I & A statement on TV and radio adverts for abortion providers

Integrity and Action notes with dismay the decision to allow profit making abortion groups to advertise on television and radio in Britain.

As abortion is legal in Great Britain the Committee of Advertising Practice and the Broadcast Committee of Advertising Practice have ruled that there is no reason private clinics which provide abortions should be banned from advertising their services in all media.

The promotion of abortion and associated services continues to be widely promoted in Britain, notably over Christmas and New Year 2011/12 the British Pregnancy Advisory Service gave out free morning after pills to women, after only a brief telephone consultation.

Mark Bhagwandin, from the pro-life charity Life, stated: “Whatever one's opinion of abortion, the fact is that it ends the life of an existing human individual and we ought therefore to resist any measure that tends to trivialize it, or to make it appear as inconsequential as other consumer choices. To allow private abortion clinics, for whom abortions are part of their core business, to advertise on television alongside normal businesses such as carmakers and insurance companies is very likely to have this effect.”

Integrity and Action would strongly encourage readers to write and complain to the Secretary of State for Media, Jeremy Hunt, and to their own MP and in the future to consider boycotting those TV channels and Radio stations which allow abortion providers to advertise.

Further reason to boycott Tesco's.

Nick Lansley, Tesco’s head of research and development, said he was actively taking a stand “against evil Christians” who opposed the right of same-sex couples to marry.

In a message on his profile page on Flickr.com, he said: “I’m…campaigning against evil Christians (that’s not all Christians, just bad ones) who think that gay people should not lead happy lives and get married to their same-sex partners.”

The remarks, which have now been removed from the photo sharing website, caused outrage among Christian groups, who said they would refuse to shop in the chain’s stores in protest.

Colin Hart, director of the Christian Institute, said: “I won’t be shopping at Tesco this Christmas, and I am repeatedly hearing from other Christians who have already come to the same conclusion.

“Mr Lansley is entitled to his opinions, and Christians are entitled to choose not to shop at Tesco.”

The row comes a month after Tesco provoked controversy by reducing its support for the charity Cancer Research’s Race for Life while deciding to sponsor Pride London, Britain’s largest gay festival.
A Tesco spokesman said: "Mr Lansley’s comments, made in a personal capacity in 2008, in no way reflect the views of Tesco.
"Our values as a company are such that we abhor criticism of any religion, and we knew nothing about Mr Lansley’s comments until they were brought to our attention.
"We are very sorry that anyone might have thought that there was any blurring of the boundary between his personal comments and his work for Tesco. We have therefore asked him to remove the comments, and he has done so. "
A study last month showed that only six places of worship out of more than 40,000 across the country want to host civil partnership ceremonies.
The Government Equalities Office’s consultation on the plan to allow same–sex unions on religious premises in England and Wales from next month, found that as many as 532 faith groups would "opt–in" to allow the events on their premises.
However, congregations of just four small churches and two Quaker groups said they would definitely consider "applying for approval of their religious premises for the registration of civil partnerships".
Most of the country's 46,155 places of worship where marriages may be solemnised opposed the plan, saying they believed it would blur the line between marriage and civil partnership.
They also feared it could lead to challenges under the Equality Act or human rights legislation from homosexual couples who want to be "married" in church.
The Government admits the response risks "a significant proportion of the demand not being met". It predicted as many as 1,593 same–sex couples could want to hold their ceremonies in church each year.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/religion/8965869/Religious-groups-boycott-Tesco-over-senior-executives-evil-Christians-comment.html

BPAS picket - 19th December 2011

Here are a few pictures of the good souls and supporters of I & A who picketed the BPAS headquarters on 19th December in response to their vile campaign of pushing the morning after pill. They believe that they have even saved a life as one lady went in to the buidling, but came out again shortly afterwards saying that she will keep her baby. A full report will follow.

Christ our King

On Maundy Thursday, 21st April 2011 two versions of a national press advertisement for Phones 4 U Ltd featured a cartoon-like graphical illustration of Our Lord grinning broadly and winking, pointing a finger with one hand and displaying a thumbs-up sign with the other. The Sacred Heart was featured on his chest. The headline text stated "Miraculous deals on Samsung Galaxy AndroidTM phones". Clearly this was blasphemous and published during Holy Week intentionally. 

A supporter of Integrity and Action alerted as many other supporters as possible to complain to the Advertising Standards Authority. Of the 98 complaints, at least a quarter of these were received from I & A supporters. A ruling has now been made in our favour against this vile advertisement. Phones 4 U Ltd have now had to concede that this advert will not be run again in the same or similar form.

