In Philadelphia Abortion Case, Supreme Court Rules Unanimously for Religious Freedom

Catholic Social Services has been providing adoption and foster care services in Philadelphia for many years. However, the city arbitrarily denied them the right to continue placing children in homes because they affirm that marriage is between one man and one woman, and declined to work with same-sex couples.

After a protracted lawsuit, Fulton v. City of Philadelphia, the Supreme Court yesterday ruled unanimously in favor of Catholic Social Services and their right to serve the children of Philadelphia. Chief Justice John Roberts wrote the majority opinion, with concurring opinions from other justices. Chief Justice Roberts wrote

CSS [Catholic Social Services] seeks only an accommodation that will allow it to continue serving the children of Philadelphia in a manner consistent with its religious beliefs; it does not seek to impose those beliefs on anyone else. The refusal of Philadelphia to contract with CSS for the provision of foster care services unless it agrees to certify same-sex couples as foster parents cannot survive strict scrutiny, and violates the First Amendment.

Although the Court could have used the opportunity to change the trajectory of its religious freedom jurisprudence (as several Justices urged it to in concurring opinions), Fulton is a victory. It is a step in the right direction for religious freedom in the United States, with a unanimous opinion making clear that the everyone should be able to live out their faith without fear of government intrusion or discrimination. 

Illinois Keeps Parental Notification Law Protecting Teens and Babies

An attempt to repeal Illinois’s parental notification law failed to advance out of committee before the end of the legislative session, leaving Illinois’s 1995 law requiring parental notification before a minor undergoes an abortion intact. The parental notification law is the last remaining restriction on abortion in Illinois after Governor J.B. Pritzker signed a law in 2019 legalizing abortion up until birth for any reason, repealing abortion clinic regulations, and requiring all health insurance plans to cover abortions. That year abortion rates in Illinois increased by 10%.

 Like Minnesota, Illinois requires parental notification, but not consent, before a minor undergoes an abortion. The parental notification law is not only the last remaining abortion restriction in Illinois, it is also a policy that has widespread support among parents, including parents who describe themselves as pro-abortion. Removing this law would take away the last protection Illinois offers to the unborn while also attacking parental rights and teens’ relationships with their parents. The Illinois Parental Notification of Abortion Act points out that abortion can lead to long-term medical, emotional, and psychological harm and that it is not in a minor’s best interest to keep their parents in the dark.

Furthermore, without this law, teens who may be in dangerous situations could get abortions without their parents’ knowledge, or be taken to get an abortion by an abuser. When the bill was being considered in committee, Dr. Brook Bello, a sex trafficking survivor, explained to lawmakers that if Illinois’s parental notification law, had been in place when she was in her teens, it could have led to her rescue. Instead, she was taken by the man who was trafficking her for multiple abortions and her abuse continued. “Had my parents been notified, my mother would have known what city I was in,” she told the committee. “She would have known what street I possibly would have been near. She could have contacted law enforcement.”