On March 6, 2018, three student organizations hosted a panel to discuss the Supreme Court case National Institute of Family and Life Advocates (NIFLA) v. Becerra.
This event was sponsored by the Federalist Society at Chicago-Kent College of Law, The Round Table, and the Chicago-Kent Chapter of the American Constitution Society for Law and Policy
The event featured three panelists:
- Professor Carolyn Shapiro, Founder and Co-Director of the Institute on the Supreme Court of the United States – @CShapLaw
- Ken Connelly, Alliance Defending Freedom
- Noell Sterett, Mauck & Baker – @NoelWSterett
The panelists shared their perspectives in a discussion on abortion, free speech, Roe v. Wade, and more. Their discussion was followed by an open Q&A with students in attendance. Missed the event? Find the livestream video, tweets from the speakers, and photos from the event below:
Live Video
Twitter Recap
Thanks in advance to everyone who helped put it together and to @cshaplaw and Mr. Connelly for making the time to have this discussion. @ChicagoKentLaw @NIFLA @AllianceDefends @MauckBaker #SCOTUS
— Noel Sterett (@NoelWSterett) March 6, 2018
.@NoelWSterett arguing that requiring pro-life crisis pregnancy centers to post disclosures on abortion services intrudes on First Amendment rights. pic.twitter.com/fN2NpE4SuV
— Chicago-Kent FedSoc (@ChiKentFedSoc) March 7, 2018
This was a great event, with strong disagreement among panelists expressed politely and respectfully. One disagreement I had with my co-panelists was about this characterization. The law does not require pro-life centers to post disclosures on where to obtain an abortion. 1/ https://t.co/if1N9kKGUC
— Carolyn Shapiro (@cshaplaw) March 7, 2018
The law requires crisis pregnancy centers that are licensed medical facilities to post the following statement: "California has public programs that provide immediate free or low-cost access to comprehensive family planning services (including... " 2/
— Carolyn Shapiro (@cshaplaw) March 7, 2018
"...all FDA-approved methods of contraception), prenatal care, and abortion
— Carolyn Shapiro (@cshaplaw) March 7, 2018
for eligible women. To determine whether you qualify, contact the county social services office at [telephone number]." That doesn't look to me like telling a woman where to go to get an abortion. 3/
Unlicensed centers, which do not provide medical services, must post this statement: "This facility is not licensed as a medical facility by the State of California and has
— Carolyn Shapiro (@cshaplaw) March 7, 2018
no licensed medical provider who provides or directly supervises the provision of services." 4/
That's it. No directions to the nearest abortion clinic, or anything like that. No requirement that staff or volunteers themselves say anything about the availability of abortion services. 5/
— Carolyn Shapiro (@cshaplaw) March 7, 2018
The required posting for licensed centers even includes information about the availability of prenatal care, which not all of the centers themselves provide. No predictions about what will happen at #SCOTUS, but finding compelled speech here opens quite a can of worms. 6/end
— Carolyn Shapiro (@cshaplaw) March 7, 2018
Just realized that this thread does not identify the case we were talking about. It's NIFLA v. Becerra, a challenge to a California law, to be argued in #SCOTUS on March 20. More info here: https://t.co/XRQU5Gd1nT
— Carolyn Shapiro (@cshaplaw) March 7, 2018
Event Photos
