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The National Right to Life Committee (NRLC) is the oldest and largest national
anti-abortion Anti-abortion movements, also self-styled as pro-life movements, are involved in the abortion debate advocating against the practice of abortion and its Abortion by country, legality. Many anti-abortion movements began as countermovements in r ...
organization in the
United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...
with affiliates in all 50 states and more than 3,000 local chapters nationwide. Since the 1980s, NRLC has influenced abortion policy at national and state levels through campaign financing of anti-abortion (and almost exclusively Republican) candidates and writing
model legislation A model act, also called a model law or a piece of model legislation, is a suggested example for a law, drafted centrally to be disseminated and suggested for enactment in multiple independent legislatures. The motivation classically has been the ...
that would restrict or ban abortion.


Organization

The national organization of National Right to Life comprises the: * National Right to Life Committee, Inc. (NRLC), 501c(4), EIN: 52–0986196; * National Right to Life Committee Educational Trust Fund, 501c(3), EIN: 52–1241126; * National Right to Life Educational Foundation, Inc., 501c(3), EIN: 73–1010913; * National Right to Life Conventions, Inc., 501c(4), EIN: 52–1257773; * National Right to Life Political Action Committee (NRLPAC); and * National Right to Life Victory Fund, an independent expenditure political action committee, i. e., a "SuperPAC".


History


National Conference of Catholic Bishops: 1968–73

In 1966 the National Conference of Catholic Bishops (NCCB) asked James T. McHugh to begin observing trends in the reform of policy on
abortion Abortion is the early termination of a pregnancy by removal or expulsion of an embryo or fetus. Abortions that occur without intervention are known as miscarriages or "spontaneous abortions", and occur in roughly 30–40% of all pregnan ...
. At the time then McHugh was Director of the
United States Catholic Conference The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) is the episcopal conference of the Catholic Church in the United States. Founded in 2001 after the merger of the National Conference of Catholic Bishops (NCCB) and United States Catholic Co ...
(USCC) Family Life Bureau, and later became the Bishop of Camden and then of Rockville Centre. The NCCB asked McHugh during its annual conference in April 1967 to organize the National Right to Life Committee (NRLC) and fund the established NRLC with $50,000 to "initiate and coordinate a program of information" with state affiliates that would inform stakeholders of the wave of proposed state legislation to liberalize statutes prohibiting abortion. The National Right to Life Committee was formalized in 1968. McHugh hired executive assistant Michael Taylor to help with the day-to-day needs of the organization. In October 1968, they published the first NRLC newsletter formally introducing the organization and providing information on the efforts to change abortion laws. On the state level, independent right to life organizations were beginning to form and began to rely on NRLC for direction and information. The newsletter lasted until 1971. NRLC held its first meeting of nationwide anti-abortion leaders in
Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...
,
Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. It borders on Lake Michigan to its northeast, the Mississippi River to its west, and the Wabash River, Wabash and Ohio River, Ohio rivers to its ...
in 1970 at
Barat College Barat College of the Sacred Heart was a small Catholic college located in Lake Forest, Illinois, north of Chicago. The college was named after Madeleine Sophie Barat, founder of the Society of the Sacred Heart. Barat College was purchased by ...
.
New Jersey New Jersey is a U.S. state, state located in both the Mid-Atlantic States, Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern United States, Northeastern regions of the United States. Located at the geographic hub of the urban area, heavily urbanized Northeas ...
attorney Juan Ryan served as the first President of NRLC. In the following year NRLC held its first convention at
Macalester College Macalester College ( ) is a private liberal arts college in Saint Paul, Minnesota, United States. Founded in 1874, Macalester is exclusively an undergraduate institution with an enrollment of 2,142 students in the fall of 2023. The college ha ...
in
Saint Paul Paul, also named Saul of Tarsus, commonly known as Paul the Apostle and Saint Paul, was a Christian apostle ( AD) who spread the teachings of Jesus in the first-century world. For his contributions towards the New Testament, he is generally ...
,
Minnesota Minnesota ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Upper Midwestern region of the United States. It is bordered by the Canadian provinces of Manitoba and Ontario to the north and east and by the U.S. states of Wisconsin to the east, Iowa to the so ...
. "The only reason that we have a pro-life movement in this country is because of the Catholic people and the Catholic Church", stated the executive director of NRLC James T. McHugh in 1973.


