GRAND RAPIDS, MI – Abortion foes filed a federal lawsuit alleging Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s order to stay home to slow coronavirus spread violates their right to protest outside of abortion clinics. One of the plaintiffs, Andrew Belanger, said he was cited March 31 by Detroit police while he preached outside of Scotsdale Women’s Center. He said he was holding a pro-life sign and kept a distance from others.

Meanwhile, the National Abortion Federation called on Whitmer to prevent “anti-abortion groups from using the guise of ‘worship services’ to continue harassing patients and clinic staff despite the Governor’s ‘Stay Home, Stay Safe’ Order.”

The group, not involved the lawsuit, said anti-abortion protesters increase the risk of COVID-19 exposure. The Rev. Katherine Hancock Ragsdale, president and CEO of National Abortion Federation, wrote to the governor. She asked that a religion exemption be removed under the stay-at home order.

“As an Episcopal Priest, I appreciate your efforts to accommodate those who wish to gather in worship during these difficult times. However, the persistence of anti-abortion protesters in gathering en masse outside of clinics is a public health issue that simply must be addressed, and the unfortunate fact of the matter is that the religious exemption to Michigan’s stay at home order has become these extremists’ carte blanche for harassing health care workers and their patients, and increasing their odds of COVID-19 exposure in the process.” Read more via MLive