Matt C. Abbott
Mom-attorney-activist (politely) confronts pro-aborts, gay activists
By Matt C. Abbott
Nora Doherty isn't afraid of much, if anything. She has more guts than I do, that's for sure. The young Catholic attorney — and mother of two — has been very active in the pro-life, pro-family arena in recent times. Doherty sidewalk counsels women seeking abortions, and she (politely) confronts pro-abortion legislators.
And she even (politely) confronts angry gay activists.
Case in point: Feb. 14, St. Valentine's Day. Dozens of gay activists protested at Chicago's Holy Name Cathedral, and, by the way, it — unlike many pro-life protests — did make the news, including the Chicago Tribune (click here for the story). Go figure.
Anyway, Doherty reports what occurred:
© Matt C. Abbott
Nora Doherty isn't afraid of much, if anything. She has more guts than I do, that's for sure. The young Catholic attorney — and mother of two — has been very active in the pro-life, pro-family arena in recent times. Doherty sidewalk counsels women seeking abortions, and she (politely) confronts pro-abortion legislators.
And she even (politely) confronts angry gay activists.Case in point: Feb. 14, St. Valentine's Day. Dozens of gay activists protested at Chicago's Holy Name Cathedral, and, by the way, it — unlike many pro-life protests — did make the news, including the Chicago Tribune (click here for the story). Go figure.
Anyway, Doherty reports what occurred:
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'[The protesters] were chanting 'Holy Name, Holy Shame.' Or they were screaming at the faithful entering the church, 'Stop funding the bigots!' The chanting could be heard in the sanctuary and choir loft. Many of them were holding signs advocating for the separation of church and state. I was listening to several protesters give interviews and I heard them say that they were targeting Holy Name Cathedral because it is their perception that gay marriage would be mostly obtainable but for the political influence of the Catholic Church.
'I was working with a handful of people to engage the protesters in dialogue about the Church's position on marriage....
'One of the particularly angry protesters yelled at my three-year-old daughter, 'Little girl, I hope you grow up to be gay so that your mother will disown you and you can know how I feel!' Really? That's what she wishes upon my daughter? There were some kinder protesters standing next to her trying to make excuses for her behavior, but she was inexcusably uncivilized and there was literally frothy saliva visibly draining from the corners of her mouth.
'The Chicago Police Department was on hand. According to the director of special events at Holy Name Cathedral, they had been calling the 18th District all week to seek assurances that the demonstration would be on the opposite side of State Street. Despite the assurances from the commander in the 18th District, the protesters were stationed six feet from the steps of the cathedral. This despite the fact that the Chicago Municipal Code states that a person commits disorderly conduct when he knowingly, '(j) Pickets or demonstrates on a public way within 150 feet of any church, temple, synagogue or other place of worship while services are being conducted and one-half hour before services are to be conducted and one-half hour after services have been concluded . . .' Municipal Code 8-5-010.
'So what happened? Why did the police allow these protesters to conduct themselves in a way that is — according to the Municipal Code — 'disorderly?' I cited the code to the officers. They said that they were unaware of this provision and referred me to the man in charge, who was wearing a white shirt. He might have been a sergeant or lieutenant. He said that the organizer of the protest currently has about 20 lawsuits pending against the City of Chicago and that he tends to name officers personally as defendants in his civil suits. As such, unless the commander gave explicit instructions to move the protesters to the other side of the street, he intended to do nothing. His final dismissal was, 'Well, we have to see what the permit says.'
'So, the City of Chicago will issue a special permit that allows people to act in a way that is contrary to the Disorderly Conduct provision of the Municipal Code? I found this fascinating.
'The same Disorderly Conduct law was recently amended to provide a 'Bubble Zone' around abortion clinics. The police have been very diligent — overzealous, actually — in enforcing this 'Bubble Zone' against pro-life people who pray and counsel women outside of the Planned Parenthood on Division and LaSalle, also in the 18th District. So, I am sure that those pro-lifers will be thrilled to know that they too can qualify for a permit that will exempt them from the Disorderly Conduct provisions of the Municipal Code of the City of Chicago.
'I am starting to notice a trend that those groups working to promote gay marriage as well as the expansion of legal abortion increasingly identify the Catholic Church as the only obstacle standing between them and their legislative utopia. It seems, then, that it is just a matter of time until they try to interfere with the Church's ability to legally engage in issue advocacy.
'These groups should realize that even if they somehow silence the Church on moral issues, a majority of the citizens are opposed to efforts to expand abortion and efforts to redefine marriage. Gay marriage — when put to a referendum — is being voted down in state after state by a majority of the voters in those jurisdictions. American citizens agree that a marriage between a man and a woman should realize certain benefits to which other relationships should not be equally entitled. Marriage between one man and one woman has been the foundation of society for thousands of years. Church or no Church, people are simply not ready to re-think this definition.'
© Matt C. Abbott
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