OTTAWA, Ontario (LifeSiteNews) — Hundreds, if not thousands, of Canadians will rally in support to save pro-life charities this Wednesday in the nation’s capital. Canada’s pro-abortion Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is threatening to strip away the organizations’ charitable tax status.
The “Rally to Save Our Charities” will start at 12:30 local time on Canada’s Parliament Hill in Ottawa, according to event organizer Campaign Life Coalition (CLC).
The peaceful rally will include speeches from pro-life Members of Parliament. CLC says they will “receive in-person a 12,000-strong petition asking MPs to oppose any bill, motion, or regulatory policy that seeks to penalize pregnancy centres and other pro-life organizations in our country.”
CLC said in a press release regarding the rally, “Without charity status, these pro-woman, life-affirming pregnancy centres may be forced to close.”
“Many will certainly struggle financially. In the end, this will mean less help for pregnant women in crisis who count on the approximately 150 pregnancy centres across Canada to be there for them in their time of need,” said CLC.
CLC’s Youth Coordinator Josie Luetke explained that pregnancy resources centers, “which often survive only thanks to generous donors and volunteers, provide pregnancy tests, diapers, baby clothes, etc. and help meet clients’ physical, emotional, legal, and spiritual needs.”
“They should be treated no different than any other charity or vital community service — be it food banks, women’s shelters, or youth centres. The government should be doing everything it can to keep their doors open, not trying to close them,” Luetke said.
CLC says the rally will include testimonies supporting pregnancy resource centers along with “a reading of Campaign Life Coalition’s petition to MPs.”
Rally participants say CLC will be holding signs “letting the country know that Prime Minister Trudeau’s plan hurts women.”
Some of the signs will include messages such as “Don’t tax our charities,” “Trudeau is hurting women & babies,” and “Stop the lies: pregnancy centres save lives.”
Earlier this year, Trudeau’s Liberal Party’s 2021 election platform specifically targeted pro-life groups, including organizations that directly help women in crisis pregnancies.
A portion of its 86-page platform states, “A re-elected Liberal government will: No longer provide charity status to anti-abortion organizations (for example, Crisis Pregnancy Centres) that provide dishonest counseling to women about their rights and about the options available to them at all stages of the pregnancy.”
The Liberal Party platform claims that “anti-choice organizations are actively working to spread misinformation about abortion, putting the health and safety of young people and vulnerable women at risk.”
As a result, CLC has been working non-stop since Trudeau was re-elected on September 20 to rally all Canadians to demand that his government not remove charitable status from pregnancy centers.
CLC has a Voter Voice campaign that reads, “Please use our Action Alert tool to urge your Member of Parliament to defend the important work of Crisis Pregnancy Centres and Pro-Life Educational Organizations across this country.”
A CLC petition called “Save Canada’s crisis pregnancy centres” has 10,317 signatures at the time of writing.
CLC is asking all pro-life Canadians to sign and share the petition with friends and family.
Pregnancy Care Canada says there are over 30,000 people who asked for its help last year from their 80 affiliated Pregnancy Care Centres.
Also, there were over 7,000 clients who got much-needed baby supplies such as diapers, clothing, and formula last year from Pregnancy Care Centres, with around 600 women getting post-abortion support.
To make your opinions respectfully known, please contact:
Justin Trudeau – Office of the Prime Minister
80 Wellington Street
Ottawa, ON K1A 0A2
Fax: 613-941-6900
[email protected]
https://pm.gc.ca/en/connect/contact
Please also contact, if applicable, your Canadian Member of Parliament.