Police arrest pro-life activists for ‘Black Preborn Lives Matter’ sidewalk chalk
Police in Washington, D.C., arrested a man and a woman in front of Planned Parenthood because they were writing “Black Preborn Lives Matter” with a piece of chalk outside the abortion facility.
“Our students and team members were threatened, harassed, and arrested in front of Planned Parenthood in Washington D.C. for painting all Black Preborn Lives Matter,” the pro-life group Students for Life tweeted Saturday.
The tweet also carried a video of the incident. “Hey folks, I need to tell you now, that if you continue chalking you’re going to be placed under arrest for defacing property,” an officer can be heard saying.
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A Metropolitan Police Department spokeswoman told The Epoch Times that the arrests were for the defacing of property.
The man and the woman were released with citations.
“We’ve had several offers from legal organizations to help our @StudentsforLife team in light of the unconstitutional arrests and banning of our #BlackPreBornLivesMatter street painting today,” Students for Life President Kristan Hawkins said. “@MayorBowser, you messed with the wrong students.”
Recently, D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser painted the streets of the city with the slogan “BLACK LIVES MATTER,” the pro-life group pointed out in an online petition.
“In doing this,” the petition says, “she proclaimed not only what those of us in the pro-life genuinely believe and fight for every day in-front of Planned Parenthoods and other abortion facilities across America. But she also opened up the streets of Washington, D.C. for public expression.
“After applying and receiving our permit and after being told by the Metropolitan police that the Mayor has ‘opened a Pandora’s box’ by painting public streets, Students for Life arrived at the D.C. Planned Parenthood on Saturday, August 1st to six police cars threatening to arrest our team and student leaders if we painted ‘BLACK PREBORN LIVES MATTER,’ even using the temporary paint we bought that the Police Department specifically requested.”
When the members of the group asked if they could use sidewalk chalk to chalk their anti-violence message on the streets, “the police threatened to arrest us.”
This means, the group said, Mayor Bowser “apparently only thinks that SOME Black Lives Matter and that only SOME slogans are allowed to be painted on streets.”
“Not only has Mayor Bowser bought into the eugenic and racist lies that Planned Parenthood sells and what their political contributions guarantees that what goes inside of Planned Parenthoods each and every day is anything but violence and racism. But she has bought into the lies that only some people have freedom of speech and expression in America, people like her in positions of power, people like her who pride themselves on their ‘wokeness.’”
Last weekend, the Baby Lives Matter movement painted a blue and pink mural displaying the phrase “Baby Lives Matter” in front of a Planned Parenthood clinic in the city.
The movement began three weeks ago after artist and pro-life activist Tayler Hansen spent seven hours painting a Baby Lives Matter mural on the street in front of a Planned Parenthood abortion facility in his hometown of Salt Lake City, Utah.
“[Ten] unarmed Black Americans were killed by police in 2019. They have murals all around the country. Almost 400,000 innocent babies were murdered by Planned Parenthood in 2019. It’s about damn time they get a mural too. #BabyLivesMatter,” Hansen proclaimed at the time.
“In 2019, abortion was the leading cause of death worldwide. Almost 43 million children were denied the most basic right of all: life,” Hansen said in a video posted to Twitter. “[That] is why I felt inclined to demonstrate a true peaceful protest dedicated to those abandoned without a voice.”