Incorporation and Human Life Amendment

The NRLC was formally incorporated in May 1973, in response to the ''
Roe v. Wade ''Roe v. Wade'', 410 U.S. 113 (1973),. was a List of landmark court decisions in the United States, landmark decision of the U.S. Supreme Court in which the Court ruled that the Constitution of the United States protected the right to have an ...
'' ruling of the
US Supreme Court The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) is the highest court in the federal judiciary of the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all Federal tribunals in the United States, U.S. federal court cases, and over Stat ...
and the desire to gain autonomy apart from the
Catholic Church The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...
, to attract more
Protestants Protestantism is a branch of Christianity that emphasizes Justification (theology), justification of sinners Sola fide, through faith alone, the teaching that Salvation in Christianity, salvation comes by unmerited Grace in Christianity, divin ...
to the organization. The National Conference of Catholic Bishops launched a campaign to amend the
United States Constitution The Constitution of the United States is the Supremacy Clause, supreme law of the United States, United States of America. It superseded the Articles of Confederation, the nation's first constitution, on March 4, 1789. Originally includi ...
by enacting a
Human Life Amendment The Human Life Amendment is the name of multiple proposals to amend the United States Constitution that would have the effect of overturning the Supreme Court 1973 decision ''Roe v. Wade'', which ruled that prohibitions against abortion were uncon ...
that not only invalidated ''Roe v. Wade'' but also prohibited both the
US Congress The United States Congress is the legislature, legislative branch of the federal government of the United States. It is a Bicameralism, bicameral legislature, including a Lower house, lower body, the United States House of Representatives, ...
and the States from legalizing abortion in the United States. Its first convention as an incorporated organization was held the following month in
Detroit Detroit ( , ) is the List of municipalities in Michigan, most populous city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is situated on the bank of the Detroit River across from Windsor, Ontario. It had a population of 639,111 at the 2020 United State ...
,
Michigan Michigan ( ) is a peninsular U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest, Upper Midwestern United States. It shares water and land boundaries with Minnesota to the northwest, Wisconsin to the west, ...
. At the concurrent meeting of NRLC's Board, Ed Golden of
New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...
was elected president. Among the founding members was
Mildred Jefferson Mildred Fay Jefferson (April 6, 1927 – October 15, 2010) was an American physician and anti-abortion activist. The first black woman to graduate from Harvard Medical School, the first woman to graduate in surgery from Harvard Medical School, a ...
, the first African-American woman to graduate from
Harvard Medical School Harvard Medical School (HMS) is the medical school of Harvard University and is located in the Longwood Medical and Academic Area, Longwood Medical Area in Boston, Massachusetts. Founded in 1782, HMS is the third oldest medical school in the Un ...
. Jefferson subsequently served as president in 1975.


Schisms

Erma Clardy Craven Erma Clardy Craven (November 2, 1918 - June 19, 1994) was an African American anti-abortion activist and leader in several anti-abortion advocacy groups, including the National Right to Life Committee and Minnesota Citizens Concerned for Life. ...
spoke out against the increasing alignment of anti-abortion groups and the American right. In 1978, NRLC found itself $100,000 in debt after Jefferson's presidency. Rather than acknowledge her record, she left the organization to form the Right to Life Crusade. On April 1, 1979, the
American Life League American Life League, Inc. (ALL) is an American Catholic activist organization which opposes abortion, all forms of contraception, embryonic stem cell research, and euthanasia. Its current president is co-founder Judie Brown and its headquarters i ...
(ALL) was founded by
Judie Brown Judith A. Brown (born March 4, 1944) is the president and co-founder of American Life League, the oldest Catholic grassroots anti-abortion organization in the United States. Early life and education Brown was born in Los Angeles, on March 4, 1 ...
, former public relations director of NRLC, and 9 others after a schism within the NRLC.


