The United States is taking a serious look at abortion, but this does not mean pro-life advocates can give a sigh of relief and step aside.
According to the BBC, almost 30 states have begun to add some kind of abortion restriction to their legislature, with 15 of those states using the term “heartbeat bill” specifically.
A “heartbeat bill” bans women from obtaining an abortion after a heartbeat can be detected—about six weeks into the pregnancy, according to USA Today.
This legislation is an enormous positive step for pro-life advocates. Because of this kind of legislation, more unborn children will be protected by law while still in the womb.
But pro-life advocates need to prepare for the effects this kind of bill will have.
Stricter laws on abortion mean there will be more women searching for help with an unexpected pregnancy, more poverty-stricken families unsure how they will financially support a bigger family, and more mothers putting their children up for adoption.
Pro-life advocates need to be the ones to step up and offer support to these women. If they truly value these unborn children, then they need to value them both before and after they are born.
Being pro-life is not the same thing as being pro-birth. Putting these restrictions on abortion without offering support to the mothers who are carrying these children is only half the solution. The other half is offering support and assistance to these women.
According to Children’s Rights, on average there are around 443,000 children in foster care at any given moment. Nearly half a million children live in the United States right now without a permanent home. And with the advancement of anti-abortion bills, that number is likely to continue to rise.
Now is the time for pro-life advocates to step up and take care of these lives they claim to care so much for. Because restricting abortion alone is not going to fix how people view or take care of these children.
If we truly want to be a pro-life nation, we have to be more than just a pro-birth, anti-abortion nation. We have to be a pro-whole-life nation. We have to take care of these children, before they are born and after.
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