“Biden’s Department of Justice (DOJ) has abused their discretion in going after Americans not based on what they do, but how they think. This includes six pro-life individuals who were unjustly prosecuted for singing hymns and praying, which today lands them in federal prison,” said Students for Life of America’s (SFLA) Kristan Hawkins. “Consider that in America, squatters can basically steal an entire house and pro-terrorist protestors can keep students from getting the education they are paying for…and nothing happens. The issue isn’t really about blocking ‘access.’ It’s about who is doing the blocking. Viewpoint discrimination is all over the FACE Act cases, as arsonists and vandals who attacked peaceful pro-life pregnancy care centers go free while pro-life Americans face prison time. As a nation, we must not become desensitized to blatant abuse of power, especially from an entity controlled by Biden’s abortion-loving administration.”

MEDIA ADVISORY: Email [email protected]   

WASHINGTON D.C. (07-02-2024) – Paul Vaughn, father of 11 and one of six pro-lifers convicted in the alleged FACE Act violations of singing and praying at a Tennessee abortion facility, was sentenced to three years of supervised release, avoiding prison time in what SFLA President Kristan Hawkins called “evidence of a naked and cruel bias towards peaceful, faith-motivated pro-lifers while tolerating, and even praising, those who vandalize and cause violence nationwide.” Vaughn is represented by the Thomas More Society and plans to appeal his conviction. According to the Thomas More Society’s press release, “Four additional defendants who took part in the peaceful pro-life demonstration were separately convicted of misdemeanor violations of the FACE Act.” 

“Biden’s DOJ prosecution of a pro-life father and pro-life advocates instead of prosecuting real domestic terrorists tells you everything you need to know about their priorities.” stated Hawkins. 

“For his witness to life, the FBI raided Paul’s home at gunpoint in front of his wife and children, then brought down the full weight of United States government to prosecute Paul,” said Steve Crampton, Thomas More Society Senior Counsel and attorney for Paul Vaughn, in a news release. “We will continue to advocate tirelessly for pro-lifers like Paul, to make sure that the FACE Act is never again weaponized by the Department of Justice against its ideological opponents.”

This isn’t the first-time government agencies have oppressed the pro-life men and women by abusing the Clinton-era FACE Act.  Here are a few examples, including one from an SFLA staff member:   

• South Carolina man was convicted of the FACE Act for sitting in front of a Planned Parenthood entrance.   
• Pro-life protestor named Mark Houck was arrested at his home in front of his children in 2022 for protesting peacefully outside of a Planned Parenthood facility.    
•  SFLA staff member was likewise arrested for sidewalk-chalking on a public street in front of an abortion facility in Washington D.C. in 2021. Since then, the charges against the two students have been dropped, but the free speech case against the District of Columbia continues.   

To learn more about Students for Life of America initiatives, CLICK HERE.    

To urge your representatives and senators to repeal the FACE Act, CLICK HERE.  

Learn more about efforts to get rid of the FACE Act abuses here: Students for Life Action (SFLAction) and other Pro-Life Groups Call for Vote on FACE Act Repeal Act H.R. 5577.    

And here: SFLAction Calls for the end of the FACE Act that Represents the “Long-Term Hostility of Democrats in Our Nation’s Capital to Peaceful Pro-Life Citizens”   

For interviews email [email protected].    

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The Pro-Life Generation (PLG) is an umbrella organization encompassing the most-cutting edge engagement opportunities for a Vote Pro-Life First Community. PLG includes Students for Life Action (SFLAction), a 501c4, along with its 501c3 sister organization, Students for Life of America (SFLA), that together make up the nation’s largest, pro-life youth organization, managing a grassroots political and policy operation engaging Americans of all ages but with a special emphasis on the largest segment of voters — the Youth Vote. Headquartered in Fredericksburg, VA, PLG/SFLA/SFLAction serves more than 1,400 groups on middle, high school, college, medical, and law school campuses in all 50 states. Our team has more conversations with this generation targeted by the abortion lobby than any other pro-life operation in the world, each week reaching more than 4 million across social media platforms and averaging 1.3 million video views. In addition to SFLA/SFLAction, PLG leads multiple initiatives to lead and serve the future of the pro-life movement including the Campaign for Abortion Free Cities, Standing With You, and the Demetree Institute for Pro-Life Advancement .