Media publicity

Since its incorporation, the NRLC prioritized its politics over getting publicity due to its concern of being portrayed in a poor light and lack of funds. By 1980 NRLC's annual budget increased to $1,600,000 and retained a membership of 11 million, allowing the organization to invest in media strategy and establish its media department in 1984. By 1985, the organization had a communications department that produced and distributed a radio program, media campaigns, and maintained press connections. Its media strategy worked to create a public image that differentiated the NRLC from allies by using medical professionals, including its president and primary spokesperson John Willke. One hallmark of their media campaign was utilizing the slogan "Love them Both" which embraces claims of women's rights and welfare through compassion to gain the support of those ambivalent on the issue. In 1995, the NRLC coined the term "partial-birth abortion" to describe a new medical procedure also known as " dilation and extraction," or D&X, and "intact D&E" in which the fetus is removed intact from the uterus after 20 weeks gestation. The organization illustrated and published drawings of the procedure in booklets and paid newspaper advertisements to generate public opposition to both the procedure and abortion in general. The NRLC criticized
Bill Clinton William Jefferson Clinton (né Blythe III; born August 19, 1946) is an American politician and lawyer who was the 42nd president of the United States from 1993 to 2001. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, ...
's 1995 veto of a bill that would ban the procedure. The phrase was used by Congress in the
Partial-Birth Abortion Ban Act of 2003 The Partial-Birth Abortion Ban Act of 2003 (, ,
''(HTML)''; *
. In 1992 and 1998, ''
Fortune Fortune may refer to: General * Fortuna or Fortune, the Roman goddess of luck * Luck * Wealth * Fate * Fortune, a prediction made in fortune-telling * Fortune, in a fortune cookie Arts and entertainment Film and television * ''The Fortune'' (19 ...
'' magazine recognized the NRLC as the most publicly recognized and politically effective anti-abortion organization. In 1999, ''Fortune'' ranked them as the 8th most influential public policy group working in Washington, DC.


''The Silent Scream''

In 1984 the Committee co-produced the documentary ''
The Silent Scream ''The Silent Scream'' is a 1984 anti-abortion film created and narrated by Bernard Nathanson, a former abortion provider who had become an anti-abortion activist. It was produced by Crusade for Life, Inc., an evangelical anti-abortion organiza ...
'' on
abortion Abortion is the early termination of a pregnancy by removal or expulsion of an embryo or fetus. Abortions that occur without intervention are known as miscarriages or "spontaneous abortions", and occur in roughly 30–40% of all pregnan ...
with
Bernard Nathanson Bernard N. Nathanson (July 31, 1926 – February 21, 2011) was an American physician, abortion rights advocate turned anti-abortion activist, and a prominent figure in the abortion debate in the United States. He was originally a co-founder in ...
. In 1985, following 2 years of a
boycott A boycott is an act of nonviolent resistance, nonviolent, voluntary abstention from a product, person, organisation, or country as an expression of protest. It is usually for Morality, moral, society, social, politics, political, or Environmenta ...
of a product of the
Upjohn Company The Upjohn Company was an American pharmaceutical manufacturing firm (est. 1886) in Hastings, Michigan, by Dr. William E. Upjohn, an 1875 graduate of the University of Michigan medical school. The company was originally formed to make ''friable ...
that NRLC coordinated, the Company ceased all research on abortifacient drugs. Three years later, NRLC joined other anti-abortion organizations in saying that if any company sold an abortifacient drug, the millions of Americans who opposed
abortion Abortion is the early termination of a pregnancy by removal or expulsion of an embryo or fetus. Abortions that occur without intervention are known as miscarriages or "spontaneous abortions", and occur in roughly 30–40% of all pregnan ...
would
boycott A boycott is an act of nonviolent resistance, nonviolent, voluntary abstention from a product, person, organisation, or country as an expression of protest. It is usually for Morality, moral, society, social, politics, political, or Environmenta ...
all the products of that company."Boycott Threat Blocking Sale of Abortion-Inducing Drug"
''New York Times''


NRLC boycott of Hoechst Marion Roussel and Altace

In the 1990s the NRLC began a nationwide grassroots lobbying campaign against the Freedom of Choice Act, and announced a boycott of the French pharmaceutical company
Roussel Uclaf Roussel Uclaf S.A. was a French pharmaceutical company and one of several predecessor companies of today's Sanofi. It was the second largest French pharmaceutical company before it was acquired by Hoechst AG of Frankfurt, Germany in 1997, with p ...
and its American affiliates for permitting its abortion drug,
mifepristone Mifepristone, and also known by its developmental code name RU-486, is a drug typically used in combination with misoprostol to bring about a medical abortion during pregnancy. This combination is 97% effective during the first 63 days (9 wee ...
, into the
United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...
. The U.S. National Right to Life Committee announced a 1994 U.S. boycott of all Hoechst pharmaceutical products including
Altace Ramipril, sold under the brand name Altace among others, is an ACE inhibitor type medication used to treat high blood pressure, heart failure, and diabetic kidney disease. It can also be used as a preventative medication in patients over 55 y ...
, targeting the abortion pill RU-486. According to Keri Folmar, the lawyer responsible for the language of the
Partial-Birth Abortion Ban Act The Partial-Birth Abortion Ban Act of 2003 (, ,
''(HTML)''; *
, the term "partial-birth abortion" was developed in early 1995 at a meeting of herself, Charles T. Canady, and NRLC lobbyist Douglas Johnson.Gorney, Cynthia
Gambling With Abortion
. ''Harper's Magazine'', November 2004.
The phrase elicited strong negative reactions from a focus group and became a key phrase in NRLC's attack on abortion.


