence supporting this connection. And, of course, those who are currently attacking the church hope that they can undermine its moral authority to preach on the sinfulness of homosexual behavior and its opposition to ersatz homosexual ‘marriage.” [Renew America 4/24/10]

Former HLI President Thomas Euteneuer published an op-ed titled “Gay Marriage and the End of Christian Civilization.” [LifeSite 8/13/10]

HLI criticized President Obama for defending marriage equality, promoting trans-inclusive restrooms and generally supporting LGBTQ individuals.

“Shortly after taking office, Obama declared himself in favor of the so-called homosexual ‘marriage.’ From that moment his promotion of the ideology of ‘gender’ and LGBT was inexorable and fanatical. Under his direction, the Department of Education ordered public schools to accommodate transsexual students, on pain of losing federal subsidies. The Obama effect has also contributed to LGBT groups wanting to impose ‘Transsexual Awareness Month’ in schools and bisexual restrooms.” [HLI.org Accessed 4/04/19]

HLI claims same-sex marriage is an “oxymoron” and doesn’t make sense.

“If young people today are at all aware of what the Catholic Church teaches about marriage and human sexuality, what they think they know is often only a caricature of the truth. They see it as simply a set of prohibitions established by men. But what the Church actually presents is a vision of the beauty of marriage as a sacred union between one man and one woman who are committed for life and open to the transmission of new human life. With this vision, ‘same-sex marriage’ is an oxymoron, making about as much sense as a ‘squared circle.’” [HLI 5/10/13]

HLI supported psychologist Paul Cameron, who called for the genocide of all HIV/AIDS carriers and claimed gay men were more likely to be serial killers and child molesters.

HLI supported Paul Cameron, who claimed gay men were more likely to become child molesters and serial killers, and suggested “eliminating” all HIV/AIDS carriers or branding them on the face to combat AIDS.

“HLI was an early supporter of the controversial psychologist Paul Cameron. Among Cameron’s ‘research’ from the 1980s were the following findings: that only 2 percent of gay men live to age 65; that homosexuals are more likely to become serial killers, child molesters, murderers and thieves; and that people are fifteen times more likely to be killed by a homosexual than a heterosexual during a murdering spree. Cameron suggested castration and the death penalty as a means of combating the homosexual lifestyle. His proposed solution to the AIDS crisis of the late 1980s and early 1990s was the ‘elimination of the carrier,’ though he only recommended that this tactic be employed if other steps like branding HIV positive patients on the face had proven unsuccessful.” [Catholics For Choice Report Page 22-23 Accessed 4/02/19]

• HLI only distanced itself from Cameron when he refused to disavow his calls for genocide and “face branding” for All AIDS/HIV carriers.

“When HLI asked Cameron to disavow his statements on murder and facebranding, Cameron refused—only then did the group cancel his workshops at the conference.” [Catholics For Choice Report Page 22-23 Accessed 4/02/19]

HLI once released a fundraising solicitation viciously attacking LGBTQ people claiming they were leading an “assault on morality.”

In 1996 HLI mailed out fundraising documents titled “HLI’s National Catholic Opinion Survey On The Homosexual Agenda,” giving its recipients a chance to “respond to the homosexual assault on morality.”

In 1996 HLI mailed out a document to selected recipients titled ‘HLI’s National Catholic Opinion Survey on the Homosexual Agenda.’ The heading of the document states, ‘Here’s your chance to respond to the homosexual assault on morality, our children and the church.’ Following the seven survey questions—which take up only slightly more than half of a page—are five full pages imploring the recipient to send money and explaining the importance of the survey. The mailing then goes on to claim that ‘many church leaders … simply don’t understand the extent of the homosexual attack on morality and the church.’ [Catholics For Choice Report Page 23 Accessed 4/02/19]

• The document also contained the bullet “if you can bear a thought as grim as this, try to imagine the emotional and moral devastation children suffer when ‘raised’ by homosexual ‘couples!’” [Catholics For Choice Report Page 28 Accessed 4/02/19]
• If an individual donated $39.70 in response to the fundraiser, they would receive an audio tape titled “understanding the homosexual condition,” which included topics such as “why it’s virtually impossible for “homosexual ‘couples’ to have monogamous relationships” and “how homosexuals can be cured—with actual case studies.”

“If the recipient enclosed a minimum donation of $39.70 when submitting a survey by post, the mailing promised a special gift in the form of an audiotape, Understanding the Homosexual Condition. Subjects addressed in this highly informative tape were: ‘Why anonymous sexual contact is so important to homosexuals;’ ‘Why sexual promiscuity is rampant among homosexuals and why it’s virtually impossible for homosexual ‘couples’ to have monogamous relationships;’ ‘What parents can do to prevent homosexual development in their children;’ ‘Why homosexuals are drawn to careers in acting and the theater;’ and ‘How homosexuals can be cured—with actual case studies.’” [Catholics For Choice Report Page 23 Accessed 4/02/19]

HLI has focused its hate on transgender individuals in recent years.

HLI said that “transgenderism” is a pathological disorder.

“While reliable statistics about the rates of transgenderism among high school students across time are hard to come by, more and more data suggests that there is an alarming, and rapidly growing epidemic of gender dysphoria (the clinical term for this psychological disorder) among young people.” [HLI.org 3/11/19]

HLI claimed trans children are “unwitting pawns in an ideological war,” in which the leftist sexual revolutions can “claim their final victory” by “unmooring sexuality from biology.”  

“The fact is, children suffering gender dysphoria are the unwitting pawns in an ideological war. The entire social left has seized upon the transgender ideology as the next logical step in their bid to embed the principles of the sexual revolution as deeply as possible in society. The sexual revolution first unmoored sex from reproduction; and now it is unmooring sexuality from biology altogether. If sex and sexuality are mere social constructs, then they can be rebuilt as we will. Nothing is forbidden. If transgenderism becomes widely accepted, then the sexual revolutionaries can claim their final victory. And they know that.” [HLI.org 3/11/19]

HLI claims “extremist transgender activists” are bullying people into accepting an ideology “most people are uncomfortable with,” and are using “the power of the law” to make “dissent illegal.” 

“Extremist transgender activists are bullying and shaming normal citizens into pretending to accept an ideology that most people are intuitively deeply uncomfortable with. And all the while they’re working hard to recruit and enlist the power of the law and law enforcement to make dissent illegal and punishable. We can’t let them. Our children’s lives and the future of our society depend on it.” [HLI.org 3/11/19]

HLI claims that recognizing that “gender,” rather than two sexes, is “nothing but a degenerate ideology.”

“There is no doubt that when a culture loses faith, the next thing it loses is the reason. We refer to practical reason, that is, wisdom or moral good sense. For that, one must turn to the doctrine of the Catholic Church and the natural law. We hope this doctrine helps cure or at least alleviate, even partially, the madness inherent in the ideology of ‘gender’, which is nothing but a degenerate ideology.” [HLI.org Accessed 4/04/19]

HLI representatives “have spoken out against almost every conceivable minority group, expressing concerns that Asians, Latinos and Muslims will overrun the world…and condemning Black leaders in the anti-apartheid movement.” [Catholics For Choice Report Page 1 Accessed 4/02/19]

HLI Founder Paul Marx once said of Black South Africans that it would be “difficult… To get tribal peoples one step away from the bush to manage a modern economy and to rule themselves peaceably and democratically.” [Catholics For Choice Report Page 24 Accessed 4/02/19]

Marx on U.S. immigrants: “I guess we have 250,000 Vietnamese here already, and they are going to have large families; the Orientals always do. God knows how many Mexicans cross the border every night… And if we ever have to fight the Russians, I wonder if these people will be willing to stake their lives.” [Catholics For Choice Report Page 27 Accessed 4/02/19]

A former HLI president called an HPV vaccine the “newest marriage of the culture of death with junk science.”

