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Henry Morgentaler

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Doctor
Henry Morgentaler
CM LLD (hc) MD
Morgentaler (right), with NDP Leader Jack Layton in August, 2005.
Born (1923-03-19) March 19, 1923 (age 101)
Łódź, Poland
NationalityCanadian
Occupation(s)Doctor, activist
Spouse Chava Rosenfarb ​ ​(m. 1945⁠–⁠1975)​

Henry Morgentaler, CM (born March 19, 1923, in Łódź, Poland) is a Canadian physician and prominent pro choice advocate who has fought numerous legal battles for that cause.

Early life

Morgentaler was born in Łódź to Golda Nikita and Josef Morgentaler. His father was active in the Jewish Socialist Labour Bund. Following the German capture of Poland, Josef Morgentaler was arrested and killed by the Gestapo. During the Holocaust, Morgentaler lived with his mother and brother in the Łódź ghetto until 1944, when he was detained and sent to Auschwitz. Following his release, weighing just 70 pounds, he accepted a United Nations scholarship that was being offered to Jewish survivors. He went to medical school in Germany while living with a German family that was forced to house him under the program.

Medical career

Upon graduation Morgentaler refused to go to Israel because he strongly opposed Zionism. He and his wife, Chava Rosenfarb, left Europe in 1950 and emigrated to Canada. He received his medical eduction from the Université de Montréal where he graduated in 1953. After receiving his Canadian citizenship, he practised medicine in the east end of Montreal. He worked there as a general practitioner for nearly twenty years before his convictions about abortion caused serious conflict with others. On October 19, 1967, he gave public testimony before a Government of Canada committee about his belief that any pregnant woman should have the right to a safe abortion.

Morgentaler gave up his family practice and began openly performing illegal abortions in his private clinic in 1968. At the time abortion was illegal except for cases in which continuing a pregnancy threatened the life of the pregnant woman. On August 26, 1969, an amendment to the Criminal Code legalized abortion in Canada if performed in a hospital after approval of a Therapeutic Abortion Committee. Morgentaler's abortions remained illegal under that new law; they became legal in 1988 as section 251 of the Criminal Code (now known as section 287) was found to be unconstitutional by the Supreme Court of Canada.

In 2006, Morgentaler had to stop performing abortions after undergoing a heart bypass surgery. However, he continues to oversee the operation of his six private clinics.

Judicial and political battle

On June 1, 1970, Morgentaler was arrested in Montreal for performing illegal abortions. In 1972 he ran in the Federal Election in the riding of Saint-Denis as an independent, finishing fourth with 1,509 votes. Later in 1973 he claimed to have performed 5,000 illegal abortions. He was acquitted by a jury in the court case, but the acquittal was overturned by five judges on the Quebec Court of Appeal in 1974. He went to prison, appealed, and was again acquitted. In total, he served 10 months, suffering a heart attack while in solitary confinement. Morgentaler first went to the Supreme Court of Canada in an attempt to overturn the country's abortion law in Morgentaler v. The Queen but was unsuccessful.

In 1982, the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms was enacted as part of the Canadian Constitution. Morgentaler was charged again in 1983 in Ontario for procuring illegal miscarriages. He was acquitted by a jury, but the verdict was reversed by the Court of Appeal for Ontario. The case was then sent to the Supreme Court of Canada. He was acquitted once again, and the Canadian Supreme Court declared the law he was convicted under to be in violation of the Charter and thus unconstitutional in the case of R. v. Morgentaler 1988 (1 S.C.R. 30). This ruling by Justice Brian Dickson essentially ended all statutory restrictions on abortion in Canada.

Morgentaler's recent legal battles have focused on obtaining universal public funding for abortions. In New Brunswick, for example, the provincial health care system only pays for abortions performed at authorized hospitals and approved by two physicians. Morgentaler has challenged this policy and it is currently before the courts.

Morgentaler is currently working to open two private abortion clinics in the Canadian Arctic, so that women who live there do not have to travel vast distances to obtain abortions.

