The American Civil Liberties Union will seek a federal court order compelling the U.S. government to release documents related to federal contracts with religious relief agencies that assist illegal immigrants.
The ACLU is seeking the information over its concerns that a huge majority of women and underage girls who illegally immigrate to the United States endure rape and other forms of sexual assault, according to a press release obtained by the Arizona Daily Independent.
Specifically, the venerable civil rights organization estimates, “between 60 and 80 percent of women and girls who cross the border are sexually assaulted.”
Does the ACLU want to clamp down on the massive border surge of the Obama era to prevent such intolerable human rights violations? No. Of course not. Don’t be ridiculous.
Instead, the ACLU wants to force religious organizations to pay for abortions for illegal immigrants who have been raped and become pregnant.
The civil rights group also wants religious groups which receive federal funding to give out free or subsidized contraception, suggesting that such assistance is necessary “to meet the basic needs” of underage teen illegal immigrants.
The faith-based organizations “impose their religious beliefs on these teens by denying them access to contraception, emergency contraception, and abortion,” the ACLU argued, according to the Daily Independent.
“Many unaccompanied teenagers come into the U.S. fleeing abuse and torture in their home countries. Many have been sexually abused or assaulted or forced into prostitution,” said ACLU Reproductive Freedom Project attorney Brigitte Amiri.
Amiri gave virtually this same stock quote back in 2008 in a press release entitled “Bush Administration Blocks Medical Services For Immigrant Teens In U.S. Care” — except she said just “some have been sexually abused or assaulted or forced into prostitution.”
The current fracas involves a draft rule by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Refugee Resettlement that will force American religious relief agencies to provide abortions and contraception services to the illegal immigrants those groups serve.
As the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops gently explained in February, forcing a Catholic group or an evangelical group to pay for abortions or contraception creates “moral concerns.”
The new rule would leave faith-based groups with no choice but “to restrict their work,” which “could create an unmanageable backlog for services” for unaccompanied minor children.
“We believe that, through practical discussions, we can find a resolution that allows the government to fulfill its obligation to care for unaccompanied children, while also respecting the religious and moral beliefs of faith-based organization that, to date, have provided such critical care for this vulnerable population,” the bishops’ group said.
Six out of the nine national refugee resettlement groups in the United States are faith-based agencies, the bishops also noted.
Follow Eric on Twitter. Like Eric on Facebook. Send story tips to erico@dailycaller.com.