Voters exclude ‘right to abortion’ from state constitution

Voters in Louisiana decisively chose to add Amendment 1 on Election Day to the state’s Declaration of Rights, making it clear that the alleged “right to abortion” is nowhere to be found in the Pelican State’s constitution.

Marking the first time Louisiana voters had the opportunity to directly vote on abortion in any form, an overwhelming 62% of them last week passed the “Love Life Amendment,” scoring a significant victory for a state that predominantly supports the sanctity of human life – especially when it comes to preborn children.

“[N]othing in the state’s constitution shall be construed to secure or protect a right to abortion or require the funding of abortion,” Louisiana Amendment 1 states.

Protecting the preborn in court

In a major blow to radical abortion activists, Planned Parenthood, and the rest of the abortion industry, women will no longer be able to appeal to Louisiana law to support their decision to kill their preborn children.

“This constitutional amendment will prevent courts from finding a ‘right to abortion,’ or to public abortion funding, in the state’s constitution,” Liberty Counsel announced in a press release. “If the U.S. Supreme Court overturns the Roe v. Wade decision, this amendment would ensure against any court ruling that language in the Louisiana constitution grants abortion rights.”

Liberty Counsel founder and chairman Mat Staver saw this passage as a victory for life and a major hurdle in the fight against a practice that has killed more than 61 million preborn children since it was legalized nearly half a century ago.

“I commend the people of Louisiana for fighting for precious babies and passing this ‘Love Life Amendment,'” Staver proclaims in the release. “This is a positive step to awaken the conscience of our nation to the violence of abortion, [and] I am grateful that Louisiana is not afraid to take significant action toward making the womb a safe place again.”

A Democratic state politician – Senator Katrina Jackson – authored the amendment, along with dozens of Republican and Democratic co-sponsors, while serving as a pro-life state representative.

“It’s important to understand that Amendment 1 is not a ban on abortion – it simply keeps abortion policy in the hands of our legislators, rather than state judges,” Jackson declared, according to Liberty Counsel. “Our body of pro-life laws ensure that women are empowered with the truth about their pregnancy prior to an abortion, that minors seeking an abortion have parental consent, and that babies born alive following a botched abortion receive immediate medical care.”

Other states that had direct ballot initiatives establishing no right to abortion via the passage of constitutional amendments are Alabama and West Virginia, while Tennessee also does not provide a right to abortion in its constitution.

Building on a previous win for the preborn

Just last year, legislators won another victory for the pro-life movement, as the Louisiana House of Representatives passed a “heartbeat bill” banning abortions once a preborn child’s heartbeat can be detected in the womb – typically beginning around the sixth week of pregnancy.

It was another state Democrat, Senator John Milkovich, who sponsored that legislation (SB184) – a law that calls for a mother to have an ultrasound before proceeding with an abortion in any form.

“If a fetal heartbeat is detected, [SB184] bans abortion unless – under penalty of perjury – the abortion provider declares the procedure necessary ‘to prevent the death of the pregnant woman or to prevent a serious risk of the substantial and irreversible impairment of a major bodily function of the pregnant woman,'” Liberty Counsel notes.

“The bill also includes an exemption in the case that a physician certifies that the ‘unborn child has a profound and irremediable congenital or chromosomal anomaly that is incompatible with sustaining life after birth.'”

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