Death threats and assaults

Death threats against Dr. Morgentaler have been frequent.

In 1983, a man attacked him with garden shears outside of his Toronto abortion clinic. Judy Rebick blocked the attack, and Morgentaler remained unharmed. Augusto Dantas was charged with assault and with possession of a weapon dangerous to the public good.

In 1992, his Harbord Street clinic in Toronto was bombed, although Morgentaler was not physically harmed. In 1993, he won another case before the Supreme Court, R. v. Morgentaler, this time challenging provincial abortion regulations.

In response to the stabbing of Dr. Garson Romalis in 2000, Morgentaler noted that some doctors had stopped doing abortions in Ontario, New Brunswick and Newfoundland. "For years, we have been living in the shadow of the doctors being killed", said Morgentaler. "This violence is a sign of frustration, rage and moral bankruptcy in the anti-abortion movement."

Other legal troubles

In 1976, the Disciplinary Committee of the Professional Corporation of Physicians of Quebec suspended Morgentaler's medical license for a year as a result of his conviction for having performed an illegal abortion. According to Catherine Dunphy's 1996 biography of Morgentaler, the committee "commented on 'an attitude which is primarily directed to protecting his fees. No really valid interview is held before proceeding with the abortion. This behaviour confers a mercenary character on the doctor-patient relationship. This committee is incapable of reconciling this behaviour with the humanitarian concern that the accused invoked throughout his defence.'"

The Montreal Gazette previously reported in 1974 that according to police evidence, Morgentaler was re-using disposable vacurettes, against the manufacturer's instructions which stated that they "cannot be re-used". The Gazette reported that when contacted, Morgentaler stated that earlier model Vacurettes "could occasionally be used more than once", but he insisted that "whether someone uses a Vacurette once or twice has nothing to do with practising good medicine." A 1991 Alberta Report article reports that he now denied having re-used vacurettes, but it also reported that according to The Gazette's lawyers, Morgentaler never took any legal action against that paper.

In 1973, on the basis of Morgentaler's public claims that he had performed thousands of abortions, the Quebec Ministry of Revenue ordered him to pay $354,799 in unpaid income taxes. An out-of court settlement reached a few years later resulted in Morgentaler paying $101,000 instead.

Honours and awards

Dr Henry Morgentaler was the first president of the Humanist Association of Canada (HAC) from 1968 to 1999. He remains the organization's honorary president. The HAC bestowed him with the Lifetime Achievement Award on August 3, 2008 in Toronto, Ontario, during its 40th anniversary celebration convention, the largest Humanist convention in the nation's history.

The American Humanist Association named him the 1975 Humanist of the Year, along with Betty Friedan.

On June 16, 2005 the University of Western Ontario conferred an honorary Doctor of Laws degree upon Morgentaler; this was his first honorary degree. This decision by UWO's senate honorary degrees committee generated opposition from Canadian pro-life organizations. 12,000 signatures were acquired on a petition asking the UWO to reverse its decision to honour Dr. Morgentaler and several protest rallies were held, including one on the day the honorary degree was bestowed. A counter petition, supporting the UWO's decision, gained over 10,000 signatures.

On August 5, 2005 Morgentaler received the Couchiching Award for Public Policy Leadership for his efforts on behalf of women's rights and reproductive health issues.

The Canadian Labour Congress recognized him on May 28 2008 with its highest honour, the Award for Outstanding Service to Humanity.

Order of Canada

Morgentaler was named to the Order of Canada on July 1, 2008, recognized "for his commitment to increased health care options for women, his determined efforts to influence Canadian public policy and his leadership in humanist and civil liberties organizations." Abortion-rights activists applauded the decision, saying Morgentaler put his life and liberty on the line to advance women's rights, while pro-life groups strongly criticized the award, saying it debased the Order of Canada. Several members of the order have said they will return their insignias to Rideau Hall in symbolic protest, including Roman Catholic priest Lucien Larré, Gilbert Finn, former Lieutenant-governor of New Brunswick, Frank Chauvin, a retired police detective who founded an orphanage, and the Madonna House Apostolate on behalf of the deceased Catherine Doherty.

