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Contents © 1999
by Jim Holman.
All rights reserved.

February 1999 LITTLE NOTES

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Dr. Kofi Sefa-Boakye, an OB-Gyn who bought Dr. Phillip Milgram's building and practice, "doesn't want that bad lady out here, Connie," said Jeanne Runner, the nurse who runs the clinic. She means Connie Youngkin, a pro-lifer perhaps best known for picketing with posters of aborted babies, who recently left San Diego to work with orphans in Costa Rica. "She essentially drove Dr. Milgram away," said Runner, "it's really sad."

In October and December of 1995, Youngkin and Troy Newman picketed in front of the clinic with signs and graphic posters of babies killed by abortion, leading one Mississippi Street resident, Kathleen Gregory, to sue them for harassing herself, her husband, and other residents. On January 7, 1996, Gregory charged, Youngkin and Newman chased her down the block to her house, threw a rock through her window and, having killed an iguana, hung it on her porch. Youngkin and Newman both had witnesses to prove they were elsewhere that day.

The case became carrion for local media when James McElroy, the attorney who successfully sued Operation Rescue for $880,000 in damages in 1995, set his sights on Youngkin and Newman. McElroy at first argued for a speedy injunction to stop harassment, especially stalking, but by February 23, when San Diego County Judge Howatt said that only Gregory and her husband could be plaintiffs in the suit, McElroy folded. Ironically, the only person arrested in front of Milgram's clinic on Mississippi Street was Kathleen Gregory, when she threatened to shoot Newman and other pro-life picketers.

Still, it's not Gregory that the new clinic operators fear but Youngkin. "That Connie lady was a terrible lady," said Runner, who has worked at the Mississippi Street clinic for 12 years. Thanks to her, Runner said, abortions would not be performed at "A Lady's Doctor," which boasts the latest in gynecological laser surgery. Thanks to Youngkin and her pro-life kin, Runner said, "Womancare has gone down ... There are very few providers who are willing do abortions."

She added that many poor women have to go all the way to Inglewood to get one. But in the San Diego area, "I don't know of any place where you can pay cash" for an abortion, Runner said. And even Medi-Cal, which reimburses $140 for an abortion, doesn't help: most physicians will not bother to perform an abortion for that price, according to Runner.

MAQUILADORAS IN TIJUANA and elsewhere along the U.S.-Mexico border continue to force women to undergo illegal pregnancy tests as a condition of employment, according to Human Rights Watch, an international organization based in New York that reports on human rights abuses around the world. "This is flagrant sex discrimination that these corporations would never dare defend or practice in their own countries," said Human Rights Watch in a statement released Dec. 29. Women are required to submit urine specimens for pregnancy testing and are asked intimate questions about their sexual practices, whether they use artificial birth control and the regularity of their menstrual cycles, according to the report. If a woman is found to be pregnant, she is not hired, investigators said. In some companies, the practice extends to even after a woman is on the job. At three companies, women were forced to show their used sanitary napkins to maquiladora medical personnel to prove they were not pregnant. If they refuse or are found to be pregnant, they lose their jobs.

The report was based on the cases of 53 women who sought work or were working at 50 different maquiladoras in Tijuana, Renoysa, Rio Bravo and Ciudad Juárez. Nineteen maquiladoras in Tijuana were cited in the report, including Samsung, United Solar Systems, Tyco International, Matsu-shita and Sanyo. Of the 19, 15 firms refused to respond to Human Rights Watch. Of the four companies that did respond, three denied any wrongdoing or that they had violated any Mexican law. Only United Solar Systems promised to discontine the discriminatory practices.

Both state and federal labor authorities in Mexico have said such practices are not technically against the law, but Human Rights Watch disagreed, saying discrimination against pregnant women in the workplace not only violates Mexican law, but also international law and the laws of the headquarters countries of the maquiladoras. "The Mexican government has abandoned women workers to the discriminatory practices of maquiladora operators," the report charged. "Women are left having to choose between a job and their rights."

