TORONTO, January 18, 2017 (LifeSiteNews) — The Toronto Women’s March will not welcome any pro-life group that may want to take part, a spokesperson has confirmed.
That would be seen as “contradictory to the message that we’re trying to put out,” Denise Hammond told LifeSiteNews.
The Toronto Women’s March at Queen’s Park on January 21 is one of many across Canada and the United States organized to coincide with the Women’s March on Washington the same day.
Hammond, speaking on behalf of the ad hoc group organizing the event, says the Toronto march fully endorses the Women’s March on Washington’s “Guiding Principles.”
Those include championing women’s rights to “open access to safe, legal, affordable abortion and birth control for all people, regardless of income, location or education.”
When asked by LifeSiteNews how organizers would respond if people carrying pro-life banners showed up at their march, Hammond responded that “We have marshalls in place.”
“And you know, we have our standing principles in terms of ensuring that we’re being supportive and the basis of our march is no tolerance for hate,” she observed.
“So if there someone was coming with intent with that perspective, it wouldn’t be welcome.”
Added Hammond: “One of the key questions in the States is in terms of funding for reproductive rights and reproductive services and we would see that as undermining our position.”
Of course, people on the sidelines may show up with pro-life signs, as is their right, she added.
But no pro-life group has formally approached organizers with a request to participate, she said.
Hammond said that the Toronto March differs from the Women’s March on Washington in that “we don’t have specific groups and organizations that are ‘endorsing’ us or participating.”
The Washington organizers recently deleted the pro-life group New Wave Feminists as an official partner of the Women’s March, and apologized for the “error” of having accepted an “anti-choice” group.
However, the Washington March organizers have since added Stanton HealthCare, an organization that runs pro-life clinics, as one of its partners, as an official partner. Stanton has specifically that they are joining to mobilize women in favour of Planned Parenthood defunding.
Stanton HealthCare’s goal is to replace Planned Parenthood with pro-life alternatives, and it is currently being being sued by Planned Parenthood Meridian in Idaho for being a “nuisance” by parking its mobile unit on its own property next to the abortion business.