{"id":585,"date":"2011-07-14T09:34:01","date_gmt":"2011-07-14T13:34:01","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blog.beliefnet.com\/faithandjustice\/?p=585"},"modified":"2011-07-14T08:36:12","modified_gmt":"2011-07-14T12:36:12","slug":"first-amendment-pro-life-win-in-nyc","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/faithandjustice\/2011\/07\/first-amendment-pro-life-win-in-nyc.html","title":{"rendered":"First Amendment, Pro-Life Win in NYC"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>There was a problem with New York City Local Law #17 from the very start.<\/p>\n<p>It singles out and targets pro-life advocates &#8211; crisis pregnancy centers &#8211; in New York City. The requirements are burdensome and, quite frankly, unconstitutional.<\/p>\n<p>This ordinance requires crisis pregnancy centers to post signs in the lobbies of their counseling centers, add extensive additional written language to their advertising materials, and to provide oral statements during both &#8220;in person&#8221; and telephonic conversations regarding the services offered by crisis pregnancy centers. The requirements apply only to crisis pregnancy centers and not to abortion businesses like Planned Parenthood.<\/p>\n<p>It forces crisis pregnancy centers to adopt and express views about abortion and contraception that they strongly disagree with.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/blog.beliefnet.com\/faithandjustice\/files\/2011\/07\/shutterstock_80841349.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignleft size-thumbnail wp-image-597\" src=\"https:\/\/wp-media.beliefnet.com\/sites\/240\/2011\/07\/shutterstock_80841349-150x150.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"150\" height=\"150\" \/><\/a>That&#8217;s why we filed a federal lawsuit challenging the law and\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/aclj.org\/pro-life\/court-must-block-nyc-law-targeting-crisis-pregnancy-centers\" target=\"_blank\">went to court last month\u00a0participating\u00a0in oral arguments before the court to stop the enactment of this disturbing measure<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>I&#8217;m extremely pleased to report that the court\u00a0has granted our request for a preliminary injunction &#8211; blocking the implementation of this discriminatory law. <a href=\"http:\/\/www.wnd.com\/index.php?fa=PAGE.view&amp;pageId=321877\" target=\"_blank\">This\u00a0represents a significant victory<\/a>. The opinion, issued by Judge William H. Pauley in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, came on the eve of the law&#8217;s scheduled enactment.<\/p>\n<p>What&#8217;s encouraging is that the court clearly understood that this measure is not only wrong, but violates the First Amendment rights of our clients. The court correctly concluded the law violates free speech saying the law&#8217;s &#8220;over-expansiveness is evident from its very language.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>The court was especially critical of the City&#8217;s desire to single-out crisis pregnancy centers with the new law. &#8220;Defendants&#8217; second argument&#8211;that Plaintiffs engage in commercial speech because they are provided an audience to whom they can espouse their beliefs&#8211;is particularly offensive to free speech principles,&#8221; the court declared.\u00a0 &#8220;While Defendants apparently regard an assembly of people as an economic commodity, this Court does not.\u00a0 Under such a view, flyers for political rallies, religious literature promoting church attendance, or similar forms of expression would constitute commercial speech merely because they assemble listeners for the speaker.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>The opinion states: &#8220;This Court will not upend established free speech protections in service of Defendants&#8217; overly broad definition of commercial speech.&#8221;\u00a0 The court added:\u00a0 &#8220;Local Law 17&#8217;s fundamental flaw is that &#8230; permits the Commission to classify a facility as a &#8216;pregnancy services center&#8217; based solely on unspecified criteria.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>The complete opinion is posted <a href=\"http:\/\/c0391070.cdn2.cloudfiles.rackspacecloud.com\/pdf\/new-york-pro-life-preliminary-injunction11-7-13.pdf\" target=\"_blank\">here<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Our\u00a0lawsuit\u00a0contends that the ordinance violates the constitutionally protected rights to freedom of speech, freedom of assembly and association, freedom of the press, and due process of law, guaranteed to Plaintiffs by the First and Fourteenth Amendments to the U.S. Constitution, as well as the New York Constitution. The lawsuit is posted <a href=\"http:\/\/media.aclj.org\/pdf\/aclj_complaint_20110322.pdf\" target=\"_blank\">here<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Now that we&#8217;ve secured this important First Amendment victory through a preliminary injunction, our attention turns toward making this injunction permanent. Of course, the City of New York may decide to appeal this decision. And, if that&#8217;s the case, we will aggressively meet that challenge.<\/p>\n<p>At the end of the day, though, we&#8217;re confident this troubling measure will never be enacted. And, with the issuance of this preliminary injunction, we took an important step toward ensuring that the constitutional rights of crisis pregnancy centers in New York City remain protected.