“HLI’s history with vaccinations is a disquieting and often paranoid one. Shortly after the release of Merck’s HPV vaccine Gardasil, then-president Tom Euteneuer went on record saying he considered the drug the ‘newest marriage of the culture of death with junk science.” [Catholics For Choice Report Page 19 Accessed 4/02/19]

HLI undermined a World Health Organization campaign to inoculate against tetanus by claiming the vaccines were a secret way to sterilize women.

“Not only has HLI staked out an extreme and disingenuous position in the Philippines, but it has a long history courting controversy through extremist actions and statements, such as spreading rumors that the World Health Organization was providing the women of the Philippines, Mexico and Nicaragua with tetanus vaccines designed to impair fertility.” [Conscience 6/22/2005]

HLI Ireland opposed the use of an HPV vaccination, which prevents cervical cancer,  claiming it was “unsafe, ineffective” and promotes “promiscuity.”  

“Other politicians, a Catholic bishop, anti-HPV vaccine groups such as Regret and Human Life International Ireland (HLI), have equally vociferously argued that the HPV vaccine is unsafe and ineffective. Both the bishop and HLI Ireland believe that HPV vaccines encourage ‘promiscuity’ and want school ‘chastity’ programmes instead.” [Irish Times 10/16/17]

HLI opposed mandatory vaccination, claiming it is unconstitutional.

“Parents must be free to choose whether or not their children are vaccinated for two reasons.  The first reason is the Constitution.  As James Madison, “Father of the Constitution” affirms, all citizens at all times “retain an equal title to the free exercise of Religion according to the dictates of conscience.”  Adams would have whole-heartedly agreed with the Wyoming Court’s ruling that no government official can question a parent’s conscientious decision to not vaccinate his children.  Second, scientists and medical professionals are increasingly worried that some vaccines are not only unnecessary, but also unsafe.” [Children Of God For Life 10/14/01]

HLI falsely claimed that vaccines developed using fetal tissue have “proven to be among the least necessary and most dangerous.”

HLI: “it is an interesting coincidence that the same vaccines developed using fetal tissue have proven to be among the least necessary and most dangerous on the market.” [Children Of God For Life 10/14/01]

HLI opposes sterilization and said it is used “genocidally in third world nations.”

“HLI’s conspiratorial streak is best exhibited in its views on vasectomies, tubectomies or anything it can fit into the parameters of consensual or forced sterilization. The group’s official position on the issue defines it as a ‘mutilation of the body designed to stop the functioning of a healthy human organ. As such, it is bad medicine. The medical risks are being understated by sterilization proponents. Sterilization is being used genocidally in Third World nations and against certain racial and ethnic groups in all developed countries.’” [Catholics For Choice Report Page 20 Accessed 4/02/19

An HLI advisor defended bombing abortion clinics as moral and legal. 

An HLI advisor once argued that bombing an abortion clinic was moral and legal while defending three men on trial accused of bombing an abortion clinic.

“Despite their theoretical condemnation of violence, HLI’s practical attitudes towards violent speech and acts in the antichoice movement have repeatedly provided a platform for those from the far-right fringe—whose opinions provided the organization with the notoriety-boosting controversy it utilizes to generate visibility in the media. Longtime HLI advisor and leading member of the John Birch society Charles Rice argued that blowing up abortion clinics is morally and legally defensible. Rice explained this logic at the Pensacola, Florida, trial of three defendants accused of bombing an abortion clinic in 1984.” [Catholics For Choice Report Page 4 Accessed 4/02/19]

Catholics for Choice: “In August 1999, antichoice activist don Treshman asserted that the 1994 sniper attack on Dr. Garson Romalis in Vancouver, British Columbia, was a ‘superb tactic.’ soon after this statement, HLI would welcome Treshman as a national spokesperson.” [Catholics For Choice Report Page 4 Accessed 4/02/19]

In 1993, an HLI chapter director implied the murder of Dr. David Gunn was “reasonable” and preferable to inaction by the anti-abortion movement.  

“While he was ‘chapter director of Human Life International, St. Clairsville, Ohio’ in 1993, Steven J. Pruner produced an article for Life Advocate magazine. He wrote that ‘if the great majority of Christians remain silent’ about abortion ‘and do nothing to stop the killing [of the unborn], then lethal force will be the only reasonable action for some, and those of us who stood by and did nothing will have the least right to cast stones.’ The recent murder of Dr. David Gunn, Pruner implied, was a ‘reasonable action’ preferable to doing nothing.” [Catholics For Choice Report Page 4 Accessed 4/02/19

Disgraced former HLI president Tom Euteneuer railed against stem cell research during his time as president, comparing it to Nazi war crimes.

Euteneuer compared the ethics behind stem cell research to ethics used to justify the holocaust and other Nazi war crimes condemned at Nuremberg.  

“In a conversation with Fox News commentator Neil Cavuto in 2006, then-president Euteneuer rejected stem cell research for medical illnesses with a comparison to Nazi death camps. Replying to Cavuto’s question about whether dismissing embryonic stem cell research could withhold promising developments for a large number of people with Alzheimer’s or Parkinson’s, Euteneuer responded in the negative. ‘Well,’ HLI’s president countered the question, ‘anybody who knows a little bit of the history of World War II knows that that was kind of the logic that was used and came up in the Nuremberg war trials. The Nazi prison guards said these people were just going to be killed anyway, whether we did it or somebody else did it.’” [Catholics For Choice Report Page 21 Accessed 4/02/19]

Euteneuer claimed stem cell research would lead to a “Brave New World” scenario for the “weakest” people.

Discussing the Obama administration’s policies, Euteneuer noted that the administration is ‘pro-embryonic stem cell research, pro-euthanasia, pro-assisted suicide,’ referencing his recurring theme of a terrifying dystopian future by adding that ‘Bioethicists like this strive to create a ‘Brave New World’ for the weakest and most vulnerable of those created in God’s image: those who doctors used to swear an oath to protect.’” [Catholics For Choice Report Page 21 Accessed 4/02/19]

Euteneuer was forced to resign as HLI president after he was sued for sexually molesting a woman at the HLI campus while performing exorcisms on her. 

“When they met in 2008, Euteneuer told the woman that he thought her case was ‘severe’ but that he was sure he could help rid her body of a ‘demonic infestation’ of ‘unclean spirits,’ according to a lawsuit filed in Arlington County Circuit Court. Over the next two years, the suit alleges, Euteneuer sexually molested the woman repeatedly during purported ‘exorcism’ sessions, often conducted in offices on the Human Life International campus, near Interstate 66 about an hour west of Washington.” [Washington Post 6/27/12]

HLI’s UN offshoot, Center for Family & Human Rights (C-FAM), and its leader Austin Ruse, frequently make extremist anti-LGBTQ remarks and touted the Trump administration’s family separation policy.

HLI founded C-FAM as an apparent “front organization” after HLI was “plagued by corruption scandals and ostracized by the UN.”

“C-FAM was founded in 1997 by Human Life International, which had been plagued by corruption scandals and ostracized by the UN, and which had come under fire for anti-Semitic statements made by its founder, Paul Marx. C-FAM appears to have been a kind of front for HLI. The minutes of C-FAM’s first meeting, obtained by the group Catholics for Choice, said ‘Not public knowledge that HLI is funding office. Use discretion. Initially state that we are supported by multitudes of individuals/organizations. Don’t hide the fact that HLI is funder—just don’t volunteer that fact to uncertain/non-friendly persons.’ [Daily Beast 7/03/16] 

In 2017 C-FAM sent out a fundraising email of a swastika superimposed over a rainbow flag, stating “we will always call homosexual behavior sinful, offensive, and deeply harmful.”

