Judie Brown, president of American Life League, the nation's largest grassroots pro-life educational organization, issued the following statement in regards to the upcoming Senate debate on the Stem Cell Research Enhancement Act (S. 5) and the HOPE Act (S. 30):
As the United States Senate begins debate on two different pieces of human embryonic stem cell research legislation, it is worth noting that, despite the semantics, both bills pose serious threats to preborn children.
The Stem Cell Research Enhancement Act advances the blatant act of killing preborn persons, which is completely unconscionable. Despite the misinformation campaign that has been waged about human embryonic stem cell research, the bottom line remains that terminating the lives of innocent human embryos for research is ethically and morally corrupt. Such an act is nothing short of murder.
While the HOPE Act has been lauded as the "ethical alternative" to S. 5, this bill contains its own set of moral dilemmas. The proposed bill is described as permitting human embryonic stem cell research on embryos that scientists determine are incapable of surviving in the womb. This arbitrary decision to deem certain embryonic children as "naturally dead," even though they may be alive and growing, is extremely dangerous. While the intention of the bill may have been noble, the HOPE Act affords scientists the opportunity to finesse their way around the facts, resulting in a dead child.
American Life League cannot accept the language in either piece of legislation regarding human embryonic stem cell research. There are viable and effective alternatives to human embryonic stem cell research that must be expanded, notably research involving adult stem cells and umbilical cord stem cells. We simply cannot allow the inhumane sacrifice of human beings in the name of science to continue.
Release issued: 10 Apr 07
