American Life League’s New Interim Director of STOPP International Brings Impeccable Pro-Life Credentials
Contact: Tom Ciesielka, 312.422.1333, tc@tcpr.net
(May 25, 2022 – Fredericksburg, Virginia) American Life League’s newly named interim director of STOPP International was once “a card-carrying member” of the feminist, abortion-promotion group NOW. Rita Diller openly admits that was a long time ago. Diller, often referred to as a “pro-life hero,” now has almost four decades of advocacy for the sanctity of human life behind her. STOPP International is American Life League’s initiative dedicated to educating people about Planned Parenthood’s culture of death and shutting down its facilities.
American Life League’s president, Judie Brown, spoke highly of Diller, saying: “Rita is intimately involved with our work. She carries impeccable pro-life credentials. Having worked closely with our late executive director, Jim Sedlak, as national director of STOPP, Rita is intimately familiar with the program’s objectives to expose the true nature of Planned Parenthood and document its anti-life, anti-family programs. STOPP brings dedicated grassroots pro-life advocates together to counter Planned Parenthood and build a solid wall of resistance to the abortion giant’s promotion on a culture of death.”
Although Diller officially “retired” in 2015, she has continued to advise pro-life leaders and concerned parents about the dangers of Planned Parenthood and its pornographic sex education programs.
“God has called me out of retirement to help carry on Jim’s work after his passing,” Diller remarked, and she now steps into the shoes of Sedlak, who was heading up STOPP at the time of his sudden death in January 2022.
Sedlak was the cofounder of STOPP and the founder of STOPP International, Christian parent groups focused on putting Planned Parenthood out of business. In 1998, STOPP merged into American Life League, bringing Sedlak into his dual role in the organization’s leadership.
“Jim was an expert on the ways that people in grassroots movements could be most effective in fighting Planned Parenthood. He spoke from experience, and he always knew exactly what to do to ruffle the feathers of those who promoted a culture of death,” Brown shared. “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.”
Looking at Diller’s track record, Planned Parenthood could have reason to fear her also, noted Brown.
“Rita worked 13 years alongside Bishop John Yanta in the Roman Catholic Diocese of Amarillo, where she held the roles of Diocesan Family Life director, Diocesan Respect Life director, and editor-in-chief of The West Texas Catholic diocesan newspaper. During that time, her efforts helped trigger the closure of all 19 Planned Parenthood facilities in the diocese.”
Diller reflects that when Bishop Yanta arrived in the diocese, he described the plethora of Planned Parenthood facilities there as “a bishop’s worst nightmare.”
“Bishop Yanta knew that we needed to concentrate on educating people about the reality of Planned Parenthood,” recalled Diller. “We worked hard to tell the people of the diocese the truth about Planned Parenthood.”
As a pro-life consultant, speaker, and investigative journalist with decades of experience confronting and stopping Planned Parenthood, Diller is quick to acknowledge that credit for the victories is not actually hers.
“The very core of our 100 percent effective campaign to stop Planned Parenthood in the Texas Panhandle was always bringing Jesus to Planned Parenthood through Mary,” shared Diller. “We did that by praying the Rosary on site at their facilities and by always carrying an image of Our Lady of Guadalupe with us. We also met the PP staff wherever they were in the community—whether at their board meetings or at their gatherings. Anyplace they were, there we were also. It was a win-win strategy that Jim Sedlak assisted us with often, and we saw the closure of every Planned Parenthood facility in the diocese, sometimes one by one, sometimes multiple closures in the same day.”
Prior to her work with the diocese, Diller volunteered 14 years at Birthright pregnancy help center and Body of Christ Rescue in Corpus Christi, Texas.
A wife, mother, and grandmother, Diller confessed that her pro-life endeavors are deeply connected to her religious beliefs.
“I am a convert to Catholicism,” explained Diller, “It was through that step of faith that I became involved in the pro-life movement and through the grace of the sacraments that I have remained strong in my resolve to work day by day, however God leads me, to stop Planned Parenthood and stop abortion.”
About American Life League
American Life League has been part of the pro-life abortion debate from its inception. Since 1979, American Life League has committed to the protection of all innocent human beings from the moment of creation to death with a pro-life integrity that stands up for every innocent human being whose life is threatened by a culture of death. For more information visit all.org, and for particulars on STOPP visit stopp.org.