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| - | ====== PBP100H: | + | ====== PBP100H: |
| - | These notes from the first half of André Schouten' | + | This is an introduction to pro-life politics in Canada, with a focus on three areas: |
| + | - Policy | ||
| + | - Parties | ||
| + | - Pro-Life Political Groups | ||
| - | ===== History | + | ===== Policy: The Pre-Born Child and Canadian Law ===== |
| - | FIXME more details here | + | Canada has no abortion |
| - | * pre-confederation "quick with child" (first time a mother feels her child move, around 16 weeks child was protected by law) | + | |
| - | * 1869 (first criminal code): | + | |
| - | * 1969: Trudeau' | + | |
| - | * 1988: R. v. Morgentaler: | + | |
| - | * 1991: Bill C-43 fails; died in a tie vote | + | |
| - | * pro-life and pro-choice citizens were united against this bill, it wasn't a great bill | + | |
| - | ===== The Present | + | ==== History |
| + | * 1869: Abortion was a crime at any time in Canada' | ||
| + | * 1969: Pierre Trudeau' | ||
| + | * Omnibus Bill: meaning there was no dedicated debate, but it was one of many changes in an omnibus bill | ||
| + | * Therapeutic Abortion Committees regulating abortion: panel of three doctors needed to approve | ||
| + | * 1988: R. v. Morgentaler: | ||
| + | * therapeutic abortion committee provided unequal access (pro-lifers controlled some committees, pro-choicers controlled others) | ||
| + | * Canadian Supreme Court asked Parliament to craft a new law, suggesting that restrictions later in pregnancy might be considered constitutional | ||
| + | * 1991: Bill C-43 fails, dies in a rare tie vote (see [[https:// | ||
| + | * pro-choice and pro-life movements opposed the legislation | ||
| + | * pro-choice movement didn't want any restrictions | ||
| + | * pro-life movement wanted more restrictions | ||
| + | * 1991+ | ||
| + | * A Canadian government has not attempted to pass updated abortion legislation ever since | ||
| + | * Conservatives didn't touch it again in their last couple years in power | ||
| + | * Liberal government from 1993 to 2006 left Canada lawless | ||
| + | * Conservative government from 2006 said they weren' | ||
| + | * Private Members Bills have been attempted, but none ever passed | ||
| + | * e.g. Pre-Born Victims of Crime | ||
| + | * Ken Epp? | ||
| + | * Cassie and Molly' | ||
| + | * e.g. against coerced abortion (Roxanne' | ||
| + | * e.g. M-312 to form a committee to study when life begins (Stephen Woodsworth) | ||
| + | * e.g. Paul Steckle' | ||
| + | * e.g. M-408 simply expressing an opinion that sex-selective termination of pregnancy is wrong, never came to a vote | ||
| + | * e.g. Bill C-233 The Sex Selective Abortion Act, failed in ~May 2021 - first time a criminal code provision on abortion had been proposed in several years | ||
| + | ==== The Present | ||
| What does the criminal law say about the pre-born child? | What does the criminal law say about the pre-born child? | ||
| - | FIXME WNAL website | + | Section 223(1), (2): |
| + | > "child becomes a human being within the meaning of this Act when it has completely proceeded, in a living state, from the body of its mother whether or not (a) it has breathed, (b) it has independent circulation, | ||
| - | * Section 223(1), (2): | + | Section 238.(1) |
| - | * "child becomes a human being within the meaning of this Act when it has completely proceeded, in a living state, from the body of its mother whether or not (a) it has breathed, (b) it has independent circulation, | + | > (1) Everyone who causes the death, in the act of birth, of any child that has not become a human being, in such a manner that, if the child were a human being he would be guilty of murder, is guilty of an indictable offence and liable to imprisonment for life |
| - | * Does our criminal code refer to children using " | + | * This is never enforced, hundreds of children have been born alive and left to die and nobody is enforcing |
| - | * Section 238.(1) | + | |
| - | | + | |
| - | * R. v. Drummond, 1996, Ont. Ct. J. | + | |
| - | * 7 months pregnant, shotgun into cervix, pulled the trigger | + | |
| - | * charged with... attempted murder | + | |
| - | * the charge didn't stick; the thing she was attempting | + | |
| - | * charged | + | |
| - | * not because she shot her child in the head, but because she didn't tell the doctors | + | |
| - | * R. v. Levkovic: FIXME | + | |
| - | * Canadian | + | |
| - | FIXME | + | Other issues: |
| - | * Other Relevant Laws | + | |
| - | * Section 223: Homicide | + | |
| - | * Section 242-243: Neglect in Child-birth and Concealing Dead Body | + | |
| - | * Section 215: Duties Tending to Preservation of Life | + | |
| - | + | ||
| - | ===== Re-emerging Issues ===== | + | |
| - | Just an introduction to these topics, they' | + | |
| - | * gendercide | + | |
| - | * eugenics (pre-born screening) | + | |
| - | * pro-life clubs / campus free speech | + | |
| - | * access to information | + | |
| - | * infanticide: | + | |
| * conscience rights | * conscience rights | ||
| - | * AHRA: Assisted Human Reproduction Act (after 15 years to created the law, gutted by Supreme Court) | + | * poor statistics and non-mandatory reporting for clinics |
| - | | + | |
| - | * human dignity | + | ==== Opportunities ==== |
| - | * protection of health and safety | + | |
