Toronto politicians seek ban on graphic images of aborted babies

Politicians in Toronto, Canada are calling for a judicial order that would ban signs and flyers that feature graphic images of aborted babies.

Sarah Doucette, a city councilor in the city's west end, stated that she is planning to propose a bylaw to ban the display of graphic images showing bloodied and dismembered fetuses after receiving hundreds of complaints from upset residents.

"These are big blown up images. There's blood, there's gore, there's a lot of things there which should not be in people's faces on their local street," said Doucette, as reported by CBC.

The Calgary-based Canadian Centre for Bio-Ethical Reform (CCBR) has been deploying its members to stand on street corners while holding placards and to hand out pamphlets to passersby.

Many of the signs held by protesters simply read "Choice?" and featured an image of a baby that was aborted in the first trimester. Similar images appear in the group's pamphlets and brochures, which are distributed in neighborhoods throughout the region.

The councilor noted that residents have complained to the police but were told that what the group was doing was not illegal.

"We're not saying that these [protesters] cannot be on our street handing out flyers, we're not saying that," Doucette said.

"But there's a difference when you hand someone a flyer, because then they have a choice whether to take it or not," she continued.

Toronto Councilors Paula Fletcher and Mary Fragedakis, along with Toronto District School Board Trustee Jennifer Story, have reportedly sent a letter to Attorney General Yasir Naqvi, requesting him to seek an injunction against the pro-life signs, as well as the mailbox flyers disseminated by CCBR.

"These images are placed in people's mailboxes," they wrote. "As parents have said to us, their young children often go to get the mail and would be traumatized by the images. Pregnant women have complained that they have been profoundly disturbed by the images," they added.

CCBR spokesperson Devorah Gilman said that the group has received complaints about the graphic images in the last few years, but a ban like the one proposed by Doucette would go against the rights of its members.

Last September, CCBR commissioned a study on the effectivity of using graphic images of abortion in pro-life activism.

The results of the study indicated that 90 percent of respondents said that seeing the images increased their negative feelings toward abortion. It also found that those identifying as completely pro-life increased by nearly 30 percent following a campaign using graphic images of abortion, while those identifying as pro-abortion decreased in their support for the procedure.