In This Issue:
- PRI in the Media
- Pfizer Birth Control Lawsuit
- Deepening Depopulation
- Overpopulation Fears Debunked
- Russia Hides Population Decline
- Russia Pushes Teen Pregnancy
- UK Births Inch Up
- Communist China
- Faith Under CCP Control
- UN Misdeeds
- UN Pushes Radical Policies
- Pro-Life Around the World
- Canada Targets Disabled
- Academy Condemns Suicide Bill
- Pro-Life on the Home Front
- Abortion Legal in Wisconsin
- Massachusetts Pushes Suicide Bill
- Montana Abortion Ruling Stands
- Abortions Resume in Missouri
- Good News
- Congress Cuts Abortion Funding
PRI in the Media
Pfizer Birth Control Lawsuit: A lawsuit has been filed against Pfizer alleging that its birth control drug, Depo-Provera, is linked to brain tumors. We at PRI played a key role in exposing this issue, having raised alarms for over 30 years about the health risks associated with all kinds of contraceptives, particularly in vulnerable populations. PRI’s research and advocacy helped bring attention to the overlooked side effects and long-term harm caused by Depo-Provera, especially in global health programs targeting women in developing nations.
To view our whistle-blowing articles, search “Depo-Provera” on our website!
Deepening Depopulation
Overpopulation Fears Debunked: The New York Times recently published a piece that shatters the myth at the heart of the global anti-natalist movement: fewer babies won’t stop climate change. Most of the world already has below-replacement birthrates. By the 2080s, the global population is projected to decline, and if each generation averages just 1.5 children per two adults, the population could shrink by 66% every century. Overpopulation fears were once focused on famine and scarcity and echoed by thinkers like Malthus and Ehrlich. But global food supply per person has increased, life expectancy has risen everywhere, child survival rates have improved dramatically, and extreme poverty has dropped from 2 billion in 1990 to under 700 million today. Prosperity has grown with population, not despite it.
Russia Hides Population Decline: As the war in Ukraine drags into its fourth year, Russia has tightened control over demographic information, effectively shutting off public access to key population data. Russia does not release war-casualty figures; Western estimates are around 1 million, while some Russian sources cite about 200,000. This move comes amid growing concerns about the country’s declining population, a trend worsened by the war. Last year, births in Russia dropped to 1.22 million—the lowest since 1999—while deaths rose 3.3% to 1.82 million, accelerating population decline by about 20% compared to 2023, partly due to the war. For insiders watching Russia’s demographic crisis, the data freeze signals a deepening crisis that Russia prefers to keep hidden.
“Russia has long been filling more coffins than cradles,” Mr. Mosher notes. “But Putin’s invasion of Ukraine has been so costly in terms of human lives that Russia has now stopped publishing demographic statistics altogether. The hundreds of thousands of young men who have died in the conflict will never marry and have children, virtually ensuring that the next generation of Russians will be even fewer in number than the current one. The Russian dictator claims to want to increase the birth rate. But decimating this generation of young Russian men by waging endless war against Ukraine is going to have the opposite effect.”
Russia Pushes Teen Pregnancy: In an attempt to reverse its plummeting birth rate, Russia has launched a controversial program offering schoolgirls over 100,000 rubles (about $1,200) to have children. Initially aimed at adult women earlier in 2025, the policy has now expanded to ten regions and marks a dramatic shift in the country’s pronatalist strategy. With Russia’s fertility rate at just 1.41 births per woman in 2023, President Putin is pushing aggressive measures to stem the demographic decline. But the decision to incentivize teenage childbirth has proven divisive: a national poll found 43% of Russians support the move, while 40% oppose it. Experts warn that cash handouts alone won’t solve the crisis—without real investment in family-friendly policies and a cultural renewal that values marriage and parenthood, the downward trend is likely to continue.
UK Births Inch Up: For the first time since 2021, England and Wales saw a slight rise in births—up 0.6% in 2024—totaling just under 595,000 live births. Still, it remains the third-lowest total since 1977, and the broader picture is far from encouraging. Births among women under 30 continue to decline, with the sharpest drop, nearly 5%, seen among mothers under 20. Meanwhile, the number of births to women aged 35 to 39 saw the largest increase, and those fathered by men over 60 rose by 14%, helping to fill the gap. Perhaps most telling, nearly 40% of all babies born now have at least one parent born outside the UK, underscoring the country’s growing reliance on immigration to maintain its birth rate.
Communist China
Faith Under CCP Control: In yet another chilling move against religious freedom, the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) has ordered all religious organizations to strictly enforce a new set of national regulations targeting foreigners practicing their faith. Under the new policy, effective May 1, foreign clergy must receive official government approval to preach, and only to fellow foreigners—Chinese citizens are explicitly barred. Only state-approved faiths, under the control of the CCP, are legal. These groups must avoid unsanctioned foreign ties. Any religious activity by foreigners, unless officially invited, is treated with suspicion and heavily restricted. Religious books and materials from abroad are prohibited, and foreign preachers must have their sermons approved by the CCP in advance. This is the next phase in China’s war on faith, particularly its war on Christianity.
