It has now been over one year since the Supreme Court of the United States tossed Roe v. Wade into the ash heaps of history where it belongs. In Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health the Court acknowledged that the so-called right to abortion of Roe was not in the Constitution and decisions on the legality of and restrictions on abortion is left up to the elected representatives of the people. Yet, what has been overlooked is that the Constitution indeed grants and protects the right of a woman to choose life for her unborn baby, which no legislation should impede.
The reactions to Dobbs from various states has been diverse. While some states such as Texas, Louisiana, and Missouri have severely limited the access to abortion, other states have not only expanded abortion to essentially legalize the brutal procedure up to the time of birth, but there has also been a concerted effort to demonize, slander, and severely restrict the charitable work of nearly 2,500 pro-life pregnancy centers. These pro-life establishments are comprised of resource centers, which provide material assistance and aid to mothers contemplating abortion, and medical clinics that provide medical services to such women, including ultrasound and STI Testing and Treatment. All such services are free of charge and provide vital support to these women who are agonizing over a decision regarding their pregnancies.
A comprehensive study by the Charlotte Lozier Institute published in 2020 entitled Pregnancy Centers Stand the Test of Time reports that in 2019 such centers provided to nearly 1 million clients/ patients a range of social and medical services valued at more than $265,000,000. All such services are delivered free of charge to the patients and very few of these centers receive government funds. In other words, they provide vital services to help women without a burden to the taxpayer.
In the wake of Dobbs, various efforts of state legislatures in blue states --such as Colorado, Illinois, Vermont -- have recently passed legislation to restrict pregnancy centers and punish them for “deceptive” advertising, only because they do not refer for or perform abortions, something the abortion mob thinks is justification to shut them down. Lawsuits seeking to enjoin the passed laws of Illinois and Vermont have been recently filed by the National Institute of Family and Life Advocates (NIFLA), on behalf of its members in these two states. NIFLA is a national organization providing legal consultation and advice to pro-life pregnancy centers and has 1,700 pregnancy centers as members nationwide. It was the successful plaintiff in the case of NIFLA v. Becerra as it challenged on behalf of its members a California law that mandated pro-life centers promote abortion with a sign in their waiting areas advising patients how to obtain a state-funded abortion.
Among its arguments against the Illinois and Vermont laws NIFLA asserts that such laws violate a mother’s constitutional right to choose life. The decision of Roe v. Wade was based upon the high Court’s belief that a previously declared right of privacy in 1962 was broad enough to encompass the decision of a woman “whether or not to terminate her pregnancy.” While Roe gave constitutional coverage for the act of abortion such language also acknowledges that this right to privacy includes the decision of a mother to carry to term. Dobbs said that the protection for abortion is not in the Constitution but it did not deny that a mother has a right of privacy and constitutional right to choose life. Indeed, such a right now shines above any claim for the legal right to abortion because it stands as a fundamental constitutional right.
All efforts of state legislatures to restrict, handcuff, and even close the work of pro-life pregnancy centers violate this fundamental constitutional right. A pregnant mother who is struggling over “whether or not” to terminate her pregnancy has a right to receive all the support and services available to her in order to make an informed decision. The vital work of pro-life pregnancy centers provide such resources. Efforts to restrict them violate the right of a mother to choose life.
Pro-life pregnancy centers are now the protectors of women who are in difficult circumstances and need help. To restrict their efforts by blue woke states is a shameful and disgraceful action that must be opposed. Those working in the pro-life pregnancy centers to provide this needed help are the true heroes of America today. They are the ones who defend and protect life and support the constitutional right of all women to choose life.