Pro-lifers sue over Minneapolis buffer zone restricting their free speech

Pro-life activists have sued the city of Minneapolis over its “safety zone” policy, which prohibits free speech activity in certain areas outside abortion facilities. Pro-Life Action Ministries filed the lawsuit Wednesday in federal court, arguing that its a violation of the group’s freedom of speech and freedom of religion.

In November 2022, the city council enacted a “safety zone” or buffer zone around the driveways of the city’s abortion facilities, prohibiting pro-life activity within the zone. Currently, the city has one Planned Parenthood that commits abortions.

At the time, many abortion advocates painted a picture of pro-lifers who were harassing women as they entered the facility, while also claiming the ordinance was simply meant to protect the safety of everyone. However, Tim Wilkin, sidewalk counseling program director for Pro-Life Action Ministries, called these claims false, countering that it was most often the pro-lifers who were regularly threatened and harassed — not the other way around.

“The ministry of pro-life sidewalk counseling is a peaceful interaction with pregnant woman to convey life-affirming alternatives to abortion,” Erick Kaardal, an attorney for the group, said in a statement. “Yet the City of Minneapolis has specifically enacted an ordinance designed to prevent any success at conducting this peaceful interaction by Pro-Life Action Ministries, its staff members or volunteers, and any others involved in similar activities.”

“We stand by the necessity and constitutionality of the ordinance,” Tim Stanley, executive director of Planned Parenthood Minnesota, North Dakota, South Dakota Action Fund, said in a statement. “The ordinance balances the rights of patients, staff, community, and protestors. Everyone should be able to get health care, go to the grocery store, drive in their neighborhood, and exercise their First Amendment rights.”

Mayor Jacob Frey, a strong supporter of the ordinance, also agreed. “Abortion is healthcare and we full-heartedly stand by this ordinance,” he said. “This is not about limiting free speech, it’s about protecting community members from being physically disrupted while seeking the reproductive care they need and deserve.”

Buffer zones have become a common way to try and stifle pro-life speech and activity outside abortion facilities. Though that activity is largely peaceful, prayerful, and helpful, cities and regions such as Sacramento, Maine, and Kentucky have enacted similar laws, though in some cases those laws have been overturned. Meanwhile, the United Kingdom has done more than restrict free speech outside its abortion facilities, going so far as to prohibit even silent prayer.

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