FOLLOWING A FORMAT similar to that of Surprised by Truth, the popular book in which Catholic converts tell their own stories, Physicians Healed recounts the spiritual and professional conversion stories of fifteen physicians who changed their minds about prescribing contraceptives and abortifacients. This new book is the brainchild of Steve Koob, the founder and director of One More Soul, a Catholic apostolate dedicated to disseminating the Church's teachings on life issues, particularly contraception. Koob recruited Cleta Hartman as its editor. Physicians Healed, available for $10 plus $4 shipping and handling, can be ordered through One More Soul, 616 Five Oaks Ave., Dayton, OH 45406 / 1-800-307-7685 / e-mail: omsoul@juno.com (include quantity desired, and credit card type, number and expiration date).

LAST FEBRUARY the San Diego chapter of the Catholic League for Religious and Civil Rights filed a complaint with the Federal Communi-cations Commission against Jacor Communications for airing a radio segment the chapter has described as spite-filled blasphemy of Catholic beliefs. The segment is "Lash Wednes-day," which airs on Jacor's 101.5 KGB-FM radio station on Wednesdays, any time between 6:00 a.m. and 10 a.m.

As of this writing, the FCC has yet to respond to the San Diego chapter's complaint. In early November Carl Horst, the chapter's past president, notified Congressman Randy "Duke" Cunningham of the FCC's lack of response. In a cordial November 13 letter Cunningham informed Horst that he had in turn Chapsent an inquiry on the complaint's status to FCC chairman William Kennard, and that he "will continue to closely monitor this situation with your views firmly in mind."

The Catholic League, founded in 1973, is "the nation's largest Catholic civil rights organization," according to its literature. "It defends individual Catholics and the institutional Church from defamation and discrimination." The San Diego chapter was founded in May 1995, under the presidency of Carl Horst. In August 1998 Gary Stahler, chapter communications director, was asked to take over the reins as president. Currently it is the only Catholic League chapter in California. When evaluating whether a case falls within the Catholic League's purview, the chapter draws a distinction between anti-Catholic bias and ignorance of Catholic beliefs. "Sometimes that is a very, very, very, fine, tough line to determine," Stahler told News Notes. "That is probably the most difficult thing I have to contend with." Stahler discusses cases with other chapter members, and if it is decided that ignorance is at fault, the prescription is Catholic apologetics, rather than the Catholic League's resources per se. The chapter will attempt to find appropriate sources to meet this need; for example, cases have been referred to Catholic Answers.

Stahler believes that, in recent years, anti-Catholicism in particular and anti-Christian bias in general have been on the increase nationwide. The Catholic League's national office currently has its hands full with Corpus Christi, a new off- Broadway play depicting Jesus as a gay activist who was involved homosexually with Judas; Burning Habits, another New York play which opened in November and runs through March 13; and "Clean," which will run from April 1 to May 2 in Washington, D.C. Burning Habits and Clean are gay plays which attack Catholicism specifically and unambiguously. Another attack on the Church was made in the November 2 episode of Fox TV's Ally McBeal, in which, said the League, crude jokes were made about celibacy, the sanctity of the sacraments, and pedophile priests. Later in November the Catholic League said it was satisfied with the apology it received from some Fox representatives, and two Fox officials said the show would be scrutinized more closely.

Locally Stahler has given four presentations in North County on Corpus Christi to Knights of Columbus Councils. "People are interested in it, even though it's not here," Stahler exclaimed. "They see it in the newspapers." Another recent effort by the San Diego chapter was its response to an article on Blessed Edith Stein (a Jewish convert to Catholicism) in the San Diego Union-Tribune, published shortly before her canonization on October 12. The article was largely an apologetic for the newly fashionable, revisionist World War II history which, despite abundant historical evidence to the contrary, depicts Pope Pius XII as having done and cared little for Jews during the Nazi persecution, and it attacked the Vatican's recent document on the Holocaust. Stahler called Sandi Dolbee, religion editor at the Union-Tribune. "Her attitude was friendly and she seemed open to my comments," he reported. "I was encouraged by the conversation." However, the letter he sent her about the article was not published. He sent a similar letter to the North County Times which was published, and included this statement: "Pope John Paul II has gone to great lengths to address the issue within the framework of actual history. As with many issues coming out of the past, a number of the comments [by critics of Pope Pius XII] tend to be based on supposition and probability and not on recorded fact." He also referred readers to two books on Catholics and Jews during the Holocaust.