“Anti-LGBTQ hate group C-Fam, which has special consultative status at the United Nations, sent a December 8 fundraising email that featured a custom meme of a rainbow flag with a swastika in it. The meme read, ‘Sexual Fascists Want to Take Away Your Rights. We are Beating Them at the UN. Help us.’  C-Fam’s fundraising email that included the meme repeatedly used variants of the term ‘homosexual fascists,’ comparing LGBTQ people to Nazis. The email did not shy away from other anti-queer rhetoric, including saying, ‘We will always call homosexual behavior sinful, offensive, and deeply harmful to the individual who practices it and to society at large.’” [Media Matters, 12/8/17]

Ruse derided former First Lady Laura Bush’s op-ed calling for an end to family separation.

“Laura Bush says she is heartbroken about the current policy of separating children from their illegal alien parents. Here is Mrs. Bush telling Larry King she is fine with separating unborn children from their mothers in abortion.” [Austin Ruse Twitter, 6/18/18]  

Ruse has written dozens of anti-LGBTQ and anti-abortion articles for the right-wing news source Breitbart.

Ruse once wrote that “there is no scientific evidence that transgenderism is a real thing.”

“President Trump did the right thing in overturning the Obama policy of allowing the gender confused in uniform to defend our country. First and foremost, there is no scientific evidence that transgenderism is a real thing, except insofar as someone feels or thinks they are the wrong sex. There are no reputable studies that show any physical reality that leads someone to believe they are the wrong sex. There is no transgender gene, no part of the brain that is different in such a person.  Certainly, there are scientific claims, but claims do not equal truth.” [Austin Ruse, Breitbart, 8/4/17]

Ruse: “Kids Raised by Same-Sex Couples Twice As Likely To Be Depressed, Fat Adults” [Austin Ruse, Breitbart, 7/7/16] 

Ruse: “Obama Administration Imposes Transgenderism Nationwide” [Austin Ruse, Breitbart, 5/13/16]

PRI claimed, without evidence, that the UN financed forced sterilizations and successfully lobbied the Bush administration to freeze millions of funds to the UN as a result.

In 2001 PRI reported to the House international relations committee that the un financed forced sterilization projects, despite no evidence to suggest such a thing happened.  

“Perhaps PRI’s most infamous attack on family planning came in the form of a report delivered on October 17, 2001, to the United States House of Representatives International Relations Committee. In the report, PRI claimed that recipients of United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) financed family planning projects that led women to have ‘suffered forced abortion, forced sterilization and destruction of personal property’ at the hands of local officials. PRI linked these abuses directly to UNFPA… The following year, no less than three groups—a team put together by Catholics for Choice, a trio of British parliamentarians and a group from the US State Department—visited China to investigate the veracity of PRI’s claims. None of the groups found any evidence to substantiate PRI’s claims, with the State Department delegation explicitly stating that they uncovered ‘no evidence that UNFPA has knowingly supported or participated in the management of a program of coercive abortion or involuntary sterilization in the PRC. Indeed, UNFPA has registered its strong opposition to such practices.’” [Catholics For Choice Report Page 13 Accessed 4/02/19]

Despite the dubious nature of PRI’S claims, the Bush administration froze funds appropriated for the UN because of its reports.

“Early this year President George W. Bush froze $34 million that Congress had appropriated for the United Nations Population Fund, because a far-right antiabortion group has accused the organization of being complicit in forced abortions in China. The explosive charges by the Population Research Institute have been disproved by numerous investigators, including a delegation headed by Conservative British M.P. Edward Leigh, an antiabortion Catholic.” [Salon 7/11/2002]

PRI is headed by Steve Mosher, an anti-abortion and anti-LGBTQ extremist.

Steve Mosher has been the president of PRI since 1989. [Catholics For Choice Report Page 32 Accessed 4/02/19]

Mosher has depicted those who work for international family planning efforts as “killing machines.” [Catholics For Choice Report Page 32 Accessed 4/02/19]

“The Population Research Institute was created in 1989 to counter mainstream scientific research related to global efforts to combine population planning, reproductive rights and social development.” [Catholics For Choice Report Page 3 Accessed 4/02/19]

Mosher said PRI’s central cause is “battles against the international Planned Parenthood federation.” [Catholics For Choice Report Page 32 Accessed 4/02/19]

Mosher called the Global Fund for AIDS the “global fund for abortion, prostitution and the homosexual agenda.” [Catholics For Choice Report Page 32 Accessed 4/02/19]

HLI is reportedly tied to the World Congress of Families (WCF), an international far-right group.

“Human Life International Ireland also has links to the U.S.-based World Congress of Families (WCF), which organizes a series of right-wing conferences under the umbrella of the International Organization for the Family (IOF)” [New Republic 5/24/18]

The World Congress of Families has a goal to advance an anti-LGBTQ agenda internationally, and been consistently called a threat to global human rights by watchdogs.

“Human Rights watchdogs such as Amnesty International have consistently observed that wherever they go, WCF and its network represent a grave threat to the human rights of LGBTQ people and women. This battle has historically taken place in conservative, international venues, offering speakers and participants an element of impunity—what’s said in the company of friends, outside the media spotlight and beyond the critical gaze of human rights defenders, often goes unchallenged. Now, for the first time since its formation, WCF is hosting one of its large-scale convenings here in the United States.” [Political Research Associates 10/21/15]

• Amnesty International called a 2019 WCF meeting “hostile to human rights.” [PinkNews 3/28/19] 

• WCF has led to upticks in anti-LGBTQ laws in countries where it’s active.

“By 2014, World Congresses had occurred in Prague, Geneva, Warsaw, Moscow, and Sydney, among other major world cities. Most host nations experienced an uptick in broader anti-LGBT activity or specific anti-LGBT legislation as a result. Poland attempted to ban ‘homosexual propaganda;’ Russia has actually done so. Global reach is an integral part of the WCF’s mission, as Masha Gessen reported for Harper’s in 2017; Carlson founded the group after he and a group of Russian sociologists became ‘convinced’ that the ‘degradation of the natural family’ had contributed to Russia’s population decline.” [New Republic 5/24/18]

• WCF has strong ties to Russia, helping the nation pass discriminatory laws in the country while Russia has blocked a major UN resolution to recognize multiple family structures.

“The World Congress of Families (WCF), founded by Carlson in 1997 under the auspices of the Howard Center for Family, Religion, and Society, itself a product of the Rockford Institute, devoted to ‘analyzing the damage done to America’s social institutions by the cultural upheavals of the 1960s… “The Russians might be the Christian saviors of the world,” said WCF managing director Larry Jacobs in June, 2013. That claim may be overstated, but the WCF-Russia partnership has borne a number of fruits. Inside Russia, WCF helped pass the notorious Anti-Propaganda Law, banning gays from any public displays of existence, and wrote the ban on gay adoption… And at the UN, Russia has blocked every effort to recognize multiple forms of family.” [Daily Beast 6/14/15

Father Paul Marx is the founder of HLI and branded himself as the “father of the international pro-life movement.” Prior to founding HLI in 1981, Marx already had a reputation for extremism after bringing a fetus in a jar to a lecture in Ireland in the early 1970s. Marx’s life’s work was defeating what he saw as the loss of societal sexual morality. He was also deeply afraid of the Western world collapsing from a lack of births. This, as well as a history of hate for gay men, reproductive rights advocates and others who Marx claimed degraded society, led to his creation of HLI. Marx is infamous for claiming that Jewish people are responsible for abortion, black South Africans would struggle to get “one step away from the bush to manage a modern economy” and blaming birth control for “homosexuality.” Marx passed away in 2010, but HLI continues to carry on his legacy of hate.