On the matter, Prime Minister Stephen Harper said he'd rather see the country's highest civilian award "be something that really unifies" and "brings Canadians together", while Liberal Party leader Stéphane Dion said, "Dr. Morgentaler has stood up for a woman’s right to choose to for his entire career, often at great personal risk", and asked Canadians to respect and celebrate the decision.

Media and cultural representations

In 2005, the CTV television network produced a television movie documenting Morgentaler's life and practice.

A famous Montreal Gazette editorial cartoon by Terry Mosher lampooned Montreal Mayor Jean Drapeau's proclamation that the debt-ridden 1976 Summer Olympics could no more have a deficit "than a man can have a baby." In the cartoon, an apparently pregnant Drapeau is shown placing a telephone call to Morgentaler.

The alternative rock band Me Mom and Morgentaler used the doctor as the inspiration for its name.

References

  1. CTV.ca | Morgentaler proud to be 'finally' recognized
  2. Mallick, Heather (January 18, 2003). "Why doesn't this man have the Order of Canada?". The Globe and Mail. Retrieved 2008-07-02.
  3. Sandra Martin. "Controversial abortion doctor faced a lifetime of persecution". The Globe and Mail. Retrieved 2009-04-05.
  4. Morgentaler Clinic (2006). About Us
  5. Statistics Canada (2006). Induced Abortions Statistics 2003
  6. Joseph Brean. "'Proud' to join Order", The Gazette, Montreal, July 3, 2008.
  7. Ann Marie McQueen. "Part 3 : 'I rose to the challenge'", Edmonton Sun, December 17, 2007.
  8. globeandmail.com
  9. Abortion in Canada | Human Quest | Find Articles at BNET
  10. CBC News (2008-08-08). "N.B. court gives nod to Morgentaler's challenge". Retrieved 2008-08-08.
  11. Sandra Martin." Controversial abortion doctor faced a lifetime of persecution", Globe and Mail, July 2, 2008.
  12. Vue Weekly : Edmonton's 100% Independent Weekly : NO ACCESS, NO CHOICE
  13. Mark Nichols. "Abortion Doctor Stabbed", Maclean's, July 24, 2000.
  14. ^ Catherine Dunphy. Morgentaler: A Difficult Hero, Random House of Canada, Toronto, 1996, p. 164. ISBN 0394223918
  15. Tom Pawlick. "Morgentaler re-used instruments despite maker's warning", The Gazette, Montreal, December 24, 1974.
  16. Celeste McGovern. "Skeletons in the closet", Alberta Report, April 1, 1991.
  17. Anne Collins (1985). The Big Evasion: Abortion, the Issue that Won't Go Away, Lester & Orpen Dennys, Toronto, page 141. ISBN 0886190606
  18. University honours Morgentaler - Television - CBC Archives
  19. The Couchiching Institute on Public Affairs, "2005 Recipient Dr. Henry Morgentaler"
  20. Canadian Labour Congress, "Dr. Henry Morgentaler Receives Canadian Labour’s Highest Award", Media Release, May 28, 2008
  21. Morgentaler named to Order of Canada, Globe and Mail, July 1, 2008
  22. http://media3.marketwire.com/docs/gova_annexe0701.pdf
  23. CTV.ca | Morgentaler proud to be 'finally' recognized
  24. B.C. priest returns Order of Canada in Morgentaler protest, Canwest News Service, 2 July 2008.
  25. Former lieutenant-governor returns Order of Canada in protest, CBC News, 9 July 2008.
  26. Windsor man to become latest to reject Order of Canada
  27. Order of Canada to be Returned Publicly Tuesday. Accessed 8 July 2008.
  28. Lewis, Charles. Group to return Order of Canada, National Post, 8 July 2008.
  29. CTV.ca | Order of Canada should unite Canadians: Harper
  30. Morgentaler 'honoured' by Order of Canada; federal government 'not involved'

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