Abortion

When the Supreme Court decided Roe v. Wade in 1973, polling showed that blacks were less likely than whites to support abortion. Sixties-era civil rights activists like Fannie Lou Hamer and Whitney Young had denounced the procedure as a form of genocide.

“While 60 percent of respondents think that abortion should be “generally legal” during the first trimester, support falls to 28 percent in the second trimester and only 13 percent during the third trimester.” NReview

“Louisiana Governor John Bel Edwards signed a bill Wednesday banning abortions after 15 weeks… . The bill is now law, but will not go into effect unless the US District Court for the Southern District of Mississippi upholds a similar ban in Mississippi.” Jurist

“How does a country that only seven years ago had nearly 70 percent of its population declare themselves Roman Catholic ignore the heeding of the church?” WRN

Ireland has voted by a landslide margin to change the constitution so that abortion can be legalised, according to an exit poll conducted for The Irish Times.

“When Cecile Richards stepped down as president of Planned Parenthood last week, glowing profiles celebrated her leadership of the nation’s largest facilitator of abortions. But Richards’ legacy is dark. Nearly 4 million unborn children died in Planned Parenthood centers during her 12-year tenure.” WORLD

“The Iowa legislature on Wednesday approved a measure to ban abortions once a heartbeat is detected, or as early as six weeks of gestation.” Jurist

“Pennsylvania House Speakers Mike Turzai and Judy Ward, sponsors of the bill, argued that the bill is an concerned effort to reduce the number of abortions based on the diagnosis of Down syndrome, which is at almost 90 percent. A similar bill was passed in Ohio and was temporarily blocked by a federal judge.” Jurist

“Nebraska and Tennessee this month joined more than a dozen states that have cut funding for abortion providers like Planned Parenthood, a pro-life campaign that has seen mixed results.” BPNews

“House Bill 1266, known as the ‘Pain Capable Unborn Child Protection Act,’ was sponsored by Republican House Member Donna Lichtenegger. The legislation includes language defining the pain capable gestational age as … 20 weeks following fertilization.” Jurist