Lethbridge & District Pro-Life
1805 - 9 Ave. North T1H 1H8 Lethbridge, AB, Canada

Huge update to Lethbridge and District Pro Life Association v Lethbridge (City), - October 29, 2020 For immediate release: October 29, 2020 Lethbridge and District Pro-Life Association (LPL) wins its court application against the City of Lethbridge Justice Gates of the Court of Queen’s Bench of Alberta has issued a ruling for LPL on LPL’s court claim against the City of Lethbridge on the City’s rejection of all five of LPL’s pro-life ads, including an ad which featured a heal...thy newborn baby with the caption, Life Should be the Most Fundamental Human Right. Another LPL ad featured a picture of a pregnant woman with the caption, Equality Should Begin in the Womb while yet another said, Human Rights Should Not Depend on Who You Are. The Court judgment said that the City’s decision to ban the ads was unreasonable because while the City said it conducted LPL’s Charter rights in making its decision, its reasons did not show that. The Court also ruled that it was unreasonable to ban the ads on the basis of the LPL’s website and that rejecting the ads on the basis of inaccuracy does not accord with the right to freedom of expression because, the fight to freedom of expression does not support the contention that the expression must be widely accepted, accurate or scientifically verifiable. The Court also ruled on the issue of whether public complaints provide a legitimate basis for prohibiting expression, saying, public upset and alarm are not sufficient to tip the balance away from the protection of freedom of expression, and that a strong and healthy democracy requires a willingness on the part of the public to accept that the expression of opinions and ideas may, at time, shock, offend and even disturb them. The Court also underlined that LPL’s Charter right includes the right to share messages some may deem unpopular: Freedom of expression is meant to protect minority opinions from being drowned out by the majority. The Court also found that the decision demonstrated a reasonable apprehension of bias because, in part, the City only looked at the negative responses to LPL’s ads and failed to consider the positive ones. This decision is a win for every Canadian who prizes the right to share an opinion free of government taking a biased position on one side while neglecting the duty to protect freedom of expression for all says Carol Crosson, the constitutional lawyer representing LPL. The City should have considered our right to freedom of expression, and while the City contended that it did so, the Court found the opposite, commented LPL. See more

October is Infant Loss Awareness Month. Lethbridge and District Pro-Life and the Knights of Columbus would like to honor and acknowledge the grief of mothers, fathers, and their families who have experienced infant loss, by offering a place to commemorate these children. Our Memorial in Royal View Cemetery in North Lethbridge has space for first names and dates of children who do not have a burial site or were not able to have a funeral. These plaques are for miscarriages, ab...ortions, stillbirths, or tragic losses after birth. There is no cost to the families. Please email [email protected] with the child’s first name and date you would like to acknowledge, or if you have any questions about this memorial. Absolute confidentiality will be maintained. Going forward, this will be an annual event during October and the memorial will be updated with names once per year. See more

The technician quickly told us that it was a girl. But then she started taking longer, and finally she asked us to step into another room. Our doctor delivered... the news gently. But then she sent us to a specialist who wasn’t so gentle. ‘The measurements are all off,’ they told us. ‘We need to know how you’d like to manage the pregnancy.’ It was surreal. I was firm in my decision, but I can empathize with women who feel like they have no choice. Because in that moment I doubted that I would ever be able to meet the needs of my child. She had a condition called ‘skeletal dysplasia.’ Her bones weren’t growing like they should, and she might not even survive. I’m usually a fairly private person, but this time was different. I didn’t care how many people knew. There were prayer chains and Facebook groups. My friends got together without me knowing, and they prayed over us. We received letters from so many people: family overseas, people we’d lost touch with, people we’d never met. We hung them all in the bathroom until the entire wall was filled. But a few weeks before our due date, we received the worst possible news: Elliana’s chest cavity hadn’t grown enough, and there wasn’t room for her lungs. I asked the doctor to give me the odds, but he just shook his head. We began to plan for her funeral. I could feel Elliana kicking inside me as we chose her urn and filled out the paperwork. I remember wanting to stay pregnant forever so that she’d always be safe. On the day of her birth, the waiting room was filled with people who loved us. They prayed from 10 AM to 5 AM the next day. I still keep a picture of that waiting room hanging in our hallway. And it’s my favorite picture, because it reminds me of all the people who petitioned for Elliana’s life. And we got our miracle. I struggle with it sometimes, because I know so many people lose their babies. But Elliana came out breathing on her own, and the doctors were in awe. Eight years laterthey’re still in awe. Our story has a happy ending. But even when it seemed like a tragedy, I never felt alone. I never felt like the story was my own. Because in my darkest moments, a community of people chose to share my burden. See more

Thank you for acknowledging the pain that often goes unnoticed