The city of Minneapolis has amended an ordinance that previously prohibited anti-abortion sidewalk counselors from approaching individuals seeking an abortion at clinics. In 2022, the city enacted the Security of Reproductive Healthcare Facilities Ordinance, which banned obstructing access to or occupying driveways of reproductive healthcare facilities.
In 2023, Pro-Life Action Ministries, an anti-abortion advocacy group, sued the city over the ordinance, claiming it violated freedom of speech rights.
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Brian Gibson, the group’s chief executive officer, told the Associated Press that Pro-Life Action Ministries sends sidewalk counselors to stand outside abortion clinics and talk to patients entering the parking lot. He said the counselors never block entrances but attempt to get people to roll down their windows and accept literature or have a conversation.
The group claims on its website that its counselors have prevented more than 3,600 abortions.
Minneapolis amended the ordinance to state, “any person or group engaging in conduct protected by the United States Constitution, the Minnesota Constitution, or federal or Minnesota law,” which allows Pro-Life Action Ministries to continue its sidewalk counseling efforts outside abortion clinics.
In short, the group can now approach people seeking abortions as long as they do not block the driveway or clinic entrance.
The Minneapolis City Council also agreed to pay Pro-Life Action Ministries’ legal fees.
“They were accepting fault for having violated our constitutional rights,” Gibson told the Associated Press.