The pro-life movement’s tireless and passionate defense of life can clearly be seen in the abundant success we experienced in 2015.
New numbers from the Centers for Disease Control show abortion numbers at an all-time low nationwide! (Lifenotes)
In January, 2015, for the first time since 2006, a pro-life majority in the U.S. Senate was sworn into office. All nine freshmen senators each currently hold a 100 percent voting record with National Right to Life.
The Pain-Capable Unborn Child Protection Act passed the U.S. House 242-184. Had it passed the Senate, the bill would have banned abortion after 20 weeks, the time at which unborn babies can feel pain.
Unfortunately, though pro-life senators voted to advance the bill, it fell short of the 60 votes required.
The Dismemberment Abortion Ban was enacted in Kansas and Oklahoma. This bill protects unborn babies from the gruesome abortion procedure that involves tearing their bodies limb from limb. In September, a federal version of the bill was introduced in the U.S. House.
The Pain-Capable Unborn Child Protection Act was passed by Wisconsin’s legislature and signed into law by pro-life Governor Scott Walker. In West Virginia, the legislature overrode a veto by Governor Earl Ray Tomblin.
In the summer, undercover videos by the Center for Medical Progress exposed Planned Parenthood’s practice of trafficking in aborted baby body parts. Two congressional hearings were held and both the U.S. House and Senate held votes to ban federal funding of Planned Parenthood. (See article below.)
The U.S. Supreme Court announced it will hear the case challenging Texas’ 2013 pro-life omnibus bill known as HB2. The case will be heard in March, with a decision likely in June.
A recent report by the Guttmacher Institute, formerly affiliated with Planned Parenthood, shows how alarmed and concerned pro-abortion activists are with recent state pro-life successes:
“Including the 57 abortion restrictions enacted in 2015, states have adopted 288 abortion restrictions just since the 2010 mid-term elections swept abortion opponents into power in state capitals across the country. To put that number in context, states adopted nearly as many abortion restrictions during the last 5 years (288 enacted in 2011-2015) as during the entire previous 15 years (292 enacted 1995-2010). Moreover, the sheer number of new restrictions enacted in 2015 makes it clear that this sustained assault on abortion access shows no signs of abating …
“The 288 restrictions enacted since 2010 include a broad range of approaches, from banning some abortions, to putting restrictions on the providers allowed to perform the procedures, to limiting insurance coverage.
“Four states — Arkansas, Indiana, Kansas, and Oklahoma — each enacted at least 20 new abortion restrictions, making this handful of states, which together adopted 94 new restrictions, responsible for a third of all abortion restrictions enacted nationwide over the last 5 years. Kansas has the dubious distinction of leading the pack with 30 new abortion restrictions since 2010.”
What the Guttmacher Institute labels “restrictions,” pro-lifers celebrate as protections for unborn babies and their mothers.
These state laws included successes in banning late term abortions, requiring abortion clinics to meet certain health standards, holding clinics responsible for hurting women, requiring waiting periods for abortion, cutting off Planned Parenthood funding and excluding the organization from Medicaid programs, and stopping the sale of aborted baby body parts.
Throughout the 43 years of legal abortion in the U.S., the pro-life movement has continued its work, passionately defending the rights of unborn babies and their mothers. Our successes in 2015 are worth celebrating!
