Words,
actions, legislation and a March against abortion and support for the
right to life of the unborn child dominated Washington, D.C. last week
in the lead-up to today's anniversary of the Supreme Court's
legalization of abortion on demand in 1973.
The March
This
past Friday, tens of thousands of pro-lifers from around the country
gathered in Washington, D.C. for the 45th annual March for Life. Men, women and children stood up to give voice to the
voiceless. The theme of this year's march, "Love Saves Lives",
emphasized that choosing life is a loving, empowering, and
self-sacrificial option, even if it is not always the easiest. The theme
reflected the heart of the pro-life movement which has always been to
provide love and support to women and their children, offering
alternatives to abortion that respect and values the lives of both
mother and baby.
The President
The
March featured the first address ever by a president as President
Donald Trump addressed a smaller group in the Rose Garden and was
broadcast live via satellite to the March. The president's remarks
including the following:
"Today,
tens of thousands of families, students, and patriots - and, really,
just great citizens - gather here in our nation's capital. You come
from many backgrounds,many places. But you all come for one beautiful
cause: to build a society where life is celebrated, protected, and
cherished.
The
March for Life is a movement born out of love. You love your families,
you love your neighbors, you love our nation, and you love every child,
born and unborn, because you believe that every life is sacred, that
every child is a precious gift from God.
We
know that life is the greatest miracle of all. We see it in the eyes
of every new mother who cradles that wonderful, innocent, and glorious
newborn child in her loving arms.
I
want to thank every person here today and all across our country who
works with such big hearts and tireless devotion to make sure that
parents have the care and support they need to choose life. Because of
you, tens of thousands of Americans have been born and reached their
full, God-given potential - because of you."
The proclamation begins:
"Today,
we focus our attention on the love and protection each person, born
and unborn, deserves regardless of disability, gender, appearance, or
ethnicity. Much of the greatest suffering in our Nation's history - and,
indeed, our planet's history - has been the result of disgracefully
misguided attempts to dehumanize whole classes of people based on these
immutable characteristics. We cannot let this shameful history repeat
itself in new forms, and we must be particularly vigilant to
safeguard the most vulnerable lives among us. This is why we observe
National Sanctity of Human Life Day: to affirm the truth that all life
is sacred, that every person has inherent dignity and worth, and that no
class of people should ever be discarded as "non-human."
Congressional speeches at the March for Life
A large delegation of pro-life Members of Congress was present on the stage at the March for Life which featured
inspirational and encouraging speeches from House Speaker Paul Ryan,
Rep Jaime Herrera Beutler, and Rep Chris Smith, co-chair of the Pro-Life
Caucus.
The Speaker
Speaker Ryan was clearly impressed by the large number of young marchers and stated:
"Looking
out on this crowd, I can see there are people here of all ages, from
all walks of life, but the young people here is what is so inspiring
because it tells me this is a movement that is on the rise.
And do you know why the pro-life movement is on the rise? Because truth is on our side. Life begins at conception.
Do
you know why the pro-life movement is on the rise? Because science is
on our side. Just look at the ultrasounds that have shown us more about
the pre-born child han ever before. How they develop, how they react,
how they feel pain.
Most
importantly, the pro-life movement is on the rise because we have love
on our side. We believe every person is worthy of love and dignity. That
is why the pro-life movement is on the rise."
Speaker
Ryan's words are inspirational to all legislators who seek to use their
elected offices to protect unborn children from the violence of
abortion. He spoke about recent pro-life legislation that has passed the
House:
"We
strive to make our time in Congress a March for Life in itself. We
strive to fight for the unborn, to pass important pro-life legislation
through Congress, to work with the Trump administration to pass pro-life
policies and laws.
And we're making a lot of progress.
In the House, we passed legislation defunding Planned Parenthood.
In the House, we passed the Pain-Capable Unborn Child Protection Act, which restricts abortions after 20 weeks.
We
passed the Conscience Protection Act, which ensures no one is forced to
perform an abortion against his or her will. Religious freedom is the
first amendment. It is thefirst protection in our bill of rights.
And
just a few minutes ago, today, we passed the Born-Alive Survivors
Protection Act. It protects the life of those babies who suffer from
failed abortions.
But
most importantly, like the March for Life, we are striving to do this
without judgment in our hearts-but with compassion and with love for all
of the victims."