Boquet became president of HLI in 2011 after the sudden removal of his predecessor for sexually abusing a woman under the guise of performing an exorcism. Boquet is noticeably quieter in public than previous HLI leadership, but has publicly claimed that sex education promotes “homosexuality” and attended an international anti-LGBTQ summit at the UN. HLI’s mission and extreme rhetoric has not softened under Boquet’s stewardship. Before his time at HLI, Boquet served as a priest in Louisiana.

Clowes has served as HLI’s director of education and research since 1995 and is one of the organization’s most visible members. Clowes has authored nine books and over 90 “scholarly and popular” articles. Like other HLI leaders, Clowes spreads misinformation about birth control, claiming that it leads to divorce and has led to hundreds of thousands of abortions and the deaths of over 30,000 women who use the Pill. Clowes, however, is most infamous for publishing an “academic” paper which claimed that “homosexuality” has a direct link to child sexual abuse.

Mosher is the head of HLI affiliate Population Research Institute (PRI), which fights reproductive health access across the globe. Mosher was recruited directly by Marx to head PRI in 1989 and has been there ever since. Mosher was expelled from the doctoral program in anthropology at Stanford for engaging in “illegal and seriously unethical conduct” that “endangered his research subjects” when he failed to blur out the faces of women who were forced into abortion by the Chinese government. Mosher has defined the work of PRI as a “battle” against Planned Parenthood International and referred to the Global Fund for AIDS as the “Global Fund for Abortion, Prostitution, And Homosexual Agenda.” Mosher is best known for convincing the second Bush administration to freeze funds to the UN by reportedly claiming that the organization was funding force sterilizations.

Austin Ruse is the head of the HLI affiliate group Center for Family & Human Rights (C-FAM), which he has effectively used as a personal soapbox. C-FAM was reportedly founded as a front organization for HLI, and their connection was initially meant to be a secret. Ruse has found a niche for himself writing extreme homophobic blogs on Breitbart and interrupting International Women’s Rights events.

HLI offers various figures for its international activity, with claims ranging from 87 to over 100 satellite offices worldwide.  

“Currently, neither HLI nor HLI America’s websites offer information regarding these chapters. Internationally, HLI claims to have 99 satellite offices in 87 countries, though in other places it is said to have affiliates and associates in over 100, or as many as 105, countries on six continents.” [Catholics For Choice Report Page 10 Accessed 4/02/19]

• HLI International offices/branches are often founded independently of the group before merging with HLI.

“In a Catholics for Choice report released in 1994, it was noted that in some, and possibly most, cases HLI’s branches appear to have been groups established independently by local Catholic church leaders or antichoice activists. This seems to be supported by the bios of George Wirnkar (HLI’s regional coordinator of Francophone Africa as well as executive director of HLI Cameroon) and Emil Hagamu (regional director of English-speaking Africa). Both seem to have been heads of separate, pre-existing African antichoice organizations before attending an HLI conference in South Africa in 1996. The site further maintains that ‘not long after’ the 1996 conference ‘he [Wirnkar], like Emil, officially merged his prolife work with Human Life International and became an affiliate.’” [Catholics For Choice Report Page 10 Accessed 4/02/19]

HLI Ireland strongly fought against legalizing abortion in the country and runs a scandal-riddled anti-abortion pregnancy center in Dublin.

HLI was credited as an important far-right grassroots organizer in Ireland and has a dedicated office there.  

“This isn’t the first time Americans have tried to sway an Irish vote. Christian right groups similarly tried to influence the country’s referendum on same-sex marriage. And some Irish groups welcome the assistance, as they work closely with American groups to restrict abortion and LGBT rights at home and abroad. ‘In general, the U.S. Christian right works on several different planes: grassroots, policy/government level, and litigation,’ explained Gillian Kane, a senior policy and advocacy adviser for Ipas, a global reproductive rights non-profit. ‘In a Catholic country like Ireland, grassroots organizing is facilitated through U.S. Catholic NGOs like the Virginia-based Human Life International, which has a dedicated office in Mayo, Ireland.’” [New Republic 5/24/18]

HLI Ireland heavily campaigned against legalizing abortion in Ireland via referendum, running billboard campaigns and prayer vigils for over two years.

“In 2016 we [HLI Ireland] launched a national billboard campaign all over Ireland during Lent, up to the end of Easter Week. It was a tremendous success, so we have continued this campaign annually. This year we sponsored 50 billboards around the country, with the image of the Holy Face and the text ‘Let the light of your face shine upon us O Lord’…We also had Holy Face images placed in the interior of 200 Dublin buses and have the website together with a Facebook Page…This was all accompanied by assembling an ‘army’ of people for all-Ireland prayer vigils of public reparation for Ireland’s apostasy. These prayers of reparation started at 12 noon on Good Friday at 85 locations across each of the 32 counties of Ireland. There was an 8-foot banner of the Holy Face at each of these vigils of reparation.” [Regina Magazine 2018]

• HLI Ireland held seven nationwide events two weeks before the referendum vote.

“Human Life International Ireland has called for repentance and reparation via seven nationwide events May 13, asking the nation to seek God’s face and repent of its sins. Prayers will be joined in prayer from Lourdes, France, by the successor of St. Patrick, Archbishop Eamon Martin of Armagh.” [National Catholic Register 5/11/18]

Following the legalization of abortion in Ireland, HLI leaders held a rally in Northern Ireland to support the abortion ban there.

“The president of an international anti-abortion organisation has called on Catholics in Northern Ireland to ‘keep the wolf out of the field’ and prevent the legalisation of abortion there. Fr Shenan Boquet, the US-based leader of Human Life International (HLI) – self-described as ‘pro-life missionaries to the world’ – spoke to 100 people at a public meeting in a Carmelite retreat centre in Derry. Fr Boquet said the ‘contraceptive mentality’ had led directly to abortion because ‘through contraception you say no to new life’.” [The Irish Times 8/02/18]

Ask Majella, an anti-abortion pregnancy center run by HLI Ireland, has been embroiled in multiple scandals. 

In 2018 HLI Ireland pushed for a law to prevent the Irish government from dictating what pregnancy centers could tell women…

“A Catholic group that was found to be running misleading crisis pregnancy agencies has been lobbying against a law that would shut down its advice centres. Human Life International, which runs the Ask Majella ‘crisis pregnancy agencies’, has appealed to politicians to block legislation that for the first time would regulate counsellors who advise pregnant women.” [The Times Of London 1/22/18]

… Following a sting investigation by the Times of London, which revealed that Ask Majella, an anti-abortion center run by HLI Ireland, was telling women abortion caused breast cancer and could lead to “losing all her reproductive organs,” labeling birth control dangerous and saying sex can be fatal.

“The law, being pushed by Simon Harris, was drafted after a year-long undercover investigation by The Times. The investigation exposed counsellors at an Ask Majella agency in Dublin telling a young woman that abortion caused breast cancer and could increase a woman’s chances of losing all her reproductive organs. They also said that contraception was dangerous and women could die from having sex.” [The Times Of London 1/22/18]

Ask Majella believes in “gay conversion therapy.” [Irish Central 4/05/17]

In 2019 the Irish health service had to spend more than 100,000 euros to ensure its information on emergency pregnancy services appeared above HLI Ireland disinformation in google searches.  

