NASHVILLE - The American Civil Liberties Union and Planned Parenthood on Thursday sued to stop Tennessee from issuing specialty license plates with a "Choose Life" message.
The lawsuit, filed in U.S. District Court, contends the anti-abortion plate discriminates against residents with an opposing viewpoint because there is no car tag available with their message.
"The state of Tennessee has opened a state-created forum to one viewpoint alone in the public controversy over abortion," the lawsuit says.
Tennessee ACLU executive director Hedy Weinberg said that an attempt on the Senate floor to amend the bill to create a license plate with a pro-choice message was defeated.
"The state can allow license plates to be used to promote messages, but if they do they can't select what message they promote," she said in a news conference. "They can't pick and choose."
Brian Harris of Tennessee Right to Life, an anti-abortion group, said the lawsuit is baseless.
"The pro-abortionists charge that they have somehow been denied is ridiculous," he said in a statement. "The pro-abortionists never filed a bill to enact a pro-abortion plate."
He said if the ACLU and Planned Parenthood want a license plate carrying their message "they should work through the normal democratic process. Organize at the grassroots level, try to convince people that abortion is good, and elect some folks that share those radical views."
The General Assembly approved the plates in May. Half of the $35 extra fee is to benefit New Life Resources, the outreach and counseling arm of Tennessee Right to Life.
Gov. Phil Bredesen let the bill become law without his signature and called for legislative review of the specialty plate program, citing concerns that "we are venturing onto a slippery slope by starting to place political messages onto license plates."
