After two students were denied permission to start a pro-life club at Parkland High School in Allentown, Pennsylvania, a national legal firm has decided to fight on the students' behalf, claiming that the high school violated the First Amendment rights of Elizabeth Castro and Grace Schairer.
Castro and Schairer claim they followed all of the necessary procedures for forming their club, such as drafting a proposal and obtaining sponsorship from teachers. However, school administrators were quick to nix the idea.
Students were told that a pro-life club would be too controversial
"I was told my club was too controversial and too political," Castro explained to WFMZ-TV, which covers Pennsylvania's Lehigh Valley, where the school district is located.
The students claim that they contacted the school's assistant principal for an explanation via email, but the assistant principal ignored their request.
Undaunted by the snubbing from Parkland's administration, Castro and Schairer brought the matter to the attention of the Students for Life of America (SFLA) organization. According to their website, the SFLA is the largest pro-life organization in the country and has been instrumental in helping to establish over 1,100 student clubs across the United States.
The SFLA then contacted the Thomas More Society, a national public interest law firm. The Thomas More Society, which handles pro-life cases across the country, has an ongoing relationship with the SFLA, and has handled high-profile legal battles of a similar nature in Courtland, Virginia and Tacoma, Washington. The Thomas More Society was successful in both of those cases, and the students were allowed to form their pro-life clubs.
Case taken up by same firm that represented Hobby Lobby
According to its website, the legal firm also handled the HHS "abortion pill mandate" cases for Hobby Lobby and Conestoga Wood Specialties when the matter went before the U.S. Supreme Court. In a landmark opinion handed down in June of 2014, the Supreme Court rules in support of religious liberty and against the HHS Abortion Pill Mandate.
On Wednesday, the Thomas More Society sent a letter to the school informing the administration that they are in violation of the First Amendment and the Equal Access Act, and demands that Parkland reverses its decision to ban the pro-life club.
A spokesperson for Parkland High School told WFMZ that the school district is reviewing the situation.
