May 16, 2009 10:14 pm US/Central
Local Obama Critic To Protest At Notre Dame
CHICAGO (CBS) ―
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Abortion opponent Joseph Scheidler planned to travel from Chicago to Notre Dame University to protest President Obama's appearance there.
CBS
President Barack Obama will speak at the Notre Dame graduation on Sunday. It's a long-standing tradition for U.S. presidents.
But besides the proud graduates, protesters plan to be in South Bend, Ind.
They're angry that a president who supports abortion rights and stem cell research is speaking at the Catholic university.
CBS 2's Pamela Jones talked to activists from Chicago who are about to make the 93-mile trip themselves.
About a dozen protestors were arrested Saturday. Supporters say this will be the biggest demonstration of its kind at the campus. Police are expecting some 20,000 people to converge in South Bend with Chicagoans in the crowd.
They prayed, even as police took them away. Protestors putting their pro-life message where the public could see it on the ground and in the air at Notre Dame University just one day before the president gives his commencement address.
He's a president now taken to task by protestors for his stance supporting abortion rights and embryonic stem-cell research -- views opponents say clash with the teachings of the Catholic Church.
"For him to be speaking at the University of Notre Dame, my alma mater, it hurts. It's a betrayal," said Joseph Scheidler, national director of the Pro Life Action League.
Joseph and his wife, Ann Scheidler, attended church Saturday, praying for a peaceful journey as they prepare to lead four busloads of people from Chicago to South Bend.
It's a city that has seen protests against other presidents speaking at Notre Dame's commencement exercises.
One example: George W. Bush, who was called out for allowing executions while he was governor of Texas.
"This is bigger," Scheidler said. "This is the president of the United States, who has already taken action to make abortion more liberal."
He says for Catholics the issue of abortion is higher on the list of sins than capital punishment.
"Abortion is an intrinsic evil," he said. "You can never justify abortion. Capital punishment, that's not even addressed directly as an intrinsic evil. It's sometimes a matter of justice. Same thing with war. There are a lot of things that are debatable. Abortion is not debatable. You cannot kill an innocent defenseless human being."
The White House says President Obama will bring up the controversy in his speech.
Some of those who oppose Obama's views on abortion say they would feel better if the school didn't award him an honorary degree. Opponents say that simply goes against a 2004 bishops' statement on politics.
That statement says Catholic institutions should not give awards honors or platforms to people who defy the fundamental moral principles of the church
(© MMX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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