Posted on 04/24/2007 12:14:20 PM PDT by Alex Murphy
Philadelphia - With a little under a week passing since a split Supreme Court issued its 5-4 opinion in Gonzales v. Carhart (Carhart II), upholding a federal ban on partial birth abortion, editorial pages have been consumed by commentary and cartoons addressing the potential impact of the ruling.
As expected, pro-choice organizations, such as the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), decried the decision and pro-life organizations, such as the Alliance Defense Fund (ADF), praised it.
One thing, however, is clear. With one swoop of his pen, Justice Anthony Kennedy rejuvenated the debate surrounding the constitutional legitimacy of Roe v. Wade, the 1973 case that vaulted abortion into the pantheon of protected rights.
Last Friday, in the wake of Carhart II, Tony Auth, a syndicated cartoonist who runs regularly in the Philadelphia Inquirer, added his two cents to the debate.
Auth created a cartoon in which nine Supreme Court Justices were shown sitting on the bench. Seemed harmless enough.
Five of the Justices, however, were shown with smug faces and sporting miters. A miter is a type of headgear that is traditionally worn by bishops in the Roman Catholic Church, as well as the Orthodox and Anglican churches. The five Justices who held in favor of the partial-birth abortion ban - Kennedy, Clarence Thomas, John Roberts, Antonin Scalia, and Samuel Alito - are all traditional Catholics.
The four non-Catholic jurists are depicted in Auth's cartoon without miters, their faces filled with fear and concern. The caption beneath the cartoon read: "Church & State."
"This cartoon is outrageous, despicable, and disrespectful of the Catholic Church and its hierarchy," stated Judie Brown, president of the American Life League (ALL). Brown stated that upon seeing the cartoon, she immediately "thought about all the trouble and injustice the Church has suffered over the years." Echoing Brown's thoughts, Brian Rooney, Esq., communications director for the Thomas More Law Center, a Catholic civil rights law firm, stated there was no doubt that "this cartoon is very anti-Catholic."
Thanks to the wonders of the World Wide Web, Auth's anti-Catholic cartoon has taken wings and ruffled the feathers of many Catholics. To Catholics, the cartoon is offensive because it suggests that those Catholics faithful to the church's teaching cannot be trusted with public office, stands to muzzle the Catholic message in the marketplace and unnecessarily disrespects Catholic bishops and the sacred office they hold.
"This cartoon smacks of the old Know-Nothing Party," stated Rooney. The Know-Nothing Party was a movement that began in New York around 1843 in response to the growing number of Irish Catholic immigrants. Members of the Know-Nothing Party argued that Catholics were too attached to Rome and, therefore, should, among other things, be forced to take loyalty oaths.
Rooney argues that Auth's innuendos that the five Catholic justices are in the Vatican's back pocket is a belief born of ignorance, and possibly fearmongering. The civil rights advocate also notes that each of the five justices, when being confirmed to the highest court in the land, testified, under oath, that they could separate their faith from their pubic duty.
"This cartoon sends a clear message to the reader that faithful Catholics cannot be true Americans, hold public office and separate their personal beliefs from the application of the law," stated Rooney.
Chris Satullo, editor of the Editorial Page of the Philadelphia Inquirer, takes issue with Rooney's assessment.
"Tony Auth is a commentator for our paper and has the freedom to express his opinion," Satullo said. In an attempt to neuter the claims that the Inquirer had flirted with anti-Catholic bigotry, Satullo explained, "the cartoon was not anti-Catholic, but was a commentary on the Supreme Court."
To Brown, a veteran of public policy debate, such an argument does not fly.
"If the cartoon was truly a commentary on the Supreme Court and the artist wanted to identify the Catholics on the bench, he could have placed a rosary in their hand," Brown asserted. Brown argues that the decision to identify Catholics with a miter was not just a commentary on the politics of the bench, but was a backhanded slap in the face of Catholic bishops.
"If a Catholic does not have a right to speak without fear of ridicule, then our future is not bright," stated Brown. Many Catholic rights advocates believe that cartoons such as Auth's are designed to chill Catholic speech and seek to create a perception that the teachings of the church are outside the political mainstream.
Illustrating such a point, Satullo stated that the Catholic Church has "spent a fair amount of energy" making sure that those Catholics elected to public office adopt policy positions consistent with church teaching. Since the five justices in the Carhart II majority are Catholic, they are fair game.
In further justifying the cartoon, Satullo opined, "We have heard constantly the problem of activist judges putting their morality before legal precedent," and this time such activism has come from the political right and was deemed newsworthy. To Dale Schowengerdt, attorney with the ADF, such a characterization shows a lack of understanding of judicial politics.
"To call this judicial activism is to distort the meaning of the term," stated Schowengerdt. "Judicial activism occurs when a court goes out of its way to strike down a law; in this instance, the Court did the opposite and upheld an act of Congress."
And while the Catholic worldview of the five justices may be in play, a vast number of left-leaning commentators, due to Carhart II, are using anti-Catholic bigotry to mask concern that the Supreme Court, which now houses two of President Bush's nominees, may overturn the abortion precedent.
In deciding Carhart II, the Court upheld an extremely narrow ban on a procedure dubbed by the majority as an "intact D&E." An intact D&E occurs when an abortion doctor induces a breech birth late in the pregnancy of a woman. The abortionist then pulls the unborn child by the legs until only the child's head remains in the birth canal.
At this point, the abortionist pierces the base of the child's skull with scissors and creates an opening. A tube is then inserted into the opening and the contents of the skull is removed.
"You don't have to be religious to see that the partial-birth abortion procedure is barbaric," stated Rooney. Rooney noted that disdain over partial-birth abortion is not just a Catholic issue, for "85 percent of Americans believe this should not be done."
In the end, Rooney believes that Auth's cartoon is proof positive that "Catholicism is the last form of permissible discrimination."
As for Satullo, the Inquirer editor stated he "understood" the cartoon would upset some people, but rationalized that in journalism "if you don't upset someone, you are not doing your job."
The Archdiocese of Philadelphia declined to comment.
Rosie O’Donnell expressed concern about there being five Catholics on the Supreme Court, and that this was a factor in the ruling.
Rosie showed her own ignorance, however, in that the Constitution forbids any religious test for anyone holding public office.
Maybe he should have added Kennedy and Kerry with scissors and suction tube in hand.
Auth is a No Nothing racist.
I’m sure she would be happy with that group on the Court. If the Court had ruled her way, the religions of the justices would never have been an issue for someone like Rosie.
If courts rule in a liberal way, then people like Rosie are happy. If courts rule in a conservative direction, then people like Rosie cry.
Tony Auth is a third-rate hack cartoonist. Ted Rall makes more sense that Auth, if that’s possible.
I think a proper cartoon would show the other 4 justices feeding at a banquet with a dead baby.
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