Politics

Professor Allegedly Fired From Catholic Seminary After He Offered To Fly Women To States Allowing Abortions

(ELIOT SCHECHTER/AFP via Getty Images)

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Kate Anderson Contributor
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A former professor was allegedly fired from a Catholic seminary after he offered to fly women to states that allowed abortions after the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade last year, according to The Guardian.

Greg Williams, a pilot and former professor at St. Joseph Seminary College in Louisiana, posted on Facebook following the Supreme Court’s decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization offering his piloting services to any women who were in a state that banned abortion, according to The Guardian. Williams was reportedly informed on July 5, 2022, that he was fired from his position at St. Joseph due to violating the terms of his contract by “publicly and deliberately advocat[ing] a position contrary to the official teaching of the Catholic Church.” (RELATED: Majority Of Americans Oppose Abortion Pill Restrictions: POLL)

“It’s a hell of a thing to have [the church] have an official letter addressed to me saying I’m doing heinous evil,” Williams told the Guardian. “It’s like – what are you talking about?”
WASHINGTON, DC - JANUARY 20: Anti-abortion and abortion rights activists protest during the 50th annual March for Life rally in front of the U.S. Supreme Court on January 20, 2023 in Washington, DC. Anti-abortion activists attended the annual march to mark the first to occur in a “post-Roe nation” since the Supreme Court's Dobbs vs Jackson Women's Health ruling which overturned 50 years of federal protections for abortion healthcare. (Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

WASHINGTON, DC – JANUARY 20: Anti-abortion and abortion rights activists protest during the 50th annual March for Life rally in front of the U.S. Supreme Court on January 20, 2023, in Washington, DC. (Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

Williams, who is also a pilot, posted on his personal Facebook account on Jun. 28 offering his services to women looking to obtain an abortion, according to The Guardian.

“If any women need to make an unexpected trip from the south to, say, Illinois or New Mexico or Virginia for reasons that are none of my business, I can provide safe, private air transport that would get you where you need to go and back the same day at a price that will work for you,” Williams wrote.

The former professor volunteers for Pilots for Patients, which provides free flights for people needing to travel for their medical procedures, however, a PFP spokesperson told the Daily Caller News Foundation in a prepared statement that Williams is “performing these flights on his own not under Pilots for Patients.”

“PFP missions do not include missions for abortions, we are focused on patients needing diagnosis and treatment for illnesses,” PFP’s spokesperson said. “PFP has no control over pilots or their flights outside the PFP mission.”

Williams told The Guardian that he wished abortion wasn’t necessary ” [b]ut that’s just not the world we live in,” and explained that he felt it was not his place as a man to decide whether a woman has an abortion. A week after he made the post, Williams, who had worked at the seminary for seven years, allegedly received a letter from St. Joseph’s President Gregory Boquet informing him that his post had violated the school’s policy and “[t]he decision is to terminate your employment … effective immediately.”

The Catholic Church has been pretty open about its opposition to abortion, most recently after Pope Francis compared abortion doctors to hitmen and said that “abortion leaves such a deep mark in a woman” during a Disney+ special earlier this month.

Williams argued that the seminary’s position was ironic, claiming that his firing had prevented him “from starting a family,” according to The Guardian.

“Having lost my job … I can’t afford it,” Williams said. “You want to talk about pro-life? They’ve literally prevented me and my wife from starting a family.”

A St. Joseph spokesperson told the DCNF that the seminary “does not comment on personnel matters.”

Williams could not immediately be reached for comment.

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