Digger's Doings

The Unbearable Being of Light - comments on Randall Terry's lawsuit against Troy Newman for the name "Operation Rescue"

     Randall Terry, never one to avoid a chance to 'meet the press' has been creating some of his own lately by announcing his intention to sue Troy Newman of Wichita, Kansas for "fraudulent" use of the name Operation Rescue. According to Terry, Troy Newman has been raisng "hundreds of thousands and perhaps millions of dollars in the name of Operation Rescue". Terry claims Newman has no legal right to use the name Operation Rescue even though Newman applied for a trademark and obtained the right to use the name several years ago.

     Color me surprised - I didn't realize the name "Operation Rescue" was such a cash cow. As a former rescuer who went on to work in other child-centered activities, I didn't know the mere name could bring in such large amounts of money. I have watched what Troy Newman and his team have been doing in Wichita, Kansas with interest for some time now and have been impressed by the amount of energy and work that has gone into trying to put an end to abortion there.

     Their efforts have been a strong complement to the original vision of Operation Rescue though they have not chosen to engage in OR's signature tactic of sitting in front of the doors of Tiller's abortion clinic. For that matter, no one else, including OR's 'founder', Randall Terry, has used this tactic since the early 1990s

     (I use the word founder in quotations because Terry was certainly not the firrst to engage in peaceful sit-ins at abortion clinics although he can take a great deal of credit both for making it a more widespread practice and for getting more Protestants involved in pro-life activism).     

     Meanwhile Terry, while still committed to the abortion issue, has expanded his own vision to include battles against homosexual activism, judicial tyranny and radical Islam among other things. I'm not passing judgement on the rightness or wrongness of these issues but they do tend to take the focus off OR's original mission of saving babies. His "Society for Truth and Justicve" organization reflects this "big tent" commitment and gives him an outlet for his efforts.

     So why does Terry care if someone else uses the Operation Rescue name? It's not because Troy Newman is using the name in a way that brings disgrace to the original vision. Terry even acknowledges "Mr. Newman is to be applauded for pro-life efforts that are legitimately his to take credit for". Ah, there's the rub. Newman, as he sees it, is building on Terry's legacy and not his own.

     This is where I have to object. Yes, Terry 'founded' Operation Rescue but, had it not been for the sacrificial efforts of thousands of people committed to carrynig out the vision, the name "Operation Rescue" would not have the significance it has today. Terry is quick to remind us all of the many sacrifices he made on behalf of Operation Rescue and I think no one denies that he paid a heavy price for his leadership.  But he is not the only one who paid a price. Many of us who followed his example also paid a price - in arrests and jail time (which, for some women like myself, included sexual assault within the jails themselves), in loss of good health (including, in at least one case that I am personally aware of, mental health), in lost wages and job opportunities, in the breakup of marriages, in severed personal and church relationships and in countless other ways.

     We, however, don't have Alan Keyes writing letters to ask people to give us money to "restore waht the locusts have eaten". We don't have a cadre of lawyers at our disposal. Many of us are leading quiet lives. We are happy that we got to play some small role in saving the lives of children who are now of high school and college age but may still struggle sometimes with the consequences of our choice to take part in rescue.

     Choice is the optimal word here. Terry and everyone else chose to take part in Operation Rescue with some degree of understanding that our actions could result in negative consequences. To this day, Troy Newman is choosing to take part in activities that have cost him dearly. He does not present his supporters with a laundry list of the negative consequences of his choice (as Terry has done in his 21-page argument against Newman's use of "his" name). To Newman's credit, he has remained very quiet about this whole thing. Many have risen up to defend him but he. himself, is avoiding the media spotlight.

     I have been doing perhaps too much reading about both Terry and Newman to better understand this situation and it may be that I have looked at this all wrong. I consider myself open to correction on this issue and, as I continue to investigate, may find that I have completely misjudged the situation. If so, I will be the first to apologize for drawing hasty conclusions based on Terry's public documentation as provided on his new website (www.operationrescuetheft.com).

     More on this story as it progresses...

At least you read the facts

{ 6:44 PM, Jun. 1, 2008 } { Posted by Anonymous }

Good for you for at least reading the facts. Alot of folks rally around Mr. Newman without even seeing that he fraudulently stole the name. If he had gotten permission to build on the 'legacy' it would be a different story. All this can blow over the second Mr. Newman releases the name. He had his chance many times over but just won't let it go. A lot of folks think Mr. Terry is wrong for taking back his moniker and legacy but I think any one of us would do the same. I can't just go and start using the name Priests for Life just because I would do "good work" with the name. It has to be sanctioned. that is the christian way of doing things. Troy Newman is not doing this very christianlike.(no comment about mysteriously withdrawing from his church before Terry even sent the notice)

Thank you Digger

{ 7:25 PM, Jun. 1, 2008 } { Posted by Anonymous }

I cannot get over the sheer arogance of Randall Terry thinking he *is* Operation Rescue. He's got some nerve. What does that make the rest of us rescuers? Dog meat? His leadership became one of non-sacrifice ... rally up the troops ... but then leave or sit back while we got arrested. Keith Tucci also followed the Randall Terry model of not putting yourself out there as well. At least Joe Roach and Pat O'Brien in Philadelphia led by example. It's why we had the strongest pro-life movement in the nation.

Randall Terry has no shame. He disappears from pro-life, and then only returns to create havoc. He is so selfish I just want to scream.

RT

{ 8:29 PM, Jun. 1, 2008 } { Posted by Steve Wetzel }

I hope you don't mind, but I've placed a link on my website mttu.com.

RT is after the OR website plain and simple. The internet is all about web ranking - and randallterry.com has none. I checked his source code, and it is painfully obvious why his website is ranked somewhere around 19 million. If I were him, I'd fire his web guys because they are terrible, and don't know what they are doing. Thing is - I could get RT's website way above where both the OSA and OR websites are - but he is too hard headed. He is trying to recapture the genie in a bottle, which simply cannot be done - and at the same time destroying the prolife movement.

RT needs to give Newman the fair market value of his website. I think $100,000 would be in the neighborhood of the right price for a website of that ranking.