By Wanda Franz, Ph.D.
Because of the Roe v Wade and Doe v Bolton Supreme Court decisions of 1973, nearly 60 million innocent, unborn humans have been killed by abortion. There is no other event in history that has killed so many innocent people, and it is legal in the United States of America!
Clearly, the right to life is the most important social issue of our time. In West Virginia we are paying for abortion through the Medicaid system. Pro-life West Virginians can’t allow this pro-abortion policy to continue. We want to fix this in the next Legislative Session.
You can make a difference by joining with us. We are the only single-issue, pro-life organization in the state and we have made a difference in the Mountain State. But, we cannot do this alone; we need the help of the pro-life people of the state. United together, we can make great progress.
West Virginians for Life has been successful in bringing the pro-life issue to prominence in West Virginia, legislatively and politically. In 2014, we had an election of historic proportions, in which the Republicans took control of both the West Virginia House and Senate. One can argue that the election’s result reflects, in part, voter anger at Democrats, who failed to support the pro-life policies valued by the people of the state. You, the pro-life people of West Virginia, made a political statement that has allowed us to make real progress for life here in the state.
In the 2015 Legislative Session, we were able to pass the Pain-Capable Unborn Child Protection Act with large bipartisan majorities in both houses. This law recognizes the state’s compelling interest in protecting the unborn child, who is capable of feeling pain, by outlawing abortions after the baby can feel pain at 20 weeks in utero.
In the 2016 Legislative Session, we helped pass the Unborn Child Protection from Dismemberment Abortion Act. This bill outlaws a type of late-term abortion that dismembers the living baby’s body in order to remove it from the womb. The people of West Virginia will no longer be forced to pay for late-term abortions with their tax dollars.
In the 2017 Legislative Session, two laws were passed. West Virginians for Life worked with our pro-life legislators to pass the Parent’s Right to Know bill to close a loop-hole in our law that allows children to obtain abortions behind the backs of their parents. In addition, we amended a bill to prevent medical abortions from being prescribed long distance.
You can be part of this great movement working to save lives. Join us today and make your voice heard. It’s time to take a stand for life while we have been given such great opportunities.
You can keep up with news and events by visiting wvforlife.org or you can e-mail us at info@wvforlife.org and telephone us at 304-594-9845.
