One-year anniversary of Roe v Wade overturned: One year of near-total abortion ban in Arkansas

LITTLE ROCK, Ark. – The United States has nearly reached the one-year mark since the Supreme Court overturned the landmark Roe v Wade case. The anniversary of the ruling comes tomorrow, June 24.

That decision one year ago turned over abortion rights to the states.

Arkansas legislators passed a trigger law in 2019 banning nearly all abortions – except to save the mothers life. The law took effect last year when SCOTUS struck down the 1973 Roe v Wade ruling.

For Arkansans on both sides of the issue, the debate over abortion rights still seems as passionate as ever.

"Here in Arkansas, our legislature has made it very clear that we are a pro-life state,” Executive Director of Family Council, Jerry Cox said.

Americans United for Life has now named Arkansas the most pro-life state for several years in a row, including this year.

Christina Mullinax, Finance Director for Democratic Party of Arkansas, pointed back to 2013 when things looked different for the state. At the time, she worked for Planned Parenthood and lobbied for them at the state capitol.

“I was standing in the rotunda when we found out that Governor Beebe had in fact vetoed the 20-week ban,” Mullinax said, “I just got really emotional, and I was like, ‘thank you.’”

Fast forward seven years and to a new governor, the 2019 trigger law passed – which is now in effect because of the Supreme Court’s overturn.

“My next step was going to be work for the Democratic Party of Arkansas to help elect more Democrats,” Mullinax said. “Period. The end. It is only Democrats who continue to fight for bodily autonomy. It is only democrats that stand up for reproductive justice.”

That fight is an uphill battle, while Democrats remain in the minority at the state capitol.

“It is women's lives that we are talking about,” Mullinax said. “It is women’s lives that are at stake, and it is only the Democrats fighting for women's lives."

Cox argued that he - and other pro-life Arkansans - are prioritizing the mothers.

“It behooves all of us who are pro-life to step into that space now and say, ‘Okay, we have made abortion mostly illegal in Arkansas, now we have to step up and help women with an unplanned pregnancy,’” Cox said.

Since the abortion ban has taken effect, Arkansas lawmakers have appropriated $1 million to pregnancy resource centers in the state that care for women experiencing unplanned pregnancies.

Cox noted that more can be done to care for the mothers in Arkansas dealing with unplanned pregnancies. He is looking to fellow organizations, churches and lawmakers to continue stepping up to the plate, and he said confidently that more will be done as the state continues to adjust to the ban.

from KARK https://ift.tt/jeaGWQz