DJAN Disciples
Justice Action Network
[07-02-04]
***ALERT***ALERT***ALERT***ALERT***ALERT****
Tell Your Senators to Reject Anti-Choice, Anti-Woman Holmes!
On Tuesday, Call-In on the Holmes Hotline!
Pass this Alert On!
The Senate is expected to vote on the nomination of J. Leon Holmes
for a
lifetime appointment on the US District Court for the Eastern District
of Arkansas
as early as Tuesday, July 6. All signs point to a close vote. The Religious
Coalition for Reproductive Choice strongly opposes his nomination.
Please urge
your Senators to block his confirmation. Here are three ways to oppose
this
nomination:
1) Today, take a minute to send an email to your Senators (see sample
below).
Many Senators are in their home states for the July 4th recess
so this is a
good time to also call their local offices. To get your Senator’s
contact
information Go to www.rcrc.org and click on Legislative Action
Center on the left
side. Scroll down to the bottom. Follow the directions. Due to
heavy volume, it
may take a minute for your state information to appear so please
be patient!
2) On Tuesday, July 6th, the toll-free Holmes Hotline goes live for
the day!
Call to your Senators at 1-(888) 508-2974. Send the Senate the message
that
Holmes's anti-woman, anti-choice views are unacceptable. The Hotline
is
available Tuesday only, the day the vote is expected to take place!
3)
Forward this email to other Religious Coalition for Reproductive
Choice supporters. The following states have been determined to contain
crucial swing
votes:
Maine, Rhode Island, Pennsylvania (Specter), Virginia (John Warner),
Louisiana, North Dakota, Florida.
If you live in this state or have contacts there, it is especially
important
that you get lots of calls and e-mails into these Senators.
Here’s a sample message you can cut and paste into your e-mails
to your
Senators:
Dear Senator,
We must be able to trust that federal judges support the United
States Constitution and the essential rights it grants. However,
James
Leon Holmes' views
about the right to choose and other issues critical to women fall
far outside
any mainstream understanding of constitutional values. Holmes' nomination
to
the federal bench is an insult to American women.
Additionally, Holmes' record of fervent anti-abortion activism and
his
far-right beliefs about the roles of women will make it impossible
for many who come
before him to believe that they will receive a fair hearing.
This nominee is so egregious that the Senate Judiciary Committee
would only
send him to the floor "without Recommendation," an extremely
rare move.
The
Senate should not confirm James Leon Holmes to the U.S. District
Court for the
Eastern District of Arkansas.
Background About James Leon Holmes
Holmes has compared abortion to slavery, denied that sexual assault
victims
can get pregnant from rape and proclaimed that women should subordinate
themselves to their husbands. Holmes's record of opposition to women's
rights is
deeply troubling. In his own words:
Comparing abortion to slavery:
“[Abortion is]...the simplest
issue this country has faced since slavery was
made unconstitutional. And it deserves the same response.” Dismissing
rape victims: " ...concern for rape victims is a red
herring because conceptions from rape
occur with approximately the same frequency as snowfall in Miami."
From
an article on marriage:
“ ...the wife is to subordinate herself to her husband.”
On his ability to subordinate his personal political and religious
views to
the rule of law:
" Christianity, in principle, cannot accept subordination to the political
authorities, for the end to which it directs men is higher than the
end of
political order; the source of its authority is higher than any political
authority."
Holmes has worked throughout his career to eradicate a woman’s
right to
choose. He has served as the President of the Arkansas Right to Life
and as
Secretary of the Unborn Child Amendment Committee in Arkansas. He has
supported a
constitutional amendment banning abortion and dismissed concerns that
such an
amendment would prohibit abortion in cases of rape because, according
to Holmes,
the “concern for rape victims is a red herring because conceptions
from rape
occur with approximately the same frequency as snowfall in Miami.” In
his
writings, Holmes has even twice compared abortion to the Holocaust.
If these examples of Holmes’ hostility to a woman’s right
to choose were not
enough, Holmes also represented an individual who was convicted of
trespassing on the premises of a physician’s clinic. Holmes advocated
that his client’ s trespass was justified by a “choice of evils” defense
because he was trying
to inform women entering the clinic about the harmful effects of abortion.
The court rejected Holmes’ argument and refused to allow the
defense. President Bush has nominated numerous judges to the federal
judiciary who– like Holmes – have demonstrated
that they do not support a constitutional right
to choose. Because lower federal courts exercise enormous power in
deciding
cases involving women's rights, the right to privacy, reproductive
freedoms,
and other basic civil rights, it is essential that judges appointed
to these
courts demonstrate a commitment to safeguarding these fundamental rights.
James
Leon Holmes has not demonstrated this commitment.
Given the importance of the lower federal courts, we must hold our
Senators
accountable for their “advice and consent” role on judicial
nominees. It is
vital for the future of reproductive and civil rights that Holmes not
be
confirmed. Contact your Senators now and urge them to vote “no” on
the nomination
of James Leon Holmes.
If you have any questions or need assistance, please contact:
Barbara Kavadias
Director of Field Services
Religious Coalition for Reproductive Choice
973-984-0118 (o)
973-984-8396 (f)
bkavadias@rcrc.org
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