The full ruling can be read here - http://www.asa.org.uk/ASA-action/Adjudications/2011/9/Phones-4-U-Ltd/SHP_ADJ_156539.aspx.

Long live Christ the King.

Leaflet

For those wishing to see the leaflet we recently distributed at the Marie Stopes clinic, please use this link - 
http://www.scribd.com/doc/63250688

Marie Stopes – Liberator of women, or racially motivated eugenicist?

On the anniversary of the first I & A activity, a group of 14 hearty souls (including one lady) set out for the Marie Stopes headquarters in central London. We had designed a leaflet demonstrating the vile ideas held and propagated by Marie Stopes herself. It is shocking to note that in spite of these ideas, through which she would have liked to have stopped much of mankind from reproducing, she is still held in such high esteem by one of the primary abortion providers in the country (which also happens to be a registered charity) Marie Stopes International and that they continue to use her name. We want to expose the horrific hypocrisy of this organisation. We compiled a leaflet summarising the grotesque ideas of Stopes based on the article which was on this blog a few months ago

and so we spent the afternoon of Saturday 14^th August in Whitfield Street in London giving these leaflets to all those passing by and took the opportunity to explain more about her and what Marie Stopes International does now. Generally we received a favourable response and many were keen to hear more about the activities of these baby butchers. Whilst a few activists were distributing the leaflet, the rest of the group were saying the Rosary directly opposite the premises

We hope and pray that by exposing one of the founders of 'birth control' and its twin abortion, people will start to question the whole abortion industry for that is simply what it is and a wealthy one at that. We hope in turn that they will begin to question abortion itself.

After this we headed back to north London for a social evening. This was an opportunity to raise funds for I & A and for new activists to get acquainted with the group and its aims. Naturally we started the evening with a Rosary as we seek Our Lady’s blessing on everything we aim to do. During the course of the evening we were privileged to be shown some of the great talents of our activists. We hope such evenings will become a regular occurrence so that our supporters and activists can get better acquainted and discuss future activities.

More from Ireland

SSPX priests and faithful lead the way in Catholic Action in Ireland. 

(Report from The Irish Examiner)

RELIGIOUS protesters prayed at the gates of University College Cork (UCC) for the second day in a row yesterday as a controversial image of "Our Lady of Guadalupe" went on display on campus.

Mexican-born artist Alma Lopez’s digital print was among 12 of her art works displayed on the second floor of the Rahilly building as part of an academic conference on Chicano culture — US citizens of Mexican descent.

The exhibition sparked controversy earlier this week after the Bishop John Buckley of Cork and Ross described the Our Lady image as "offensive".

But it attracted a steady stream of visitors throughout the day. Most dismissed the controversy and urged those protesting outside to open their minds and visit the exhibition.

The group of some 20 or so men, women, children and priests who braved the rain to pray decades of the rosary at the university’s main gates, refused to view the image.

They held placards denouncing it as blasphemous and distributed literature to passersby.

Mary Wrenne, from Ballincollig, Co Cork, clutched a statue of the Virgin Mary and vowed to continue her protest tomorrow.

"As a woman, I am offended by this image," she said. "This exhibition is extremely disrespectful to the Mother of God."

Fr Francis Gallagher, a member of the Society of St Pius X, travelled from Athlone to join the protest.

"This is very offensive to Catholics. I am here to protest what I would consider to be disrespect towards the Mother of God," he said. "Having her dressed in an immodest way gives a bad example." He said UCC authorities should have cancelled the exhibition.

"We have artistic talents because God has given them to us and we should use them in some way to glorify God. "What this lady is doing certainly doesn’t do that. It’s not art — it’s some kind of gimmick."

Joe O’Connell, from Cork, who said he was a member of the Fatima Centre Ireland, said he has asked the gardaí to investigate whether the image was blasphemous. John O’Callaghan, from Cork, said he has written to the President of UCC asking him to resign.

"Our Lady has always been held in great esteem by the Irish," he said. "But this exhibition is insulting and demeaning to all our histories."

A member of UCC’s Atheist Society supported their right to protest but criticised their stance, and the current blasphemy laws. "We believe that religious and nonreligious people alike should be protected from harm, and incitement to harm, but religions, just like economics and politics, should be open to criticism," a spokesman said.

Ms Lopez said the image does not represent the Mother of God and was never intended to offend. "I never intended to offend, desecrate, blaspheme, or disrespect anyone’s religious beliefs with this image," she said.