In Memoriam: National Pro-Life Leader Jim Sedlak Was ‘#1 Enemy of the Evil of Planned Parenthood in America’

National pro-life leader Jim Sedlak, 78, died Monday in advance of the release of his repo
Photo Courtesy of American Life League
Dr. Susan Berry

National pro-life leader Jim Sedlak, 78, died Monday before the release of his report exposing more of the activities of abortion industry giant Planned Parenthood.

In a press statement about Sedlak’s passing, American Life League (ALL) cofounder Judie Brown referred to her longtime friend and fellow advocate as “the #1 Enemy of the Evil of Planned Parenthood in America.”

According to the statement, on the day he died, Sedlak, who served as ALL’s executive director, was expected to appear on a morning radio show to discuss ALL’s soon-to-be-released “2021 Planned Parenthood Facilities Report.”

“From the very first moment I spoke to Jim there was no doubt that he was an expert on the ways that people in grassroots movements could be most effective in fighting Planned Parenthood,” Brown shared, adding:

He spoke from experience, and he always knew exactly what to do to ruffle the feathers of those who promoted a culture of death. Jim was a faithful Catholic who had an incredible devotion and led not with words, but by example. I believe this is the single greatest reason why he was so effective in battling the Planned Parenthood poison in our midst. Planned Parenthood feared him—and with good reason.

Former Planned Parenthood manager turned pro-life advocate Abby Johnson confirmed Brown’s description of Sedlak.

“When I worked at Planned Parenthood, their greatest threat was one humble man named Jim Sedlak,” said Johnson, the founder of And Then There Were None. “They were terrified of him.”

Sedlak was the cofounder of STOPP, a program laser-focused on eliminating Planned Parenthood, and the founder of STOPP International.

When STOPP merged into ALL in 1998, Sedlak took on a vital role in the organization’s leadership.

ALL observed the essence of his work:

The primary emphasis of Sedlak’s work was showing the world Planned Parenthood’s “dirty laundry.” His recent work on the 2020 Planned Parenthood CEO Compensation Report, released by the American Life League in December 2021, shone the light on inherent racism throughout Planned Parenthood. Sedlak was unsurprised to see racial bigotry turning up at all levels of the taxpayer funded abortion organization.

“There is an obvious disparity in the way that Planned Parenthood treats its executives of color,” Sedlak noted in the report, “and that allows for an organizational environment that disregards and disrespects leaders that are not White.”

“That’s rather telling for a business with admitted beginnings in eugenic efforts to keep Black women from reproducing,” he asserted.

ALL observed as well that Sedlak was recognized as a leading expert in the pro-life movement.

“Planned Parenthood Federation of America named him as one of the ‘most active’ fighters against Planned Parenthood sex education programs,” ALL said.

Additionally, Sedlak expressed concern about the integrity of the Catholic Church.

According to ALL:

He, along with his American Life League colleagues, found abhorrent the idea that some priests and bishops were allowing abortion-promoting politicians to partake of holy communion. In addition to his ongoing efforts to stop Planned Parenthood, Sedlak was deeply engaged in protecting Christ in the Eucharist.

“We will miss Jim,” shared Brown, “His absence leaves a hole in our hearts, but the lessons he taught will live on, as will his memory in our hearts, in our work, and in our commitment to serve God first and foremost.”

Father Frank Pavone, national director of Priests for Life, spoke of his and his organization’s sadness at Sedlak’s passing.

“Despite his greater physical challenges in recent years, Jim’s commitment to the cause of pro-life, and his zeal for exposing the truth about Planned Parenthood, never weakened one bit,” he shared, elaborating:

Wherever I led various gatherings of the national leaders, whether in Washington, DC, or here in Florida, or in Texas, or elsewhere, Jim would be there. And he would participate actively, always bringing fresh ideas to our strategy sessions.

“Jim was always a voice of experience, of faith, of prayer, and of leaving no unborn child behind,” Pavone added. “This great movement will miss him, but will not stop learning from him.”

Sedlak is survived by his wife, Michaeleen, their three children, and ten grandchildren.

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