Stahler's primary goals for the Catholic League's San Diego chapter are "to let more people know, in the Catholic community, that we exist, and what we exist for," and "to immediately react to any anti-Catholicism when we're given accurate information."

Call or fax to (760) 233-0919 for more information, and to report instances of anti-Catholic defamation and discrimination. The San Diego chapter of the Catholic League meets monthly (see Dates section for details). All are welcome to attend. The Catholic League's national office is located at 1011 First Avenue, New York, NY 10022. Phone (212) 371-3191, fax (212) 371-3394, website: www.catholicleague.org.

"I'M HERE AT THE INVITATION OF THE BISHOP," said George Forsyth, executive director of the Catholic Campaign for America, as he spoke to approximately 35 people on December 16 at the diocesan pastoral center. The meeting kicked off an effort to organize a local CCA chapter, and was publicized by a notice sent out by Kent Peters, director of the diocesan Office for Social Ministry, in which Peters explained that "the CCA began in 1991 as a lay Catholic movement to energize and mobilize Catholics to renew their faith and, through that renewal, to help transform American public policy, culture and society.... Our culture is in dire need of renewal, and the Catholic Church ... should play a central role in placing us back on the road to celebrating and supporting life and promoting the human dignity of all of our neighbors."

Forsyth spoke extensively on life issues, particularly their status in the current political arena. One recent battle he recounted, in which the CCA's involvement made a difference, was the November election in Michigan, where pro-Kevorkian forces succeeded in getting a proposal to legalize assisted suicide on the ballot. September polling data indicated that there was 60 percent support for it. The CCA then appealed to Detroit's Cardinal Adam Maida for assistance. A special brochure on euthanasia was produced, Cardinal Maida issued a pastoral letter on the same, and was instrumental in a coordinated effort to have all priests and bishops preach about it on the same Sunday. Seventy-one percent of voters voted against the ballot measure.

The CCA, which has 40,000 members and 900 parish representatives nationwide, encourages its members to organize within a parish. Forsyth suggested that one effective way to spread the Church's message is to invite a few people at a time to one's home to watch a video, and to display brochures and literature available through the CCA in church vestibules. He stated that the CCA does not discuss the death penalty or defense issues, and instead focuses on euthanasia, abortion and educational reform. It also refrains from public criticism of bishops and the Church in general. At the meeting, Peters announced that an effort is underway to create a board of directors for a local CCA chapter, and explained that, while the Office for Social Ministry will not direct any local CCA chapter, it will be supportive, and encouraged those interested in creating a CCA parish group to have the pastor contact him for further information. New York's Cardinal John O'Connor is the CCA's ecclesiastical advisor. For more information, contact the San Diego diocesan Office for Social Ministry at (619) 490-8323 or the Catholic Campaign for America, 1513 Sixteenth St. NW, Suite 400, Washington, DC 20037 / (202) 833-4999 / e-mail: geninfo@cathcamp.org.

FATHER JOHN VAUGHN has been appointed as the new vice postulator for the cause of Father Junipero Serra. His appointment was announced on December 10 by Father Finian McGinn, OFM, provincial minister of the Franciscan Friars of the Province of Saint Barbara. As vice postulator, Father Vaughn, age 70, succeeds Father Noel Moholy, who died on September 4 in Santa Barbara. Ordained in 1955, Father Vaughn served in Oakland as provincial minister of the Franciscan Province of St. Barbara from 1976 to 1979, and in Rome as minister general of the Order of Friars Minor from 1979 to 1991. At the time of his appointment he was master of novices at the Old Mission San Miguel Novitiate. According to the Province's December 10 press release, "Fr. John will work to see that Blessed Junipero Serra, the Apostle of California, is proclaimed a Saint in the Roman Catholic Church."

For more information, contact the Serra Cause, Old Mission Santa Barbara, 2201 Laguna St., Santa Barbara, CA 93105-3611, (805) 682-4713.

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