| |
Supreme Court Ruling Stops Abortionists from Performing Partial-Birth Abortion
“Abortion harms women. No abortion contributes to the well-being of a woman. Finally, by upholding the ban on partial birth abortion, the Supreme Court of the land has recognized that 'the woman’s health' can no longer be used as a smokescreen to justify this gruesome procedure of partial-birth abortion.” Peggy Hartshorn, President of Heartbeat International.
ALBERTO R. GONZALES, ATTORNEY GENERAL, PETITIONER v. LEROY CARHART ET AL.; ALBERTO R. GONZALES, ATTORNEY GENERAL, PETITIONER v. PLANNED PARENTHOOD FEDERATION OF AMERICA, INC., ET AL. Nos. 05-380 and 05-1382 U. S. SUPREME COURT
Read the Supreme Court's Decision here...
- Held by the Supreme Court of the United States: the Partial Birth Abortion Act does not impose an undue burden on a woman's right to abortion based on its over breadth or lack of a health exception.
- This is a victory because it is the first time that an abortion procedure has been banned nationwide since Roe v. Wade and Doe v. Bolton were decided by the Supreme Court in 1973.
- Doe v. Bolton defined "health" as including a woman's age, physical, psychological and familial factors. This new Supreme Court ruling on partial-birth abortion did NOT give us a new definition of health. Doe v. Bolton still stands. The victory is that the lack of a “health” exception to the Partial Birth Abortion Act was not fatal to its constitutionality. In other words, everyone always argues that abortion legislation is unconstitutional if you leave out this health exception. Congress chose to leave out a health exception in the Partial-Birth Abortion Act. The Supreme Court said “ok” in this instance – the Act is still constitutional.
- In this recent 5-4 decision, Justices Roberts, Alito, Scalia, Thomas and Kennedy ruled in favor. Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, formerly an attorney for the pro-abortion ACLU, dissented along with Justices Stevens, Souter and Breyer. Kennedy, considered a swing vote on abortion, sided with the majority so we can hope that this majority might hold if and when a case comes before the Supreme Court that might result in overturning Roe v. Wade.
- The reaction at Heartbeat International is mixed because the ban on partial birth abortion has no effect on the other 3,000 to 4,000 abortions performed daily in the United States. So Heartbeat’s Option Line®, a joint venture with Care Net, continues 24/7 to connect people in crisis to their closest pregnancy center. This support can be reached by phone, 1-800-395-HELP, or at www.OptionLine.org
- Notably, Planned Parenthood Federation of America brought this case before the Supreme Court in an attempt to circumvent the Partial Birth Abortion Act. In addition, Planned Parenthood, the National Abortion Federation, and other doctors who perform partial-birth abortions had brought lawsuits in California, New York and Nebraska in an effort to prevent enforcement of the Partial-Birth Abortion Act.
- Heartbeat International and our affiliates advocate for the true reproductive health and well-being of women. Abortion is not a medical “treatment” that can improve a woman’s health. The very idea of an abortion to preserve a woman’s health is a smokescreen used to promote a culture characterized by sexual gratification separated from responsibility. Women we see in our pregnancy centers testify daily to the painful physical and emotional effects of abortion.
- We applaud the life affirming groups and all concerned citizens as well as state and federal legislators who have persevered over more than a decade in the fight to ban this cruel, barbaric procedure.
To schedule an interview with Peggy Hartshorn, contact Virginia Cline at 614/885.7577 or via email at VCline@HeartbeatInternational.org.
Additional information:
www.nrlc.org
www.washtimes.com
Print this article...
Heartbeat Briefs Congress on Pregnancy Center Work
By Nathan Burd,
Director of International Program & Public Policy
 Heartbeat International along with sister organizations Care Net and National Institute of Family and Life Advocates held a briefing on Capitol Hill on March 13 for members of Congress and Congressional staffers from both major parties.
As the head of the nation’s oldest and largest pregnancy center association, Heartbeat President Peggy Hartshorn, Ph.D., opened the briefing with a history of the pregnancy resource center movement in the U.S.
“After an onslaught of attacks against pregnancy centers, there is a great need to be proactive and explain to Congressional members and staffers the importance of the life-saving work of pregnancy centers across the country,” said Hartshorn. “With the CBS coverage and then the TIME magazine article, we needed to present the history of the pregnancy center movement along with our vision for the future where women are able to recognize abortion as the harmful choice that it is.”
“It is vital to the future of our nation that we respond to the false allegations against pregnancy centers,” said Congressman Rick Renzi (R-Arizona). “We need to get the truth out to legislators that these non-political, faith-based organizations serve the mother so she does not feel forced to abort, and these dedicated volunteers also work to strengthen each family, which is after all the basic unit of civilization.”
Other key presenters covered topics such as: abortion risks, medical accuracy, client demographics, and ultrasound technology. We also took the opportunity to circulate Our Commitment of Care which outlines our dedication to serve with truth and accuracy.
Download the History of the Pregnancy Help Centers in the U.S.
Back to Top
See Archived Reports
|
|
|
|
 |
