FROM SFLA NEWS

Exposing Abortion Extremism: How We Explained the Ohio Ballot Fight to the New York Times  

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Caroline Wharton - 15 Sep 2023

As the days tick down until November, it’s heating up in Ohio as both sides on the abortion issue fight until the end on the upcoming ballot initiative. If you’re unclear on what exactly the pro-life movement in the Buckeye State is working towards, the Students for Life of America (SFLA) team was recently featured in a New York Times piece explaining just that. Here’s what you should know:  

In an article entitled “The Surprising Places Where Abortion Rights Are on the Ballot and Winning” (time will tell about Ohio), reporter Emily Bazelon noted pro-abortion anger over the language of the November initiative. The language change, initiated by Secretary of State Frank LaRose, substituted the term “unborn child” for “fetus,” a word that has become much more sterile as many in our culture sadly use it in an attempt to belittle the preborn’s humanity.  

As an example, check out this clip below from SFLA President Kristan Hawkins’ speaking tour in which she debates a pro-abortion student and breaks down the term:  

The new language of the Ohio ballot initiative reads that it would “always allow an unborn child to be aborted at any stage of pregnancy, regardless of viability, if, in the treating physician’s determination, the abortion is necessary to protect the pregnant woman’s life or health.” This radical measure would allow a precious child to be aborted through all nine months of pregnancy.  

Keeping their lawyers ever on speed dial, the abortion lobby has sued over these changes…yet as SFLA told Bazelon, this language is exactly what’s needed for voters to understand the horrific reality of this measure. The New York Times article reports

“The campaign for the initiative is suing, accusing LaRose and the ballot board of deception. But abortion opponents argue that the board is telling voters the truth about the impact of the amendment. “If people understand the extremes that are in this, it won’t have 57 percent support anymore,” says Jamie Scherdin, the regional coordinator for the national group Students for Life of America…That was her emphasis — the amendment went much too far — for training Ohio college students on how to appeal to voters.”  

The Pro-Life Generation on the ground in Ohio have been instrumental in educating voters on what this amendment really means. Led by Scherdin, SFLA is hosting a campus tour exclusive to Ohioans entitled “Abortion on The Ballot,” making nearly 25 stops (and counting) across the state to encourage a No Vote in November.  

Jamie Scherdin

Scherdin further explained to Bazelon why the pro-life movement works to protect all life — in both law and service — from the moment of conception to natural death: because we believe every life is unique and valuable. No questions asked, no qualifications to be met. As an example of this, the article continued:  

“Scherdin also often tells a story about why she joined the anti-abortion movement. The mother of one her friends, she says, gave birth to him after she was raped at the age of 19. “He’s a prime example of every excuse people give for saying women need abortions,” she says. “That’s what turned me from seeing this as a personal issue to 100 percent a human rights issue.””  

If you’d like to learn more about why the rape/incest exception is not humane, click HERE read another SFLA blog entitled “Rape & Incest Exceptions 101: How to Defend the Protection of All Lives.”  

If you’re interested in hosting the “Abortion on the Ballot” Ohio Campus Tour, click HERE to request a stop at your college/university.  

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