Supreme Court’s Mississippi abortion case is a pivotal moment for all who value life

The sound of a baby’s heartbeat in the womb is a sound you will never forget. But every two seconds a baby is aborted, meaning that with every beat of your heart, a baby loses his or her right to life. If that sounds sad and shocking, it’s because it is.

The Supreme Court will hear oral arguments Dec. 1 in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, which is about a Mississippi law that prohibits abortion after 15 weeks. 

Roe v. Wade in 1973 forced every state to legalize abortion before a baby was considered “viable,” which was then assumed to be around 28 weeks but is now around 21 weeks. The Dobbs case will determine if states can protect the lives of children before “viability,” which would strike at the heart of the Roe decision. Just for context, since the Roe v. Wade decision in 1973, more than 50 million babies have been aborted in the US.

Joe Biden is without a doubt the most pro-abortion president in our nation’s history, which is in stark contrast to President Trump, who was the most pro-life president in our nation’s history. 

Pro-life Americans, like me, believe all life has value, no matter how small. As a Christian, I believe all human beings are created in the image of God and have value and worth, but it’s not just my faith that leads me to protect life. It is also science and common sense. 

There is no difference between a child in the womb and a child outside of the womb other than time and development. An infant in my arms is totally dependent, just like an infant in the womb. Millions of people in our nation understand that the court’s decision almost five decades ago was not based on the law or science. Children are children, no matter how small.     

Prior to the court’s ruling in Roe 48 years ago, abortion was legal in a number of states, but not most states. The arbitrary ruling in Roe compelled all states to make elective abortions legal up to viability. 

After viability the court ruled that states could intervene to protect the life of children, which the vast majority of our states have done. But many states, including my own, want to protect all children, not just some. Federal courts literally block our ability enact laws that reflect the will of the people to protect life.

In Oklahoma, as in many other states, if a pregnant mom is killed, both the life of the mother and the child are recognized. But if that very same child was aborted, that child’s life is not recognized. One baby is recognized as a human being and valued, and the other is discarded as an inconvenience or as just a clump of cells. That is absurd. There is nothing different about that child.

Babies in the womb have a heartbeat, 10 fingers, 10 toes, and they can feel pain, even in the womb. If the court finally overturns Roe and rejects the arbitrary viability standard, Oklahomans will choose life for our youngest citizens. Will your state? 

It would be one of the greatest days for the human race if we could end all abortion everywhere and declare in one voice that every life matters. We must stand up for those who cannot speak for themselves. 

The courts rightfully ended “separate but equal” decades ago. Now it is time for the courts to end abortion and put this horrible legal error in our past.