The battle lines over American abortion law have shifted over the past year since the US Supreme Court overturned its 1973 Roe v. Wade decision that allowed nationwide access to the procedure, according to a leading pro-life campaigner.
The court’s ruling in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization handed responsibility for abortion law to the states.
Marjorie Dannenfelser, president of Susan B. Anthony Pro Life America who was a central figure in the battle over Roe, told Faithwire: “What a huge difference one year makes. After 50 years of trying, we’re at the starting line. In one year, 24 states have passed strong pro-life protections anywhere from conception up to 12 weeks. There’s a lot of wins and then there’s a lot of pushback fueled by fury and money.”
Faithwire reports that despite polls showing divergent views among Americans on an issue that continues to dominate America’s political landscape, Ms. Dannenfelser believes the faction of the pro-choice side advocating for ‘no abortion restrictions’ embraces a “losing” position. “They’re rallying around a 10% issue that now would be real late-term abortion — all abortion up to the end, paid for by taxpayers. Passing a federal law to establish that and knock down all of our laws, that’s their goal,” she explained.
The pro-life campaigner described it as a “really unpopular position” that won’t yield victory for those embracing it, saying: “If you take the 10% position, you stand to lose.”
She also lamented the violence plaguing crisis pregnancy centres over the past year and praised the pro-life clinics for the work they do to help women in need: “This violence across the country — 90 incidents, at last count — they are after churches, they’re after pro-life pregnancy centres, they’re after pro-life leaders. They’re after anybody that would stand in the way of the abortion clinic.”
Ms. Dannenfelser called pregnancy centres the “nerve center for the whole pro-life movement.” She viewed the violent assaults on these establishments as similar to what happens when the “hornets’ nest is shaken up. “Every single win that we have is an immense loss for them,” she said, citing 24 states where pro-life laws have been codified or strengthened in the past year.
The pro-life leader believes there’s a “realignment” unfolding and said this is typically the case after a major US Supreme Court ruling involving human rights.
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