“The health service spent more than €100,000 on internet advertising for crisis pregnancy services as it competed with rogue agencies for the top spot on Google search results. Anti-abortion groups running agencies that give misleading advice have often paid to be the first result shown to women in Ireland looking for pregnancy advice or support online…Groups paying for top online ad spaces have included Ask Majella, an anti-abortion agency run by Human Life International Ireland.” [The Times Of London 4/02/19]

HLI has launched disinformation and smear campaigns throughout Europe.

In Poland, HLI set up websites to help pharmacists refuse to sell birth control and called emergency contraception “miscarriage pills.”  

In Poland HLI has helped set up websites catering to pharmacists who refuse to sell contraceptives, particularly emergency contraception, which they call ‘miscarriage pills.’” [Catholics For Choice Report Page 11 Accessed 4/02/19]

“HLI is also ‘affiliated’ with Polish politicians who opposed a 2005 bill that would have expanded the circumstances under which abortions could be legally provided.” [Catholics For Choice Report Page 11 Accessed 4/02/19]

HLI claimed the king of Spain had “excommunicated” himself by signing a law that advanced abortion rights.

“In Spain, where the liberalization of abortion laws has met staunch opposition in recent years, HLI has proved a reactionary force. Following King Juan Carlos’ signing of a more liberal abortion law in 2010, HLI asserted, without proof or justification, that the king had excommunicated himself.” [Catholics For Choice Report Page 11 Accessed 4/02/19]

The Philippines has draconian abortion bans that criminalize women seeking abortions.

The Philippines criminalizes abortion both for women seeking it and for health care providers. 

“Physicians and midwives who perform abortions in the Philippines with the consent of a pregnant woman may face up to six years in prison under the Revised Penal Code. These criminal punishments are supplemented by separate laws that prescribe sanctions for a range of medical professionals and health workers such as doctors, midwives, and pharmacists for performing abortions or dispensing abortifacients such as the Medical Act, the Midwifery Act, and the Pharmaceutical Act. According to these laws, these practitioners may have their license to practice suspended or revoked if caught engaging in abortion-related activities. Women who undergo abortion for any reason may be punished by imprisonment for two to six years.” [Center For Reproductive Rights Accessed 4/02/19] 

Filipino women have reported being “punished” by health care providers who know they have undergone abortions, including reporting these women to the authorities and harassing them physically and verbally.  

“Filipino women who seek treatment for complications from unsafe abortion have repeatedly reported that the stigma around abortion means that healthcare workers are unwilling to provide care or only treat women after ‘punishing’ women who have undergone abortions by threatening to report them to the police, harassing women verbally and physically, or delaying care. Filipino women who have undergone unsafe abortions for health reasons report that healthcare workers have not been sympathetic to their situation, but instead continue to abuse and threaten them.” [Center For Reproductive Rights Accessed 4/02/19]

“In 2008 alone, the Philippines’ criminal abortion ban was estimated to result in the deaths of at least 1,000 women and complications for 90,000 more.” [Center For Reproductive Rights Accessed 4/02/19]

HLI is active in the Philippines, spending over $1 million since 2000 and spreading anti-vaccine and anti-LGBTQ ideology.

HLI has spent more than $1 million in the Philippines since the 2000’s. [Human Life International Form 990s 2000 – 2018, accessed 08/14/17]

In February 2019, HLI leaders gave lectures to aspiring priests in the Philippines, including one titled “Understanding Homosexuality and the Assault on the Institution of Marriage.”

“Father Boquet, Dr. Ligaya Acosta, HLI’s Regional Director for Asia and Oceania, and Dr. Brian Clowes, HLI’s Director of Education and Research giving presentations to seminarians from St. John the Evangelist School of Theology and Sacred Heart Seminary in Palo, Leyte, Philippines. Subjects covered on day two: ‘The Population Control Agenda,’ ‘The Threat of Ideological Colonization,’ ‘The Impact of Dissent and the Role of the Church,’ ‘Understanding Homosexuality and the Assault on the Institution of Marriage,’ ‘The Wisdom of God’s Plan for Our Lives,’ and ‘The Role of the Priest: Living and Promoting the Gospel of Life.’” [Facebook 2/13/19]

HLI has worked to spread anti-vaccine ideology in the Philippines, claiming vaccines were a conspiracy to sterilize the population.

“In the Philippines the organization has worked to obstruct immunization campaigns by spreading the misinformation that they were secret sterilization programs conducted by the World Health Organization and the United Nations Children’s Fund.” [Catholics For Choice Report Page 11 Accessed 4/02/19]

HLI organized fierce opposition to the reproductive health bill in the Philippines, which provides birth control and requires sex ed. 

HLI organized and maintains opposition to the reproductive health reform bill (RH Bill) before it was passed into law and continues to oppose it as law.

“In December 2012, the Congress of the Philippines finally passed the destructive RH Bill and it was signed into law by President Beningno Aquino. In April 2014 the Supreme Court of the Philippines struck down several provisions of the law, but some of the most objectionable parts were upheld. The legal battle is far from over. We remain engaged with our Filipino brothers and sisters as the battle for life and family enters this new stage.” [HLI.org accessed 4/02/19]

The RH Bill — now law — requires health centers to distribute free condoms and birth control bills and teach sex ed in public schools.  

“The law requires government health centers to hand out free condoms and birth control pills, as well as mandating that sex education be taught in schools.” [Rappler 4/10/14] 

The RH Bill also requires criminal penalties for parties who force sterilization on women for reasons of employment.

“The law also provides for penalties for persons who perform certain prohibited acts such as the following…Requiring a female applicant or employee, as a condition for employment or continued employment, to involuntarily undergo sterilization, tubal ligation or any other form of contraceptive method.” [Journal Of ASEAN Federation of Endocrine Societies 4/23/13]

HLI likely engaged in electioneering in the Philippines.

HLI announced its support of Filipino presidential candidate Manny Villar in 2010 because he opposed the RH Bill.  

“A group that has been leading in the fight against the controversial Reproductive Health Bill has announced that it is supporting the candidacy of Nacionalista Party standard-bearer Senator Manny Villar. Human Life International-Philippines (HLI) is firm on its stand of supporting candidates who are against the RH Bill, death penalty and other pro-life issues.” [Philstar 3/10/10]

… And In March 2013, HLI partnered with the Filipino archdiocese to organize L.I.F.E. (Lay Initiatives For Elections) 2013, which aimed to support political candidates.

“This is a two month old movement co-organized by the Human Life International Philippines and the Catholic Archdiocese of Cebu. Also represented at the event were at least 14 other archdioceses and dioceses from all over the archipelago. The main objective of L.I.F.E 2013 is to screen pro-life candidates running for national congressional offices, then endorse them and campaign for their victory in the coming May 13, 2013 mid-term national elections. We are endorsing candidates of all political parties who pledge to vote pro-life.” [HLI.org Archive 5/10/13]

• L.I.F.E. 2013’s formation in March 2013 came less than three months after the RH Bill was passed into law.

“After fourteen years of being stuck in Congress, the “Responsible Parenthood and Reproductive Health Act of 2012” has finally been signed into law on Friday 21 December 2012 by President Benigno Aquino III of The Philippines.” [WHO.org 1/07/13]

• In May 2013, L.I.F.E. 2013 held a rally featuring candidates from various political parties, something HLI said “may be the first of its kind.”

“The May 5 rally was specifically dedicated to encouraging politicians to pledge respect for life and family. It may have been the first of its kind in Philippines, as senatorial and congressional candidates from different political parties are not known to meet and stand together on one stage.” [HLI.org Archive 5/10/13]

• At the May 2013 rally, candidates endorsed by L.I.F.E. 2013 made a pledge to oppose bills in favor of divorce, abortion and gay marriage.

