OTTAWA — A group of anti-abortionists have returned an Order of Canada medal to protest the appointment of the country’s most notable abortion-rights crusader to the exclusive fraternity.
The medal belonged to Catherine de Hueck Doherty, who died in 1985. But members of the Madonna House Apostolate that she founded say it belonged to all of them.
So on Tuesday they took the medal and the framed citation back to Rideau Hall and handed them over to an official, saying they did not want to be associated with Dr. Henry Morgentaler.
Morgentaler, inducted into the order on Canada Day, was cited by Gov. Gen. Michaelle Jean for his contribution to the life of his country.
The Roman Catholic group objected to the decision, and what it called “the serious misdirection of our country and many of its leaders.”
“The awarding of the Order of Canada to Dr. Morgentaler compels us to protest in the most forceful, peaceful way available to us,” said a letter to Jean, signed by the directors of the 200-member religious community in Combermere, Ont., east of Ottawa.
“Not only do we find his medical practice the dark side of the medical profession but his inclusion in the awards diminishes them,” it said.
“An award that was meant to be a sign of unity is bringing division. Something is not right.”
It said Morgentaler’s lifelong fight to defend a woman’s right to choose was “misguided.”
“Through his crusade, the dignity of the person is violently transgressed, justice for the most vulnerable is trampled on, the healing arts are compromised and little faith is shown for the future. Is this what we want as a nation?”
Susanne Stubbs, one of the community’s three directors, said the membership was unanimous in wanting to make a simple but public gesture. She called it “an act of conscience.”
It is the second such protest against Morgentaler’s appointment as a member of the order. Rev. Lucien Larre, a Roman Catholic priest in Coquitlam, B.C., named to the order 25 years ago, shipped his award to Ottawa.
Doherty was named to the order 32 years ago for helping the poor. Stubbs said Doherty wrote a letter to the community stating the medal belonged to all of them.
Said Rev. David May, a director: “We believe that our country was built on respect for all life and a country that does not let itself be built on those foundations is in trouble.”
-- THE CANADIAN PRESS
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