Campaign financing

In 1978,
James Bopp James Bopp Jr. (born February 8, 1948) is an American conservative lawyer. He is most known for his work associated with election laws, anti-abortion model legislation, and campaign finance. Bopp served as deputy attorney general of Indiana from ...
was hired to serve as legal counsel and the NRLC became more involved in elections to further influence state and federal legislation to advance their anti-abortion position. In 1980, the National Right to Life Political Action Committee (NRL PAC) was founded to support anti-abortion candidates, mostly Republicans. Also that year, Bopp led a walkout of conservative delegates from a White House Conference on Families and defended the NRLC's 1980 presidential election voter guides from legal challenges of improper electioneering by a nonprofit. By the 1990s, the NRLC became a major player in campaign financing through its $2 million campaign contributions in the 1996 presidential election. In 1999, the NRLC aggressively lobbied against the 1999 Shays-Meehan bill, which later became the
Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act of 2002 The Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act of 2002 (, ), commonly known as the McCain–Feingold Act or BCRA ( ), is a United States federal law that amended the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971, which regulates the financing of political campaign ...
(BCRA), because it would reclassify many of its and other nonpartisan groups' ads as campaign contributions. A bipartisan group of legislators including
John McCain John Sidney McCain III (August 29, 1936 – August 25, 2018) was an American statesman and United States Navy, naval officer who represented the Arizona, state of Arizona in United States Congress, Congress for over 35 years, first as ...
,
Ronnie Shows Clifford Ronald Shows (born January 26, 1947) is an American educator and former Democratic member of the United States House of Representatives from Mississippi. He served two terms in Congress from 1999 to 2003. Biography Shows was born i ...
, and
Zach Wamp Zachary Paul Wamp (born October 28, 1957) is an American politician who was the U.S. representative for from 1995 to 2011. He is a member of the Republican Party. The district is based in Chattanooga and includes large parts of East Tennessee, ...
criticized the organization for getting involved in issues that did not affect the unborn. Legislative Director Douglas Johnson defended the NRLC's involvement in campaign financing, saying that the bill "would cripple the prolife movement." In 2003, Bopp filed a lawsuit on behalf of the NRLC against the
Federal Election Commission The Federal Election Commission (FEC) is an independent agency of the United States government that enforces U.S. campaign finance laws and oversees U.S. federal elections. Created in 1974 through amendments to the Federal Election Campaign ...
about whether BCRA violates the
First Amendment First most commonly refers to: * First, the ordinal form of the number 1 First or 1st may also refer to: Acronyms * Faint Images of the Radio Sky at Twenty-Centimeters, an astronomical survey carried out by the Very Large Array * Far Infrared a ...
in its prohibition of the use of "soft money" in campaign financing. On May 1, 2003, the district court issued judgment on the case and the NRLC appeals to the Supreme Court. Later that year, the case was consolidated along with eleven other lawsuits into '' McConnell v. FEC.'' In the ruling, the
Supreme Court In most legal jurisdictions, a supreme court, also known as a court of last resort, apex court, high (or final) court of appeal, and court of final appeal, is the highest court within the hierarchy of courts. Broadly speaking, the decisions of ...
upheld the control of soft money and the regulation of electioneering communications in BCRA. The death of
Justice William Rehnquist William Hubbs Rehnquist (October 1, 1924 – September 3, 2005) was an American attorney who served as the 16th chief justice of the United States from 1986 until his death in 2005, having previously been an associate justice from 1972 to 1986. ...
and retirement of Justice Sandra Day O’Connor changed the Supreme Court to a conservative majority, and in 2007 NRLC's affiliate Wisconsin Right to Life brought a case against the FEC again challenging BCRA provisions. In '' FEC v. Wisconsin Right to Life, Inc''., the justices held that issue ads may not be banned from the months preceding a primary or general election.