“After the official announcements made of L.I.F.E 2013′s support for their candidacy, each candidate delivered a five-minute acceptance and challenge message. This was followed by the symbolic signing of the Covenant for Life—where candidates pledged that should they win, they will fight against the introduction of any anti-life legislation, particularly the D.E.A.T.H. bills, or Divorce, Euthanasia, Abortion, Total Population Control and Homosexual Union.” [HLI.org Archive 5/10/13]

January 2019: Campaign for Accountability filed an IRS complaint against HLI for failing to “report lobbying expenditures” and engaging in “prohibited political activities in support of its anti-abortion advocacy efforts in the Philippines.”

“Today, Campaign for Accountability (‘CfA’), a nonprofit watchdog group focused on public accountability, filed a complaint with the Internal Revenue Service (‘IRS’) alleging Human Life International, Inc. (‘HLI’), a nonprofit anti-choice organization based in Front Royal, Virginia, failed to report lobbying expenditures and engaged in prohibited political activities in support of its anti-abortion advocacy efforts in the Philippines.” [Campaign for Accountability, 1/30/19]

• L.I.F.E.’s actions likely violated restrictions on electioneering placed on HLI due to its 501c(3) status.

“Under the Internal Revenue Code, all section 501(c)(3) organizations are absolutely prohibited from directly or indirectly participating in, or intervening in, any political campaign on behalf of (or in opposition to) any candidate for elective public office. Contributions to political campaign funds or public statements of position (verbal or written) made on behalf of the organization in favor of or in opposition to any candidate for public office clearly violate the prohibition against political campaign activity.  Violating this prohibition may result in denial or revocation of tax-exempt status and the imposition of certain excise taxes.” [IRS.gov Accessed 4/03/19]

In a February 2019 trip to the Philippines, HLI leaders made multiple public appearances with the mayor of the city of Sorsogon and endorsed her anti-abortion policies on social media.

HLI posted photos of a mass led by president Father Boquet on behalf of Mayor Lee, and in its caption praised the mayor’s refusal to distribute birth control in Sorsogon.

“Father Boquet offering Holy Mass and preaching for the Memorial of Our Lady of Lourdes at Sorsogon City Hall in the Philippines. Father offered Mass for Mayor Sally A. Lee, Sorsogon City Hall staff and City Police. Mayor Lee, nearly five years ago, declared her City a Pro-Life – a City that Loves Life – and does not permit the distribution of contraceptives. Please pray many more civil leaders will follow Mayor Lee’s courageous example and witness. #hli #prolife” [Facebook 02/11/19]

HLI “brought” anti-abortion centers to Latin American in the 1980s and channeled more than $1.3 million to such centers in Latin American and the Caribbean from 2010 to 2015 alone.  

“HLI brought the crisis pregnancy centre model to Latin America in the 1980s and is one of the most active supporters of the anti-abortion movement in the region. Between 2010 and 2015, HLI channeled more than $1.3m to anti-abortion partners in Latin America and the Caribbean, according to IRS tax documents seen by the Guardian.” [The Guardian 10/26/17]

HLI established a network of anti-abortion centers in Latin America.  

“I was invited to speak at the Congress about the work HLI does through our international pro-life apostolate. HLI’s regional director, Mario Rojas, joined me as a guest speaker. Attendees also heard from HLI Argentina Director Dr. Oscar Botta, and HLI Mexico’s Jorge Serrano, whose organization established the crisis pregnancy center network in Latin America.” [HLI.org 10/11/13]

• While HLI does not run all anti-abortion centers in Latin America, it provides informative materials to them and helps direct funding to them from other anti-abortion ideologues.

“Adolfo Castañeda, HLI’s education director for Hispanic outreach, said each centre in the network operates independently, providing access to many Spanish-language ‘educational materials’,…‘We serve as a go-between for other organisations that have money to fund [crisis pregnancy centres],’ Castañeda added. ‘For example, if there is a Catholic foundation that wants to donate, say, $10,000 to a [centre] in Bolivia, we help get in touch with that foundation, translate whatever forms the foundation requires and serve as a channel so that the money can go to them.’” [The Guardian 10/26/17]

HLI’s pregnancy center network has at least 57 centers in over 21 countries. [Camslatinoamerica.com Accessed 4/03/19]

CNN reports that “at least 160 anti-abortion centers have been opened across the country and across Latin America.” [CNN 3/12/19]

HLI provides legal advice from U.S.-based lawyers for anti-abortion activists in Latin America.

“Castañeda said HLI works with US legal advisors who provide local lobbyists and lawyers with strategies they can use ‘to educate and fight politically against anti-life laws and in favour of pro-life laws’.” [The Guardian 10/26/17]

HLI claimed it was “at the helm” of the effort to pass El Salvador’s “ruthless” abortion ban in the 1990’s and continues to fund the group in favor of the ban. 

In the 1997 El Salvador passed laws banning all “special cases” that allowed legal abortion with HLI “at the helm,” according to former HLI board Chairman Matthew Habiger.

“In 1997 the pro-life movement in El Salvador began its counterattack, and won a first victory when the legislature eliminated those ‘special cases’ that allowed legal abortion. But with HLI at the helm, the movement sought more permanent protection for the right to life, in the form of a constitutional amendment recognizing the legal status of the unborn child. In that same 1997 legislative session, the constitutional amendment was approved, with the support of 52 members in the 84-seat legislature.” [Catholic Culture 11/26/2001]

According to a press release, HLI’s work in El Salvador “led” to a 1999 constitutional amendment that cemented the nation’s abortion ban. 

“HLI El Salvador has led two key campaigns to defend life in their country. In 1997, all exceptions to abortion were eliminated from the abortion criminal statute, making abortion punishable in every circumstance. And, in 1999, a constitutional amendment was approved declaring that the pre- born baby is a person from conception and deserving of protection. El Salvador is the only country in the world with a constitution that defines the personhood of the pre-born child.” [PR Newswire 3/15/2000] 

El Salvador’s abortion ban does not allow any exceptions and is considered one of the world’s most “ruthless” bans.

“El Salvador’s absolute ban on abortion – long considered one of the world’s most ruthless – is facing its greatest challenge in years. Buoyed by shifting public attitudes, reproductive rights activists are making headway on a bill to loosen the law for victims of rape and human trafficking, women carrying nonviable pregnancies, and women who risk death or illness.” [The Guardian 7/27/17]

• Under Salvadorian law, abortion is criminalized and carries prison time for both women seeking the procedure and doctors who perform it.

“Thousands of women and girls have been forced to continue pregnancies that are the result of rape. Last month, a 19-year-old who became pregnant after she was raped was sentenced to 30 years in jail after suffering a stillbirth. The laws have also led directly to the prosecution, imprisonment, and even deaths of scores of women. Under the law, a woman who obtains an abortion or a doctor who performs one – whatever the reason – can be sentenced to several years in prison.” [The Guardian, 7/27/17]

• The burden of this law falls mostly on young and poor Salvadorian women, and has led to doctors refusing to treat pregnant women for cancer or treat ectopic pregnancies “until the woman’s fallopian tubes burst.”

“The toll of El Salvador’s ban on abortion has fallen heavily on women who are young and poor, including some who had miscarriages or stillbirths and were punished with prison time. There have been cases of doctors refusing to perform chemotherapy for pregnant women with cancer or refusing to treat ectopic pregnancies until the woman’s fallopian tubes burst.” [The Guardian, 7/27/17]

Despite increased Salvadorian opposition to the ban, HLI has continued to fund Sí A La Vida, the group “principally responsible” for El Salvador’s abortion ban, and has done so since at least 2000.  