| - | * non-commodification | + | * WeNeedALaw identifies three priorities for laws in line with public opinion |
| - | * non-commercialization | + | * late-term abortion ban |
| - | * Quebec wasn't happy that the federal government passed | + | * sex-selection abortion |
| - | * 4 said completely provincial, 4 said completely federal; last one said some sections are provincial, others federal | + | * pre-born victims of crime |
| - | * consequences | + | * Personhood amendments (like Stephen Woodsworth M-312 was driving at), but this is an unlikely jump from no laws to total ban |
| - | * no strong, consistent, national standard (Alberta can go nuts, Quebec has their own law which is actually pretty good) | + | * Provincial: Criminal law in Canada is a federal matter (unlike the US where there is state criminal |
| - | * some provinces have no intention | + | * provider regulations |
| - | * no controls on human embryo experimentation | + | * abortion clinic regulations |
| - | * human-animal hybrid experimentation is now allowed | + | * regulate as surgical centres |
| - | * no health regulations in place | + | * require licences |
| - | * McLachin' | + | * require physicians only |
| - | * " | + | * Informed consent |
| - | * Section 11 recognizes... | + | * risks of procedure, gestation and development of child, information about complications from procedure |
| - | * Section 13: The production of human life in clandestine... | + | * waiting periods |
| - | * creating life outside the womb could " | + | * ultrasound requirements |
| + | * fetal pain | ||
| + | * independent counselling requirement | ||
| + | * coercion signage | ||
| + | * parental rights / consent | ||
| + | * Reporting: collecting accurate and complete statistics | ||
| + | * Conscience rights | ||
| + | * Defunding | ||
| + | Why? Because Joyce Arthur: | ||
| + | > " | ||
| + | ===== Parties ===== | ||
| + | * NDP: Consistently pro-abortion, | ||
| + | * Interesting side note: Joe Borowski, pro-life hero and former Manitoba NDP cabinet minister in the 1970s, brought a case to the Supreme Court in the 1980s to try to argue that pre-born children deserved human rights under the Charter, but Morgentaler ruling happened first and Borowski case was considered moot | ||
| + | * Liberal: Under Justin Trudeau, no free votes allowed and all members forced to vote pro-choice | ||
| + | * Before Trudeau, Liberal party had 10-25% of caucus voting pro-life on various private members bills between Morgentaler and 2015 | ||
| + | * Conservative Party: | ||
| + | * Party policy | ||
| + | * free votes | ||
| + | * Conservative government won't reopen abortion debate | ||
| + | * Government = cabinet (still allows private members bills) | ||
| + | * Effort to delete this resolution narrowly failed at 2018 policy convention | ||
| + | * FIXME is there a resolution opposing sex selective abortion? | ||
| + | * Caucus | ||
| + | * The last time a vote happened was M-312 in 2012 | ||
| + | * 50% of the Conservative caucus voted pro-life | ||
| + | * 1/3 of cabinet voted pro-life | ||
| + | * Big internal debate within the party, party divided on the issue | ||
| + | * Many pro-life MPs | ||
| + | * Many pro-choice MPs | ||
| + | * contentious issue during leadership campaigns, etc | ||
| + | * History | ||
| + | * Mulroney PC party decimated in 1993 election | ||
| + | * Reform Party, eventually Canadian Alliance, forms to the right of Progressive Conservatives | ||
| + | * 2003 PC Party and Canadian Alliance unite into Conservative Party of Canada | ||
| + | * coalition of big tent of conservatives | ||
| + | * "Red Tories": | ||
| + | * social conservatives | ||
| + | * Green Party: official pro-abortion, | ||
| + | * unclear how many Green candidates are pro-life, if any | ||
| + | * leader Elizabeth May suggested pro-lifers not welcome as candidate or caucus not free to vote pro-life in 2019 election with attention to some pro-life Green Party candidates | ||
| + | * Fringe Parties: | ||
| + | * Christian Heritage Party: 100% pro-life, but receives about as many votes as the Communist Party of Canada (<1% of the vote) | ||
| + | * People' | ||
| + | ===== Political Pro-Life Groups ===== | ||
| + | * Campaign Life Coalition: | ||
| + | * oldest pro-life political group | ||
| + | * strategic challenges | ||
| + | * opposes gestational limits | ||
| + | * advocacy on wide variety of issues, not just abortion (idea bundling) | ||
| + | * [[https:// | ||
| + | * New pro-life groups emerged in past decade to take new strategic approaches | ||
| + | * **WeNeedALaw**: | ||
| + | * Canada went from criminalized (1869) to regulated (1969) to unregulated (1988) | ||
| + | * Goal is to shift from unregulated to regulated, as incremental step towards criminalization | ||
| + | * proposing pro-life legislation that has a chance of passing, given public opinion | ||
| + | * even has a [[https:// | ||
| + | * **RightNow**: | ||
| + | * formed by two ex-CLC staffers | ||
| + | * working with pro-life politicians to get them nominated and elected so that there are enough votes in the House to pass pro-life legislation | ||
| + | * working within political parties to advance pro-life policies (e.g. Conservative Policy, delete resolution that a government will not re-open abortion debate) | ||