The Joint Statement for Building a Post Roe Future was drafted by two pro-life activists, a pro-life apologist, and a pro-life scholar, after several virtual discussions about how to build on both the opportunities and the challenges posed by the overturning of Roe v. Wade.
Josh Brahm Josh Brahm is the President and Co-Founder of Equal Rights Institute, an organization dedicated to training pro-life advocates to think clearly, reason honestly, and argue persuasively. He travels the country speaking on practical dialogue tips, relational apologetics, and pro-life philosophy. He also produces videos, podcasts, and online courses.
Charlie Camosy is Professor of Medical Humanities at the Creighton University School of Medicine and Curran Fellow of Moral Theology at St. Joseph Seminary in New York. Most of his activist and academic work — which includes the publication of eight books and hundreds of articles — has deep and profound ties to the goals of pro-life movement. Among his responsibilities, Charlie sits on Cardinal Dolan’s pro-life advisory board for the Archdiocese of New York.
Eric Scheidler is the executive director of the Pro-Life Action League, a grassroots direct-action anti-abortion group founded in 1980 by his father, Joe Scheidler. Headquartered in Chicago, the League coordinates pro-life demonstrations, rallies, vigils, and education campaigns throughout the United States.
Jonathon Van Maren is a pro-life activist and columnist whose work has appeared in First Things, The American Conservative, National Review, and elsewhere. He is a contributing editor with The European Conservative, communications director for The Canadian Centre for Bio-Ethical Reform, and author of several books including Patriots: The Untold Story of Ireland’s Pro-Life Movement.
Despite their differing backgrounds — two Catholics and two Protestants, with political views ranging from center-left to center-right — Josh, Charlie, Eric, and Jonathon found themselves landing on the same convictions about the best way forward for the pro-life movement: the bold, new pro-family policies called for in the Joint Statement.
The statement was drafted over the summer of 2022, and then shared with a broad group of pro-life leaders, activists, scholars, authors, and others, garnering hundreds of signatures. It was officially published on January 20, 2023, the day of the 50th annual March for Life, and just two days before the 50th anniversary of the Roe v. Wade ruling.
News Coverage of the Joint Statement
Joint Statement drafter Charlie Camosy was featured along with the statement itself in a piece on The American Conservative: Mississippi Governor Sets the Right Tone on Pro-Life Policy, February 27, 2023
The Joint Statement was featured as an exclusive in the New York Times’ coverage of the 50th annual March for Life: ‘Will We Keep Marching?’ On Roe’s 50th Anniversary, Abortion Opponents Reach a Crossroads, January 19, 2023.
The co-authors of the Joint Statement issued a press release: Pro-Life Activists, Authors, Scholars Declare: Abortion Bans Are Not Enough: Pressure to Abort Must Be Reduced by Bold Pro-Family Policies, January 20, 2023
The co-authors of the Joint Statement published an op-ed in Newsweek: Policy Proposals for Building a Post-Roe Future, January 20, 2023.
Co-author Jonathon Van Maren published a story on the Joint Statement at First Things: Ending the Demand for Abortion, January 23, 2023; and at The American Conservative: Post-Roe Principles: A new joint statement calls on elected officials to drive down the demand for abortion, January 31, 2023.