“A US-based anti-abortion group that has quietly funneled funds to El Salvador’s main advocates for the ban. The source of those funds is Human Life International, a not-for-profit group based in the rural town of Front Royal, Virginia. According to documents seen by the Guardian, Human Life International has for years directed a steady flow of dollars to Sí a la Vida, the Salvadoran organization principally responsible for the country’s abortion ban.” [The Guardian 7/27/17]

HLI boasts a “unique and special relationship” with Sí A La Vida and coordinates with it to “promote the dignity of life and family values, and counteract opposition to both.”

“Affiliated organizations enjoy a special and unique relationship with HLI. Both HLI and the associated charity agree to coordinate their efforts to promote and defend the dignity of life and family values, and counteract opposition to both. The objective of this association is to facilitate the development and increase the scope of work of the affiliated organizations in the respective countries. In each country, HLI has an affiliated organization that is its national representative, whose function is to promote the mission of HLI in the geographical region where it exerts its influence… Representative of Human Life International in El Salvador. Fundación Sí a la Vida brings together professionals, parents and young people who come together to work for the promotion of moral values, respect for life, love and family.” [VidaHumana.org Archive 8/13/16]

Scott Lloyd’s Anti-Abortion Law Firm, LegalWorks, Shares An Address And Co-Founder With HLI.

Scott Lloyd co-founded LegalWorks, an anti-abortion law firm.  

“He later co-founded LegalWorks, a ‘pro-life apostolate’ law firm embracing what the firm calls ‘the belief that the practice of law should be guided by the principles of our faith in every respect.’” [Wall Street Journal 10/27/17]

LegalWorks is located at 4 Family Life Lane, Front Royal, VA…

… The same address as HLI’s international headquarters.

“Human Life International has three main offices from which we assist our affiliates in countries around the world. Our current international headquarters opened in Front Royal, Virginia in 1996… 4 Family Life Lane Front Royal, VA 22630 USA.” [HLI.org Accessed 4/10/19]

LegalWorks’ Co-Founder, Stuart Nolan, sits on HLI’s board of directors. [HLI.org/Board-Of-Directors Accessed 4/10/19]

Shortly after taking office, Scott Lloyd changed ORR policy to give himself final sign-off for the release of certain children and for abortion requests from young women in his custody. 

In 2017, Lloyd changed an ORR policy with almost no consideration, requiring his final sign-off for the release of any children under “heightened supervision” in his care.

In August 2017, Lloyd changed a policy at ORR to require his final sign-off for release of any children under “heightened supervision,” a designation that could come from behavioral problems or suspected gang activity, and has since been challenged by the New York Civil Liberties Union (NYCLU). NYCLU said few children who require Lloyd’s sign-off have been released. [Press Release, NYCLU, 5/1/18; Courthouse News, 6/7/18]

• A federal judge argued that there was “no process at all” for Lloyd’s new policy.

In June 2018, a federal judge overseeing the NYCLU case “appeared disturbed” by Lloyd’s lack of experience and he said “‘So far as I can gather, there was no process at all here.’” [Courthouse News, 6/7/18]

Scott Lloyd made it easier for potential sponsors of unaccompanied minors to be arrested.

In June 2018, Scott Lloyd signed an agreement giving other federal immigration agencies unprecedented access to ORR data of the immigration status of a minor’s potential sponsors…

“‘There is a policy now on the part of our government for the Office of Refugee Resettlement to share information with Immigration and Customs Enforcement. That’s as new as four days ago. ORR, entrusted with the safety and placement of those kids who are without family, are sharing who those family members are with Immigration and Customs Enforcement,’ O’Rourke said after he and other members of a bipartisan congressional delegation completed a tour of a tent city for near Tornillo, Texas, that is housing more than three hundred children who came to the border unaccompanied by an adult or were separated from a parent after the parent was arrested and are now classified as unaccompanied. … The agreement calls for ORR to give ICE the names of potential sponsors for children in custody, as well as the names of all adults in the household. ICE then must request fingerprints from all adults in the household to review for criminal records. The unprecedented ICE access to ORR data will deter many potential sponsors who are undocumented or have family members without legal status, meaning untold numbers of children will remain in government custody rather than with their families, said Mark Greenberg, who oversaw ORR during the Obama administration.” [Texas Monthly, 6/23/18]

… The agreement eventually assisted in the arrest of dozens of potential sponsors.

“Later that week, Lloyd signed an agreement giving other federal immigration agencies unprecedented access to ORR data, including, crucially, the immigration status of a minor’s potential sponsors—adults already in the United States who are willing to care for the child after release by ORR. Immigration advocates argued the move would put future caretakers at risk of deportation and discourage potential sponsors from coming forward. In September, a senior immigration enforcement official told Congress the agreement had helped his agency arrest dozens of potential sponsors.” [Mother Jones, 11/19/18]

Scott Lloyd was involved in drafting a memo to potentially facilitate an “abortion reversal” for an unaccompanied minor.  

Lloyd was involved in a memo directing an ORR facility to bring an unaccompanied minor who had taken one of two medical abortion pills to the emergency room “in order to determine the health status of the UAC and her unborn child.”

Lloyd was involved in the decision-making process regarding a March 4, 2017 memo which directed ORR to bring an unaccompanied minor who had taken one of two medical abortion pills, to the emergency room of a local hospital “in order to determine the health status of the UAC and her unborn child.” [Deposition of Scott Lloyd, Garza V. Hargan, Washington D.C., 12/8/17]

The memo stated that the “medication abortion protocol proceeded against the recommendation of ORR medical officers.”

Lloyd and other ORR officials discussed “abortion reversal” for an undocumented pregnant teen who had been raped and had already secured a judicial bypass for an abortion procedure.

In March 2017, Lloyd and other ORR officials discussed “abortion reversal” for an undocumented pregnant teen, who was reportedly raped and had secured permission from a Texas state judge for a medical abortion. [Vice News, 1/31/18]

• Abortion reversal is an “unproven procedure” that lacks “research on the safety and efficacy of the treatment.”

“States that require pregnant patients be informed about abortion reversal are advocating for unproven procedures with a lack of evidence behind them, researchers argued. Four states — Arkansas, Idaho, South Dakota, and Utah — currently require providers to give patients information about treatment to reverse a medication abortion, a “troubling” trend due to the lack of research on the safety and efficacy of the treatment, wrote Daniel Grossman, MD, of the University of California San Francisco, and Kari White, PhD, of the University of Alabama at Birmingham.” [MedPage Today, 10/17/18]

As ORR director, Scott Lloyd denied abortion requests even in the context of rape.

Lloyd admitted that as ORR director he has denied abortion requests even in the context of rape.

In his December 2017 deposition, Lloyd admitted that he has “denied abortion requests even in the context where the pregnancy is as a result of rape.” [Deposition of Scott Lloyd, Garza V. Hargan, Washington D.C., 12/8/17]

Scott Lloyd ordered shelters to take unaccompanied minors to “crisis pregnancy centers” for “options counseling” and ultrasounds.”

In March 2017, Lloyd advised an ORR shelter to “make sure” that an unaccompanied minor who was seeking an abortion was “aware of the option of having spiritual counseling,” and “if she has not had her ultrasound yet,” to make sure she has one at the crisis pregnancy center of Greater Phoenix.  