UN Misdeeds
UN Pushes Radical Policies: At its 59th session in Geneva, the UN Human Rights Council doubled down on its push for extreme social policies under the guise of “diversity, equity, and inclusion.” Top UN officials demanded governments embrace full decriminalization of abortion and advocacy for “gender-affirming care.” Mofokeng, a UN Special Rapporteur, condemned doctors’ conscience objections to abortion as potentially violating women’s reproductive “rights.” UN staff attacked countries like Hungary, Georgia, and Turkey for resisting LGBT propaganda in schools and public life. Argentina was one of the few nations that stood firm, boldly defending the unborn and affirming the dignity of both mother and child. The UN bureaucracy is not neutral; it’s aggressively pushing for abortion and the eradication of the traditional family.
Pro-Life Around the World
Canada Targets Disabled: In Canada, disabled lives are routinely targeted. Over 90% of babies diagnosed with Down syndrome are aborted, and most preborn children with disabilities meet the same end. Until recently, this lethal ableism was confined to the womb. Earlier this year, the UN Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities condemned Canada’s euthanasia regime as “state-sponsored eugenics” and urged the government to reverse course. Despite this call to action, Canada has plans to extend euthanasia access to those suffering solely from mental illness or disability starting in 2027, opening the floodgates to eliminate anyone with a disability.
Academy Condemns Suicide Bill: After the House of Commons voted last week to legalize assisted suicide for terminally ill adults, The John Paul II Academy for Human Life and the Family swiftly condemned the vote, calling it a “moral collapse.” The UK’s embrace of assisted suicide is the fruit of six decades of inadequate catechesis. Supporters called the bill compassionate, but the Academy pushed back, arguing that true compassion—grounded in the Hippocratic Oath—means doing no harm, not prescribing death. Citing natural law as the foundation of just laws, they warned that without it, modern leaders are willing to sacrifice the vulnerable to a culture of death. The statement closed with a call to urgently reform not only the law, but Catholic teaching itself.
“I am honored to be a member of the John Paul II Academy,” says Mr. Mosher. “We live in an age when the laity are often called upon to defend Church teaching in view of the silence of the shepherds. And we will.”
Pro-Life on the Home Front
Abortion Legal in Wisconsin: In a major setback to Wisconsin’s pro-life laws, the state Supreme Court ruled 4–3 to strike down its 1849 abortion ban, allowing abortion to remain legal under modern statutes. The liberal majority claimed the ban had been overridden by later laws, including a 1985 statute permitting abortion until fetal viability, typically around 20 weeks. Chief Justice Annette Ziegler dissented sharply, calling the decision “a jaw-dropping exercise of judicial will” and accusing the court of legislating from the bench. The ruling comes after the Left secured a court majority in the most expensive judicial election in U.S. history, fueled by tens of millions from progressive megadonors. Wisconsin now joins a growing list of states where courts have nullified pre-Roe protections for the unborn.
Massachusetts Pushes Suicide Bill: Massachusetts lawmakers are quietly pushing forward a bill to legalize assisted suicide, an effort they’ve attempted and failed in the past. The new measure, H2505, is moving through the legislature faster than ever before. It would allow terminally ill patients expected to die within six months, to obtain lethal drugs with a doctor’s approval. Patients must submit two requests—one oral and one written—15 days apart. While marketed as a way to ease suffering, the real motivation behind the push isn’t pain relief, but the desire to avoid disability.
Montana Abortion Ruling Stands: In a quiet but troubling move, the U.S. Supreme Court declined to take up a case involving Montana’s parental consent law for underage abortions, letting stand a lower court ruling that struck the law down. Montana’s previous statute required minors to obtain parental consent before undergoing an abortion. But abortion activists challenged the law, and in 2024, the Montana Supreme Court ruled it unconstitutional under the state’s expansive “right to privacy” clause. Now, the U.S. Supreme Court’s refusal to intervene leaves that decision intact.
Abortions Resume in Missouri: In Missouri, Circuit Court Judge Jerri Zhang ruled Thursday to block enforcement of multiple abortion laws, including restrictions on most abortions, a 72-hour waiting period, and special facility licensing, clearing the way for abortions to resume in the state. Zhang has ruled three times that Missouri must suspend abortion restrictions, citing Amendment 3 as having established abortion as a constitutional “right.” Some abortion clinics plan to resume procedures this Monday, July 14th. Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey vowed to swiftly appeal the ruling, condemning the court for blocking essential health and safety regulations meant to protect mothers and their babies.
Good News
Congress Cuts Abortion Funding: Congress has passed the “Big Beautiful Bill,” which includes a one-year moratorium on federal funding for abortion providers—including Planned Parenthood—in what pro-life leaders are calling a “historic victory.” The original bill aimed to defund Planned Parenthood for 10 years, but the final version signed by Trump limits it to just one year. Still, pro-life leaders celebrated the win while pushing for a permanent funding cutoff. For years, Planned Parenthood has faced scandals—from selling fetal body parts to covering for abusers and causing patient deaths. But thanks to this bill, taxpayers are no longer forced to fund an industry that harms women, offers poor care, and commits over 400,000 abortions annually.
Quote of the Week
“The Church must walk with all people, especially the most vulnerable, ensuring their dignity is upheld from the womb to the end of life, as this is the heart of Christ’s mission.”
~ Pope Leo XIV
