California Government Report Labels Pro-Life Advocates as Violent Extremists 
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by Paul Nowak
LifeNews.com Staff Wrtier
August 31, 2004
Sacramento, CA (LifeNews.com) — A new report has been released by the California Senate Office of Research, causing pro-life leaders to again question the department’s bias, apparently depicting the pro-life movement as violent.
This month the Office of Research released a report authored by Gregory DeGiere, listed as the staff member reporting on Hate Crime, Housing and Urban Growth, Information Technology, Privacy, and Identity Theft. His job description specifically includes his research into "anti-reproductive rights crime."
A May 2001 report by DeGiere upset pro-life organizations as it recommended restricting protests at abortion businesses, creating mandatory police training in handling "anti-abortion crime," and cited ties of anti-abortion violence to white supremacist groups and anti-homosexual violence.
The 2001 report even quoted pro-abortion sociologist Dallas Blanchard, who gave a presentation in 1998 to The Northwest Coalition Against Malicious Harassment’s annual conference.
"The recent Birmingham [AL] bombing, killing a police officer and seriously injuring a nurse .. symbolizes what students of the anti-abortion movement have known for over a decade: the increasing interaction and merger of some militia groups and the violent wing of the anti-abortion movement," states Blanchard.
Jan Carroll, associate director of the California Pro-Life Council, is listed in the 2001 report as a source along with Edward E. Dolejsi of California Catholic Conference, but she told LifeNews.com that despite her counsel "it was clear he [DeGiere] was going in the direction he wanted to go regardless of what we had to say."
In contrast, DeGiere cites 10 pro-abortion sources, including several Planned Parenthood representatives, as well as members of the National Abortion Federation and the Feminist Majority Foundation.
While the new report released this month does not characterize the pro-life movement as violent in such a bold manner, Brian O’Neel, Press Secretary for Assemblyman Tim Leslie (R-Roseville), said DeGiere’s bias is still apparent.
In an interview with LifeNews.com, O’Neel pointed out that, in his preface, DeGiere describes Buford Furrow, who shot three children and two adults at a Jewish community center, as "a member of a white-supremeacist, anti-Semitic, anti-government, anti-abortion group," although his crime had nothing to do with abortion.
Assemblyman Leslie wrote Donald Moulds, the director of the Senate Office of Research, denouncing the report.
"Nowhere does the report’s author acknowledge that pro-life people are by and large not anti-Semitic, are not white supremacist, are not anti-government (in the sense that the individuals and groups mentioned in the report are anti-government), and are certainly not violent," Leslie writes.
"In fact, when those who claim to be anti-abortion commit murder or other heinous acts of violence, those people and their actions are condemned by true pro-lifers in no uncertain terms," Leslie adds.
Leslie also says the report was incomplete, as it did not include any record of the many acts of violence perpetrated against pro-life individuals and organizations.
"In August 2000, Human Life International compiled a comparative report of violence by the two opposing camps," wrote Leslie.
"Contrasting verifiable crimes by pro-abortion advocates against alleged crimes by pro-life advocates, one finds that in the category of ‘Deadly and extreme crimes against persons (murder, manslaughter, attempted murder, kidnapping, torture and rape)’ there are 121 pro-abortion incidents versus 25 committed by supposedly pro-life persons," Leslie explains.
"In the category of ‘Less serious crimes against persons resulting in actual injury (assault, sex crimes, reckless endangerment, and violation of civil rights),’ the ratio is 651-112," Leslie said.
DeGiere could not be reached for comment, but Camille Giglio of the California Right to Life Committee told LifeNews.com she had spoken to DeGiere about his most recent report.
DeGiere told Giglio on Friday that Senator Sheila Kuehl (D-Los Angeles) had requested the report and that Moulds had approved it. He also admitted that he believed there were pro-lifers amongst the extremist, multi-mission groups.
Related Sites:
Human Life International’s report on pro-abortion violence –
https://www.abortionviolence.com