On March 24, 2017, Lloyd wrote an email in which he gave “ad hoc” guidance regarding an unaccompanied minor at Southwest Key Las Palmas who was requesting a pregnancy termination. In his email, Lloyd instructed the shelter to “make sure that she is aware of the option of having spiritual counseling that is sensitive to her religious preference,” and “if she has not had her ultrasound yet,” to make sure she has one at the CPC of Greater Phoenix or receive a session of “options counseling” from the CPC of Greater Phoenix. In the same email, Lloyd also stated that the minor would need parental consent “which will necessitate options counseling with them,” if she still wanted to obtain an abortion. Lloyd also claimed that the department would work on “formalizing these procedures.” [Exhibit G, Garza V. Hargan, filed 10/14/17]

In March 2017, Lloyd responded to an abortion request by declaring that the unborn child was also a child in ORR care.  

“On March 24, 2017, Scott Lloyd sent an email regarding a pregnant minor who requested an abortion. Lloyd stated that “As things stand now, the unborn child is a child our care, so the medical team should continue with standard prenatal care, as I believe is already the procedure.” Lloyd also claimed that ORR would work on “formalizing these procedures, but we’ll have to do it ad hoc for now.”

Scott Lloyd has forced young women seeking abortions to tell their parents, even when it wasn’t required.

Lloyd reportedly instructed staff at an ORR facility to tell a teen’s parents about her decision to have an abortion even after she secured a judicial bypass due to “fear of retaliation.”

“If a minor doesn’t want to tell her parents about her pregnancy, most states require that she get a judge to grant her permission to get an abortion in a process known as a ‘judicial bypass.’ One pregnant teen in an Arizona ORR-operated shelter obtained that bypass, since she worried that her father would “retaliate” against her mother if he found out his daughter had an abortion. (Both the teen’s parents still live in her home country, which wasn’t named in court documents.) The teen also feared that if her brother knew about her abortion, he would tell her parents and force the mother to face ‘future retaliation.’” Lloyd instructed staff to tell the girl’s parents about the abortion anyway, emails show. [Vice News, 2/8/18]

Scott Lloyd told ORR shelters that they should only be supporting “life-affirming options counseling” and not abortion services.

In March 2017 Lloyd wrote an email affirming that “grantees should not be supporting abortion services pre or post-release; only pregnancy services and life-affirming options counseling.”

On March 30, 2017, when discussing the unaccompanied minor’s previous request for abortion services, Lloyd wrote in an email that “grantees should not be supporting abortion services pre or post-release; only pregnancy services and life-affirming options counseling.” [Exhibit C, Garza V. Hargan, filed 10/14/17]

In 2011, Lloyd suggested that the judiciary should be more Christian.

Lloyd claimed that the law was “one of the least Christian elements of our society,” arguing that we had to “look no further than no fault divorce, legalized abortion on demand, and gay marriage as confirmation.”

On March 25, 2011, Lloyd delivered remarks for the one year anniversary of the LegalWorks Apostolate, a law group that believes “law should be guided by the principles of our faith in every respect.” In his remarks, Lloyd stated that “our legal institution has a mother in the Church. We were conceived to enter into the practice of law, and let’s be blunt? the law is pagan territory. It is, in fact, one of the least Christian elements of our society, particularly family law and constitutional law, two areas where we have particular interest. Look no further than no fault divorce, legalized abortion on demand, and gay marriage as confirmation.” [Remarks, Scott Lloyd, LegalWorks Apostolate, 3/25/11; LegalWorks Apostolate Mission, accessed 2/22/18]

Lloyd: women shouldn’t make reproductive decisions without a man’s consent.

Lloyd suggested state legislators could write a law to make women notify their male sexual partners of their decision to have an abortion.

In June 2011, Lloyd suggested that state legislators should “write a law that says essentially that women must notify the men of their decision to abort, and gain their consent, except in situations where their reasons for aborting relate to the physical realities of pregnancy.” [Scott Lloyd, Ethika Politika, 6/2/11]

Lloyd has argued that a women’s right to abortion has “stripped the fathers of these children of their right to be parents, and other associated rights.”

On June 10, 2011, in a blog post for LegalWorks Apostolate, Lloyd wrote that “the Supreme Court, when it claimed to recognize for women the ‘right’ to abortion on demand, simultaneously stripped the fathers of these children of their right to be parents, and other associated rights.” [Scott Lloyd, LegalWorks Apostolate, 6/10/11]

Lloyd: to get federally-funded birth control, women should have to sign pledge to not have an abortion. 

Lloyd wrote that women on birth control should “sign a pledge” not to have an abortion, and suggested they become ineligible for “taxpayer bought contraception” if they violate the pledge.

In 2009, Lloyd suggested that women who receive federal funds toward contraception should “promise not to have an abortion if the contraception fails, which it often does.” Lloyd further stated that if the contraception fails, the woman “will put the baby up for adoption,” which could be enforced by “having the woman sign a pledge.” Lastly, Lloyd added, that “If they go on to have an abortion, they become ineligible for more taxpayer-bought contraception.” [Scott Lloyd, National Catholic Register, 8/28/09]

Scott Lloyd peddled the ridiculous claim that birth control causes abortions. 

Lloyd has repeatedly argued that contraception causes abortion, both by creating a culture reliant on abortion and by killing nascent human life.  

In April 2011, Lloyd claimed that “chemicals and devices billed as contraceptives actually cause early abortions, including oral contraceptives in some instances.” Lloyd also claimed in 2015 that that “contraception enables sexual encounters and relationships that would not have happened without it” which “leads to a desire for abortion.” [Scott Lloyd, Ethika Politika, 4/4/11; Scott Lloyd, The Federalist, 8/18/15]

Scott Lloyd Suggested That LGBTQ Relationships Are Inferior.

Lloyd has argued that gay and heterosexual couples should not be granted the same status, because gay couples do not provide the same “benefits” to society.

Lloyd contended that “to confer the same status to gay and heterosexual relationships is to refuse to acknowledge the many benefits heterosexual relationships provide to society that homosexual relationships simply cannot provide.” [Scott Lloyd, Ethika Politika, 10/10/11]

Lloyd also encouraged lawmakers to use their power to codify discrimination against same-sex couples.

Lloyd stated that “any person, and any group of people (such as a state legislature), who value the existence of human life and diversity can and should feel comfortable assigning a different classification to exclusive heterosexual relationships over exclusive homosexual relationships.” [Scott Lloyd, Ethika Politika, 10/10/11]

Scott Lloyd compared abortion to the Holocaust and blamed women for having sex before they are “ready to get pregnant.”

In a 2004 essay, Lloyd reportedly wrote that “the Jews who died in the Holocaust had a chance to laugh, play, sing, dance, learn, and love each other. The victims of abortion do not.”

“The Holocaust was the violent result of society assigning lesser value to a vulnerable segment of its population.  Abortion is the same exact thing. One can argue that we need to protect women, or they should be allowed to do what they want for their bodies. What prevents you from saying that German society needed protection and Germany was allowed to do what they wanted with their society? The Jews who died in the Holocaust had a chance to laugh, play, sing, dance, learn, and love each other. The victims of abortion do not, simply because people have decided this is the way it should be, not through any proper discernment of their humanity. Neither type of murder is more or less tragic, but don’t fool yourself into thinking that they are not both tragedies, and they are not both murder.” [Mother Jones, 8/22/18]

Lloyd reportedly wrote that women should not be having sex if they are not ready to get pregnant.  

“Lloyd argued that women who aren’t willing or able to give birth should abstain from sex: “If a woman needs to defend so fiercely the ‘one thing they can call their own—their body,’ then they shouldn’t be so careless with it as to have sex when they are not ready to be pregnant.” And he attacked Roe v. Wade, the 1973 decision legalizing abortion in America, homing in on its discussion of the potential negative consequences to unwanted pregnancies.” [Mother Jones, 8/22/18]