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>There was a problem with New York City Local Law #17 from the very start. It singles out and targets pro-life advocates &#8211; crisis pregnancy centers &#8211; in New York City. The requirements are burdensome and, quite frankly, unconstitutional. This ordinance requires crisis pregnancy centers to post signs in the lobbies of their counseling centers,&hellip;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":401,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3,4,45,29,66],"tags":[743,199,98,776,200,756,201,749],"class_list":["post-585","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-faith","category-justice","category-new-york-city","category-pro-life","category-u-s-constitution","tag-aclj","tag-crisis-pregnancy-centers","tag-federal-court","tag-first-amendment","tag-free-speech","tag-new-york-city","tag-pro-abortion-legislation","tag-pro-life"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v23.9 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>First Amendment, Pro-Life Win in NYC - Faith &amp; Justice<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/faithandjustice\/2011\/07\/first-amendment-pro-life-win-in-nyc.html\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"First Amendment, Pro-Life Win in NYC - Faith &amp; Justice\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"There was a problem with New York City Local Law #17 from the very start. It singles out and targets pro-life advocates &#8211; crisis pregnancy centers &#8211; in New York City. The requirements are burdensome and, quite frankly, unconstitutional. This ordinance requires crisis pregnancy centers to post signs in the lobbies of their counseling centers,&hellip;\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/faithandjustice\/2011\/07\/first-amendment-pro-life-win-in-nyc.html\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Faith &amp; Justice\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2011-07-14T13:34:01+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2011-07-14T12:36:12+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"http:\/\/blog.beliefnet.com\/faithandjustice\/files\/2011\/07\/shutterstock_80841349-150x150.jpg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Jay Sekulow\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"First Amendment, Pro-Life Win in NYC - Faith &amp; Justice","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/faithandjustice\/2011\/07\/first-amendment-pro-life-win-in-nyc.html","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"First Amendment, Pro-Life Win in NYC - Faith &amp; Justice","og_description":"There was a problem with New York City Local Law #17 from the very start. It singles out and targets pro-life advocates &#8211; crisis pregnancy centers &#8211; in New York City. The requirements are burdensome and, quite frankly, unconstitutional. This ordinance requires crisis pregnancy centers to post signs in the lobbies of their counseling centers,&hellip;","og_url":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/faithandjustice\/2011\/07\/first-amendment-pro-life-win-in-nyc.html","og_site_name":"Faith &amp; Justice","article_published_time":"2011-07-14T13:34:01+00:00","article_modified_time":"2011-07-14T12:36:12+00:00","og_image":[{"url":"http:\/\/blog.beliefnet.com\/faithandjustice\/files\/2011\/07\/shutterstock_80841349-150x150.jpg"}],"author":"Jay Sekulow","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/faithandjustice\/2011\/07\/first-amendment-pro-life-win-in-nyc.html","url":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/faithandjustice\/2011\/07\/first-amendment-pro-life-win-in-nyc.html","name":"First Amendment, Pro-Life Win in NYC - Faith &amp; Justice","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/faithandjustice\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/faithandjustice\/2011\/07\/first-amendment-pro-life-win-in-nyc.html#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/faithandjustice\/2011\/07\/first-amendment-pro-life-win-in-nyc.html#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"http:\/\/blog.beliefnet.com\/faithandjustice\/files\/2011\/07\/shutterstock_80841349-150x150.jpg","datePublished":"2011-07-14T13:34:01+00:00","dateModified":"2011-07-14T12:36:12+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/faithandjustice\/#\/schema\/person\/fd4c384af0620d4b82ae09cf1d77bdb4"},"breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/faithandjustice\/2011\/07\/first-amendment-pro-life-win-in-nyc.html#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/faithandjustice\/2011\/07\/first-amendment-pro-life-win-in-nyc.html"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/faithandjustice\/2011\/07\/first-amendment-pro-life-win-in-nyc.html#primaryimage","url":"http:\/\/blog.beliefnet.com\/faithandjustice\/files\/2011\/07\/shutterstock_80841349-150x150.jpg","contentUrl":"http:\/\/blog.beliefnet.com\/faithandjustice\/files\/2011\/07\/shutterstock_80841349-150x150.jpg"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/faithandjustice\/2011\/07\/first-amendment-pro-life-win-in-nyc.html#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/faithandjustice"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"First Amendment, Pro-Life Win in NYC"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/faithandjustice\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/faithandjustice\/","name":"Faith &amp; Justice","description":"Jay Sekulow - ACLJ","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/faithandjustice\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/faithandjustice\/#\/schema\/person\/fd4c384af0620d4b82ae09cf1d77bdb4","name":"Jay Sekulow","description":"Jay Sekulow is Chief Counsel for the American Center for Law and Justice (ACLJ), a law firm and educational organization that focuses on constitutional law. He is also Chief Counsel of the European Centre for Law and Justice (ECLJ). Jay Sekulow is one of the leading defenders of constitutional rights and religious liberties in the United States. Over the past 25 years, Jay Sekulow has amassed an unparalleled record of accomplishment, arguing before the U.S. Supreme