Rep. Jaime Herrera Beutler
Rep. Jaime Herrera Beutler,
with her family by her side, shared the personal account of being told
that there was no hope for the life of her unborn daughter Abigail and
that she and her husband should abort and "try again". She explained how
they rejected the doctor's advice to abort and instead searched for,
and found, groundbreaking new treatments that began in utero and saved
her daughter's life.
Herrera Beutler explained,
"I
was told there was no chance of survival, but they were wrong. And they
weren't bad people. They just had never seen a baby with this condition
survive. But that's the point. What if they're wrong about others, too?
What if, together, we can break new ground and find new treatments that
will benefit more than just our own families? What if every baby was
given at least a shot to reach their true potential?"
"Today, we have come together to say, 'There's hope for every expectant mother who
has been given a devastating diagnosis, for every woman who feels fear,
or anger, or anxiety because she doesn't know how she can afford care
for that child, for every woman that feels hopeless: Jesus loves you.
And for every baby that has been given up on by the status quo: Jesus
still does miracles. We must recognize the unborn child as the miracle
that he or she is, a person developing with extraordinary potential and
purpose, who deserves a fighting chance to live and just maybe
reach that extraordinary potential."
Rep. Chris Smith
Rep.
Chris Smith, Co-chair of the Pro-Life Caucus, encouraged the marchers
in their dedication to restoring the most basic human right, the right
to life, to unborn children. His remarks included the following:
"Everyone
here today is part of the greatest human rights struggle on the face of
the earth. It is the only human rights abuse that the abortionists dare
call a human right,it is Orwellian, and yet it happens here and all
over the world."
"I
know I'm speaking to the choir, but we need to double down on our
prayer for healing. We need to increase our fasting, and we need to ask
God for wisdom for healing, so that we will do our duty to protect the weakest and most vulnerable."
In explaining the passage that morning of the Born Alive Infants Protection Act, Rep. Smith stated that the intent of the bill is to ensure
"...that the cover-up that goes on each and every day in abortion
clinics - when personnel look the other way when a child is actually
born and then left to die due to exposure or to an actual killing due to
strangulation - that they will now be compelled under penalty of law to
report that so that those who commit these crimes can be prosecuted."
Smith concluded by praising pro-life outreach to post-abortion women saying, "This movement has reached out to protect those women who have had abortions to love them, to care for them. The Silent No More women are the new face of the pro-life movement."
Bills to Save Lives
The House
Moments before the March began; the House of Representatives passed the Born Alive Abortion Survivor's Protection Act, H.R. 4712
to protect the lives of babies who survive an abortion. The bill, which
passed by a vote of 241-183, will strengthen current law- the 2002 Born Alive Infants Protection Act- by requiring health care practitioners
Personal
testimonies from brave nurses like Jill Stanek have helped to reveal
the tragic practice of babies left to die or purposefully killed after
surviving an abortion. Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy explained: "This
bill states simply that if a baby is born after a failed abortion
attempt, he or she should be given the same medical care as a baby born
any other way. In line with our longstanding commitment to empower
women, mothers will never be held criminally accountable. However,
doctors who fail to provide medical care to newborns will be held
criminally accountable. There is absolutely no ambiguity here. This is
about protecting babies who are born and alive, and nobody should be
against that."
Additionally,
the House held a special order hour on the eve of the March and the
vote on Pain Alive Act with many Members expressing their support for
both.
The Senate
Pro-life senators have urged Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell to announce his commitment to bring the House passed Pain-Capable Unborn Child Protection Act
to the Senate floor for a vote in the near future. U.S. Senators Steve
Daines, Lindsey Graham (SC), James Lankford (OK), Joni Ernst (IA) and
Roy Blunt (MO) sent him a letter which includes:
"As
you know, the Pain-Capable Unborn Child Protection Act would prohibit
abortion after 20 weeks-the point at which scientific evidence shows
that unborn children can feel pain. The United States is currently one
of only seven countries in the world that permit elective abortion after
20 weeks. Polling numbers consistently show that the majority of
Americans support a ban on abortion at this stage of pregnancy; these
Americans no longer want to keep the company of countries like China and
North Korea."
"Twenty
states have already passed legislation protecting unborn children
beginning at 20 weeks...A vote would make our constituents immediately
aware of the members of Congress who support elective late-term
abortions and oppose extending legal protection to pain-capable unborn
children nationwide".
Due
to the Senate's filibuster rule, current pro-life bills need 60 votes
in order to pass unless a parliamentary procedure known as the nuclear
option is used. The No Taxpayer Funding for Abortion Act is also currently stalled in the Senate.