UK Life League

UK Life League is a British pressure group that opposes abortion [ [http://www.uklifeleague.com/abortion.htm UK LifeLeague::Abortion is MURDER ] ] , contraception [ [http://www.uklifeleague.com/contraception.htm UK LifeLeague::Abortion is MURDER ] ] , sex education [ [http://www.uklifeleague.com/sexed.htm UK LifeLeague::Abortion is MURDER ] ] , euthanasia [ [http://www.uklifeleague.com/llposeuth.htm UK LifeLeague::Abortion is MURDER ] ] , stem cell research [ [http://www.uklifeleague.com/enews/061211%20e-newsletter.htm Pro-Life E-Newsletter ] ] , gay rights legislation [ [http://www.uklifeleague.com/enews/070319%20e-newsletter.htm E-newsletter, 19th March, 2006] ] . It describes itself as "The premier pro-life and family values campaigning organisation" and as "peacefully campaigning to end the violence of abortion".

The group's website states, "We believe that debate and argument will not achieve the necessary results. Pro-life groups have tried this avenue for years, and it is clear that they have failed. Whilst debate and argument have their place, what people really need is to be confronted with the grim and gruesome reality of abortion." [ [http://www.uklifeleague.com/lifeleagueintroduction.htm UK LifeLeague::Abortion is MURDER ] ]

Life League is led by James Dowson.

Controversy

The group regularly sends explicit images, purporting to be of aborted foetuses discovered in British hospital refuse, to pro-choice organisations, hospitals and individuals, such as newspaper columnists and bloggers, [ [http://sjhoward.co.uk/archive/2006/06/27/uk-life-league-and-scare-tactics sjhoward.co.uk » UK Life League and scare tactics ] ] whom they believe oppose their position. A spokesperson for Marie Stopes UK states that aborted foetuses have not been disposed of in such a manner for over 20 years, and alleges that the "images come from American websites, and some look as if they have been tampered with."http://education.guardian.co.uk/faithschools/story/0,,1740539,00.html>] In 2005, Life League activist Veronica Connolly was prosecuted for sending offensive images to a pharmacy distributing the morning-after pill. [ [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/england/west_midlands/6291653.stm BBC NEWS | UK | England | West Midlands | Rights case over foetus pictures ] ] In January 2007 Connolly lost an appeal to the High Court. [ [http://www.uklifeleague.com/pressrelease/070215%20Veronica%20Connolly%20loses%20case.htm 070215 Veronica Connolly loses case ] ]

In 2005, the group provoked controversy after publishing the address and telephone number of Woldingham School, a Catholic boarding school, whose headmistress they accuse of "child abuse" and of teaching pupils "types of contraception they can use to facilitate recreational sex". [ [http://www.uklifeleague.com/enews/06-03-20.htm Pro-Life E-Newsletter ] ] [ [http://www.uklifeleague.com/woldingham.php Woldingham School Campaign] ] The school responded that, "What we teach falls entirely within the national curriculum and the way in which we teach the use of contraception is in the context of a committed relationship. Every Catholic school in the country will be doing what we are doing", and expressed concern that the publication of the school's details had endangered its pupils.

Life League's tactics have been described by the police as "akin to those of animal rights extremists" and the group's activities have been investigated by the National Extremism Tactical Coordination Unit.

In 2006, the group characterised ethical guideline proposals by the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists and the Nuffield Council on Bioethics that severely premature babies likely to suffer from severe disabilities not necessarily be revived as "calls for severely disabled babies to be killed at birth" [ [http://www.uklifeleague.com/enews/061113%20e-newsletter.htm Pro-Life E-Newsletter ] ] and as "baby euthanasia". [ [http://www.uklifeleague.com/enews/061106%20e-newsletter.htm Pro-Life E-Newsletter ] ]

In 2007, the group started expanding their campaign overseas by spamming their newsletter to people in other countries. The people receiving this spam did not ask to be subscribed, and the group ignores repeated unsubscribe requests.Fact|date=September 2007

In 2008, Searchlight Magazine reported that Midas Consultancy, a fundraising and management training company run by Dowson, had signed a three-year consultancy contract with the British National Party [http://www.searchlightmagazine.com/index.php?link=template&story=236 Searchlight: Truth Truck or Lie Lorry?]

References

* [http://thescotsman.scotsman.com/index.cfm?id=111042002 Article in "The Scotsman"]
* [http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2006/04/02/nabort02.xml Article in "The Telegraph"]

External links

* [http://www.uklifeleague.com/ UK Life League's website] (contains graphic images of abortion)