Court on 12 occasions. His aggressive litigation strategy before the Supreme Court has led to many landmark First Amendment victories. In his first case before the Supreme Court, Jews for Jesus, Jay Sekulow secured the right of religious groups to pass out tracks in airports. In Mergens, Jay Sekulow successfully protected the right of students to form Bible clubs and prayer groups on public school campuses. In Lamb\u2019s Chapel, Jay Sekulow cleared the way for churches to have equal access to public facilities in the same way that other groups are permitted to utilize those facilities. In the Bray and Operation Rescue cases, Jay Sekulow protected the free speech rights of pro-life advocates to be free from criminal prosecution for conveying their pro-life message. In McConnell v. FEC, Jay Sekulow protected the right of young people to engage in the political process by donating to the campaign of their choice. In Pleasant Grove, Jay Sekulow paved the way for governments to be able to display Ten Commandments monuments, and other monuments of their choosing, in public parks. Through the ACLJ, Jay Sekulow engages the political, legal, and cultural battles facing America today. He routinely works with Members of Congress, advising them on proposed legislation and representing them in critical legal matters. Jay Sekulow has also testified before Congress on the constitutionality of proposed legislation. Also, in addition to being a successful Supreme Court advocate, Jay Sekulow is a highly respected broadcaster. Jay Sekulow is the host of Jay Sekulow Live! which airs each weekday on over 850 radio stations nationwide, in addition Sirius and XM satellite radio. He brings insight and education to listeners daily through this national call-in radio program. He is also the host of the ACLJ This Week, the ACLJ\u2019s weekly television program. Jay Sekulow regularly appears on major media outlets, including FOX News, CNN, ABC, CBS, and NBC, where he is sought out for his vast experience in constitutional law and his unique insight into many of the pressing legal and political issues facing America today. He is frequently quoted in the nation's leading newspapers and often contributes opinion editorials to national publications. Jay Sekulow has also published numerous law review and other scholarly articles. Jay Sekulow has received numerous honors for his groundbreaking legal work in the area of free speech and religious liberties. The Legal Times has named Sekulow one of \u201cThe 90 Greatest Washington Lawyers of the Last 30 Years\u201d and the National Law Journal has twice named Sekulow one of the \u201c100 Most Influential Lawyers\u201d in the United States. In addition, TIME Magazine listed Jay Sekulow as one of the \"25 Most Influential Evangelicals\" in America. Jay Sekulow\u2019s legal work in defense of religious liberties and human rights extends beyond the United States, having founded the ECLJ in Strasbourg, France, which maintains consultative status with the United Nations. He has also opened offices in Pakistan, Africa, and Jerusalem, Israel. Jay Sekulow is a staunch defender of Israel, presenting arguments before the International Criminal Court at the Hague. His efforts in support of Israel\u2019s right to defend itself from terrorist attacks have been commended by Israeli government officials, one official stating, \"Jay was instrumentally-involved in projects that the President of Israel and the Prime Minister put on our national agenda.\" Jay Sekulow also has a passion for educating the next generation of religious liberty advocates. He is a member of the Regent University Law School Faculty as a Distinguished Professor of Law and routinely teaches courses on constitutional law and presents guest lectures. Jay Sekulow has also started educational programs in international human rights law in Strasbourg, France and at Handong University in South Korea. Jay Sekulow is a graduate of Mercer University, earning both a bachelor\u2019s degree and doctor of jurisprudence. Sekulow served on the editorial staff of the Mercer Law Review and graduated cum laude. He later earned a Ph.D. from Regent University, writing his dissertation on American Legal History. Jay Sekulow also serves on the Board of Trustees for The Supreme Court Historical Society in Washington, D.C. Jay Sekulow, ACLJ Chief Counsels full biography and video. Jay Sekulow on Facebook. Jay Sekulow on Twitter. Jay Sekulow on YouTube.","url":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/faithandjustice\/author\/jay_sekulow"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/faithandjustice\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/585","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/faithandjustice\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/faithandjustice\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/faithandjustice\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/401"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/faithandjustice\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=585"}],"version-history":[{"count":26,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/faithandjustice\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/585\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":606,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/faithandjustice\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/585\/revisions\/606"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/faithandjustice\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=585"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/faithandjustice\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=585"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/faithandjustice\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=585"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}