Second Principle: The Republican's Defense of the Unborn

By: Iverson Jackson
     Since the 1970s, the Conservative voice has screamed into the abyss of the D.C. machine, especially when it comes to the preservation of the unborn child. In a nation where foundational documents list God-ordained rights such as life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness, it is shocking the millions of people every year that are murdered before even having the chance to breathe. This is an injustice not just to the American society, but also to the heart of God.
       Relying strictly upon the Republican Party’s first principle, a belief in God Almighty, Republicans believe firmly that all life is authored by that Creator God. From the Genesis narrative, we learn that Life is God-breathed. As Adam was created from the dust of the ground, God then breathed life into his nostrils. Acts 17:28 confirms, “For in Him we live and move, and have our being.” The Bible also shares the reaction of John the Baptist before his birth in response to Mary’s announcement of her pregnancy with Jesus, proving personality in utero.
        But if the Biblical narrative is not sufficient evidence, let us also look at the law. With the confirmation of Amy Coney Barrett to the U.S. Supreme Court, many state legislatures have drafted legislation to abolish abortion procedures within their state. In Arkansas’ case, the 93rd General Assembly recently passed S.B.6, a bill signed into law by Gov. Asa Hutchinson, that would ban all abortions in the state except for those to preserve or save the life of the mother. While a federal judge has blocked this, the Supreme Court has decided to hear a similar case from a Mississippi state law.
      Meanwhile, the ACLU has taken up the banner to represent abortion providers in Arkansas that are challenging S.B. 6, stating that it is an afront to reproductive freedom and privacy. But that brings forward an even more interesting logical debate. Whose rights are most valuable? Does the woman’s right to privacy outweigh the unborn’s right to life? Holding to the principle that all are created equal, the Republican is bound to the coequal rights of life and liberty for all, regardless of gestational age.
       Challengers suggest that laws like these are in direct conflict with the viability standard presented in Roe v. Wade. And, they’re right. This is why a Court challenge is so crucial. The viability standard essentially legalized abortion during “trimesters” in which the baby is assumed to be unable to survive outside the womb. Not only is this no longer relevant given the vast advances in medical technology since the Roe decision in 1973, but this also sets a dangerous precedent of discrimination on the basis of age and other demographic factors.
     If viability outside the womb remains the standard, the same logic could be applied to those of mental or physical disability or to those of lesser age. This logic would suggest that civil liberties become more potent with age or with demographic, and it is inconsistent with the Foundational principle that all are created equal. The fact remains that the presence of life is not measured in degrees or stages, but in a dichotomy. Life either is or it isn’t.
      While declared the “most pro-Life state in the country,” Arkansas sadly still lives with abortion rates that are too high. According to the Arkansas Department of Health’s 2020 Abortion Report, there were 3,154 babies aborted in the state in 2020, and approximately 36 percent of those seeking an abortion had previously had at least one other abortion.  In 2019, the Department of Health reported 2,963 abortions, meaning the rate increased over six percent in 2020. Legislation is a valuable start, but Republicans must be called to do the work in their homes, their churches and their communities. We must become the resource where the expectant mother has none, and we must become the voice for the child who has none.
    While it remains a global and generational issue, Republicans have been stepping into the halls of Congress, the committee rooms of our state legislature, and the hearings of the highest Court in the land to ensure that all children are granted their right to life. Despite raised statistics, it must be the mission of Arkansas Republicans to speak for the voiceless, because if there is no defense of life, what hope is there for liberty?