Model legislation strategy

At the national and state level, NRLC writes
model legislation A model act, also called a model law or a piece of model legislation, is a suggested example for a law, drafted centrally to be disseminated and suggested for enactment in multiple independent legislatures. The motivation classically has been the ...
that lawmakers can utilize in bills to restrict or ban abortion. Their legislation is written with the composition of the Supreme Court in mind, so that the court would be less likely to block it afterwards. For instance, when Justice
Anthony Kennedy Anthony McLeod Kennedy (born July 23, 1936) is an American attorney and jurist who served as an associate justice of the Supreme Court of the United States from 1988 until his retirement in 2018. He was nominated to the court in 1987 by Pres ...
was on the bench, bills were introduced that would ban abortion after 20 weeks. After the conservative Gorsuch, Barrett and Kavanaugh were appointed, legislations began to pass trigger laws. Prior to the ruling on ''
Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization ''Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization'', 597 U.S. 215 (2022), is a List of landmark court decisions in the United States, landmark decision of the Supreme Court of the United States, United States Supreme Court in which the court held ...
'', NRLC released model legislation that bans all abortions unless "necessary to prevent the death of the pregnant woman". Enforcement strategies of the legislation include criminal penalties for anyone aiding or abetting a person seeking an abortion, selling or distributing of abortifacients, and transporting a pregnant minor to obtain an abortion.


In cases of rape

In 2022, responding to reports that a 10-year-old rape victim obtained an abortion, the group's general counsel
James Bopp James Bopp Jr. (born February 8, 1948) is an American conservative lawyer. He is most known for his work associated with election laws, anti-abortion model legislation, and campaign finance. Bopp served as deputy attorney general of Indiana from ...
said that the group's proposed legislation would have banned that abortion; he also said that they believed she should have carried the baby, and "as many women who have had babies as a result of rape, we would hope that she would understand the reason and ultimately the benefit of having the child."


Affiliates

NRLC has affiliates in all fifty states and over 3,000 local chapters. Its
Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States between the East Coast of the United States ...
affiliate, the Virginia Society for Human Life, was founded in 1967 as the first state right to life organization. Other early affiliates include Georgia Right to Life.


Past presidents

* 1968–1973 – Juan Ryan, New Jersey * 1973–1974 – Edward Golden, New York * 1974–1975 – Kenneth VanDerHoef, Washington * 1975–1978 –
Mildred Jefferson Mildred Fay Jefferson (April 6, 1927 – October 15, 2010) was an American physician and anti-abortion activist. The first black woman to graduate from Harvard Medical School, the first woman to graduate in surgery from Harvard Medical School, a ...
, Massachusetts * 1978–1980 – Carolyn Gerster, Arizona * 1980–1983 – John C. Willke, Ohio * 1983–1984 – Jean Doyle, Florida * 1984–1991 – John C. Willke, Ohio * 1991–2005 – Wanda Franz, West Virginia * 2005–present – Carol Tobias, North Dakota


See also

* ''
Eclipse of Reason ''Eclipse of Reason'' is a 1987 Anti-abortion movements, anti-abortion documentary video directed, filmed, and narrated by Bernard Nathanson, with an introduction by Charlton Heston. ''Eclipse of Reason'' is a follow-up to Nathanson’s first fi ...
'' *
Right to life The right to life is the belief that a human (or other animal) has the right to live and, in particular, should not be killed by another entity. The concept of a right to life arises in debates on issues including: capital punishment, with some ...
*
Susan B. Anthony List Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America (formerly Susan B. Anthony List) is an American 501(c)(4) non-profit organization that seeks to reduce and ultimately end abortion in the US, by supporting United States anti-abortion movement, anti-abortion poli ...


References


Notes


Citations


Further reading

* Karrer, Robert N. "The National Right to Life Committee: Its Founding, Its History, and the Emergence of the Pro-Life Movement Prior to Roe v. Wade", ''Catholic Historical Review'', Volume 97, Number 3, July 2011, pp. 527–57
in Project MUSE


External links


National Right to Life Committee
official website

via
Gerald R. Ford Library The Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library is a repository located on the north campus of the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor. The library houses archival materials on the life, career, and presidency of Gerald Ford, the president of the Uni ...

ProlifeProfiles.com/NRLC
criticism from within the anti-abortion movement
''From the archives: Bishop James McHugh dies at 68''. Newsday. Zachary R. Dowdy. December 11, 2000
{{DEFAULTSORT:National Right To Life Committee Anti-abortion organizations in the United States Conservatism in the United States Non-profit organizations based in Washington, D.C. Organizations established in 1973 Political organizations based in the United States Catholic Church and abortion