CatholicVote to host live Q&A with Catholic father and pro-life advocate Mark Houck

CatholicVote supporters will have the chance to attend an exclusive livestream Q&A July 15 featuring Catholic father and pro-life advocate Mark Houck in conversation with CatholicVote Vice President of Advocacy Joshua Mercer.

The live event will begin at 8 p.m. ET and is open exclusively to the monthly donors of CatholicVote’s Champions Club. Supporters can bookmark the event page, join the Champions Club, and tune in live here.

Houck gained national attention after a 2021 confrontation outside a Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, abortion facility, where he was praying with his 12-year-old son. As CatholicVote reported at the time, Houck pushed a 72-year-old Planned Parenthood escort away from his son after the man verbally harassed and intimidated the child. The escort fell but was not seriously injured.

Federal authorities under the Biden administration later charged Houck under the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances Act, commonly known as the FACE Act, alleging that he used force to interfere with the escort’s work at the facility. A Pennsylvania jury acquitted Houck on both counts in January 2023.

In a video shared by CatholicVote, Houck called the prosecution an “obvious attempt to intimidate me and every other pro-lifer who dares to offer women an alternative to abortion.”

Houck and his wife later sued the Biden administration’s Department of Justice, alleging that federal agents used excessive force when they arrested him at gunpoint at his Pennsylvania home in September 2022. The lawsuit further alleged that the arrest and prosecution caused the family severe emotional distress and contributed to three miscarriages and an infertility diagnosis suffered by Houck’s wife.

The case ultimately resulted in an April 2026 settlement under which the federal government agreed to pay Houck and his family more than $1 million, as Zeale News previously reported.

>> Pro-life Catholic father wins $1.1M in settlement with DOJ over wrongful arrest <<

“When the Biden Justice Department targeted pro-life activist Mark Houck, Catholics from across the country rallied to his cause and prayed for his family,” Mercer told Zeale News. “We were all so relieved when he was found not guilty. Today, Mark continues his inspiring work saving babies. And we're looking forward to a wonderful conversation about how Champions of CatholicVote can continue our pro-life work.” 

During the livestream, Mercer and Houck will discuss what it was like for Houck to be targeted and prosecuted by the federal government, how the case affected his family, and what his perspective is on the current state and future of the pro-life movement. 

Champions Club members can submit questions for Houck in advance and watch the livestream at this link.