Pro-Life Activists Continue to Rally Behind Terri Schiavo Before Deadline
With only a few hours left before the court-ordered removal of Terri Schiavo’s feeding tube is set to take place, pro-lifers and Christians from across the nation continue to gather in prayer and in protest for her right-to-life.
With only a few hours left before the court-ordered removal of Terri Schiavo’s feeding tube is set to take place, pro-lifers and Christians from across the nation continue to gather in prayer and in protest for her right-to-life.
Since the beginning of this week, hundreds of supporters have been holding prayer vigils in front of the Woodside Hospice where 41-year old Schiavo resides. Schiavo, a severely disabled woman who has been in what courts call a ''persistent vegetative state'' since 1990, has in recent years come to symbolize the heart of the pro-life movement.
Since Schiavo collapsed at her home 15 years ago, she has been fed through a feeding and nutrition tube twice a day to maintain her life. And for nearly a decade her husband, Michael, has sought the removal of her tube, claiming she did not want to be kept alive artificially. To date, Michael Schiavo has twice been granted permission to remove the feeding tube that keeps her alive, and twice has had her death interrupted by legal maneuvers.
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In the last critical ruling related to her case, Pinellas Court Judge George Greer set a Mar. 18 date for the removal of Terri’s tube.
Rallies and prayer vigils, large and small, have been held throughout the week leading to today’s 1 p.m. deadline.
Brandi Swindell, Director of Pennsylvania-based Generation Life said, "As a woman, I find it appalling to see Michael turn his back on his wife.”
“Michael's actions are the ultimate form of domestic violence,” Swindell continued. “Michael should be protecting Terri instead of forcing his will on her by subjecting her to a brutal death of starvation and dehydration. His actions should be troubling to all women who believe in equality and justice."
Generation Life is one of several Christian activist groups that are participating in an All Women's Prayer Vigil and Demonstration that began today at 11 a.m. (Eastern Standard Time) at Michael Schiavo's Home Neighborhood.
Arianna Grumbine, Communications Director for Survivors—another Christian, Pro-life activist group participating in today’s vigil and demonstration—commented, "Michael Schiavo is abusing his wife by denying her basic physical needs. He has not allowed Terri physical therapy, dental care, diagnostic testing or even the opportunity to see the light or enjoy fresh air.”
“He has betrayed his wife by having an adulterous affair for over ten years,” Grumbine added.
According to reports, Michael Schiavo never mentioned his wife's supposed wishes until after the couple was awarded more than $1 million in medical malpractice claims. He stood to inherit that money if his wife died, though after years of litigation most of it is gone. Schiavo’s parents, who have struggled to keep their daughter alive, have argued that their son-in-law was trying to rush their daughter’s death so he could inherit her estate and marry his live-in girlfriend with whom he has fathered two children.
Schiavo’s parents—Bob and Mary Schindler—have also argued that even if their daughter had said before that she would not want to be kept alive artificially—as her husband claims—as a Roman Catholic, she would have changed her mind, after hearing Pope John Paul II say last year that removing a feeding tube from a patient like Terri would be “euthanasia by omission.”
Now, as the 1 p.m. deadline looms, the Associated Press reports that U.S. Senate Republicans have sought to keep Schiavo alive with an invitation to bring her to Washington—a move that Schiavo’s parents hope would buy them more time.
According to the AP, the Senate Health Committee has requested that Terri Schiavo and her husband, Michael, appear at an official committee hearing on Mar. 28.
